Banjo Bowl early thread

[wbbfan]

6 minutes ago, 17to85 said:

So I can find the logic in the invisible man Bennett being rostered, I can see the logic in a lot of what they do, but for the life of me I can not see the logic in using a roster spot on Jackson at all. He can't take meaningful reps on either offense or defense and neither is he some kind of indispensable special teamer... just don't know what he bring to this roster. 

To be fair we have often wasted a di on offence. Remember Flanders being a di over and over again not to see the field once? 
 Wonder if Hansen is staying on the ir. That’d be really weird after two weeks of full practices.

[MOBomberFan]

3 minutes ago, wbbfan said:

Watch him get poached by another team now. 9-3 roster management. 9 bad moves 3 good ones.  

Assuming he actually accepted a potential offer from another team, couldn't we just pull him off the PR onto the active roster to scuttle the deal? I'm pretty sure the team with rights to the player gets a chance to prevent the poach by playing them

[17to85]

I just see a team that could use meaningful depth on the DL pretty badly and they refuse to make the changes to get it. 

[bearpants]

16 minutes ago, HardCoreBlue said:

Bench rah rah guy?

don't need to be dressed to do that...

16 minutes ago, wbbfan said:

To be fair we have often wasted a di on offence. Remember Flanders being a di over and over again not to see the field once? 
 Wonder if Hansen is staying on the ir. That’d be really weird after two weeks of full practices.

there was a receiver last year (name slipping my mind... Tavaris Harrison??) who DI'd for two consecutive games and I don't think he played a single snap in any phase of the game

6 minutes ago, 17to85 said:

I just see a team that could use meaningful depth on the DL pretty badly and they refuse to make the changes to get it. 

I can't help but imagine what a 4th quarter Jeffcoat would look like when he's only played 60% of the snaps up to that point

[Goldkobra]

49 minutes ago, HardCoreBlue said:

Bench rah rah guy?

He could do that in street clothes

[Brandon]

1 hour ago, 17to85 said:

So I can find the logic in the invisible man Bennett being rostered, I can see the logic in a lot of what they do, but for the life of me I can not see the logic in using a roster spot on Jackson at all. He can't take meaningful reps on either offense or defense and neither is he some kind of indispensable special teamer... just don't know what he bring to this roster. 

He brings grit?   

[Booch]

I can see the logic about a Bennett...and a few others cause we have horrible depth behind some premiere starters who are slowly being ground to a pulp again....but in my opinion thats not logic...just settling for mediocrity...

No reason whatsoever for Jackson being rostered when we had a true full back on the roster, who just got benched now for a receiver who will not see a snap unless 2 guys went down, and even then I'd prefer we go to a jumbo, or use BO and JA together.....and if Osh puts Murphy in to take snaps away from one of our Canadian starters, or ahead of BOLO just to justify his rostering....that there too is just garbage management.

Why Haba isnt on is baffling....and to the PR so he doesn't even get a game cheque as opposed to the 1 game as well is just dumb....If he agrees to someone poaching him...why would he refuse...as he would immediately be rostered...he owes us nothing....and sadly if it came down to it, and Osh had to pr Jackson and roster Haba to keep him...we all know that Haba would be wearing new colors this weekend....and this narrative that he not ready...or still kncked is garbage...I seen him in practice and he just fine, and thats not how thigs work....you don't PR "injured" guys

Hopefully Hansen then gets on and takes some load off the Jeff's as they are slowly becoming less a factor, but alas won't hold breath on that either....I sure Osh will have a smug excuse of a non answer to not have him on roster, and we will get oodles of Mauro...Bennett and Thomas poaching reps and being non impactful out there...again

Not finding a way to roster a true returner...who was in a camp this yr, so knows u from down...again dumb....What if Parkr gets hurt now...who comes in???..a starter on defence to return...or demski?...and risk injury there?...If it's a starting DB and they get hurt then we really hoped as we have no depth there whatsoever.....other than some foot soldiers who practice real hard..and guys like seeing that....but also have no reason to be taking starter reps.....don't care what anyone says...our roster management and makeup is horrendous, I dont care if we won a cup 2 yrs ago, cause back then we had some depth...now we don't....sure hope Osh throws a curve and surprises us this morning with his depth chart....But I ain't holding my breath

44 minutes ago, bearpants said:

don't need to be dressed to do that...

there was a receiver last year (name slipping my mind... Tavaris Harrison??) who DI'd for two consecutive games and I don't think he played a single snap in any phase of the game

I can't help but imagine what a 4th quarter Jeffcoat would look like when he's only played 60% of the snaps up to that point

you are correct about Harris...and then this yr that olineman we dressed...who sask scoped...then Hamilton scooped....i dont think he even brought his helmet out lol

Snd we can dream to wonder what a fresh rotation of the Jeff's and Haba..or Garbutt....would look like and do for us late in games....cause in the last 3...4...they just not able to do much cause they gassed...or they have to play with some scrubs who take zero load off them

[17to85]

4 minutes ago, Booch said:

don't care what anyone says...our roster management and makeup is horrendous

This is an over reaction. It's not horrendous,  it's a couple questionable moves. If you can make a move or two and all is well it's not horrendous. 

[Booch]

2 minutes ago, 17to85 said:

This is an over reaction. It's not horrendous,  it's a couple questionable moves. If you can make a move or two and all is well it's not horrendous. 

no its not....we lucky we had some premiere starters who could over come it....U tell me any coach n the league who wastes a DA spot on a full back....doesnt use the Nationalized rule basically just because......and has a PR of guys who would make no impact on the roster....doesn't roster a true returner even tho their return game blows...dresses guys who don't see a snap......I will wait for the parallels elsewhere

[rebusrankin]

Jefferson has gone 5 games without a sack and Jeffcoat is at 4 games without but yeah we don't need a third rotational DE. A jack of all trades, no impact FB is better use.

[17to85]

35 minutes ago, Booch said:

no its not....we lucky we had some premiere starters who could over come it....U tell me any coach n the league who wastes a DA spot on a full back....doesnt use the Nationalized rule basically just because......and has a PR of guys who would make no impact on the roster....doesn't roster a true returner even tho their return game blows...dresses guys who don't see a snap......I will wait for the parallels elsewhere

There is a difference between horrendous and sub-optimal. 

[Goldkobra]

It's a shame that oshea seems to not want to do a coaches duty. I'd hate to see a Jag with a cool backstory be his downfall. 

[Goalie]

Not to sound like a scratched CD but why ohhhhhh whyyyy do we insist on killing the Jeffs. Cuz Bennett is lost out there. We essentially are handicapping our roster on purpose each week. I really don't understand why 

Bennett rarely plays,  Thomas was done last year. So basically our 4 DL guts play all game long

Edited September 8, 2023 by Goalie

[Wideleft]

Bombers big names not concerned about lack of individual production

By: Taylor AllenPosted: 7:30 PM CDT Thursday, Sep. 7, 2023

 

Some of the biggest names on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers have been held in check in recent weeks.

Defensive end Willie Jefferson hit the ground running this season with eight sacks in the first seven games. Since then, he’s gone five straight contests without taking down a quarterback.

It’s only the second time he’s gone that long without a sack since joining the Bombers in 2019. It also happened for a stretch in 2022.

Jefferson didn’t even record a tackle in last weekend’s 32-30 Labour Day loss in Regina.

 

The Bombers and Saskatchewan Roughriders meet again this Saturday in the annual Banjo Bowl matchup at IG Field at 3 p.m.

“They can be beat. Like we really left a lot of stuff on the field,” said Jefferson after Thursday’s closed practice. “For me, communication wise, operation wise, we could’ve done a lot more. We’re glad we get the opportunity to play them again this week, back at our house with the noise on our side.”

It’s the same story on the opposite end of the D-line as Jackson Jeffcoat, a fellow Texan who has four sacks in 2023, hasn’t added to his total in the last four games. He’s had two instances in his CFL career where he was shut out for five games (2017 and 2022) and he’s in jeopardy of having that happen for a third time.

“They’re getting the ball out of the quarterback’s hands fast and they’re not giving us a chance to get to the quarterback,” said Jefferson.

“It’s just offensive co-ordinators trying to do their best to get us out of the game.”

Jeffcoat is quick to point out that it’s opened up the middle. Veteran defensive tackle Jake Thomas (five) has tied his career high for sacks through 12 games, and fellow DTs Ricky Walker and Cam Lawson have both chipped in with three a piece. Linebacker Adam Bighill also has four sacks to his name with two of them coming on Sunday.

“They’re blocking us with two people, three people. I’m not saying they’re making it hard, they’re just getting the ball out fast and they’re making sure we’re not getting one on ones which is fine because the guys in the middle will make their plays,” said Jeffcoat.

“I mean, it doesn’t frustrate me. That’s how it is.”

Wide receiver Kenny Lawler can relate to the two star defenders as his numbers have also taken a dip in recent weeks. He’s had just two catches in each of the last four games for a total of 182 yards and two touchdowns. He had more yards, 200, in Week 9’s 50-14 home victory over the B.C. Lions then he’s had all last month.

The Bombers have tried to get him the ball as he’s been targeted 21 times since the B.C. game.

“You can’t beat yourself up about it… If it doesn’t come to me, I know it’s going to go to someone else and someone’s going to make a play. That’s just how I have to think. I can’t let my emotions get the best of me just because when it is my time, I might be too caught up on the play that I didn’t make and that might potentially take away from the play I’m about to make so that’s my outlook,” said Lawler.

“After the game when I had 200 yards, coach O’Shea told all the media that it’s not always going to look like that, and it’s not going to always look like that for me. I’m not always going to have a 200-yard game, I might not have a 100-yard game, but I know what my presence on the field does. I impact the defence and they need to know where I’m at at all times.”

 

Star kick returner Janarion Grant was running sprints last week at practice. Despite that, it could be a few more weeks until he’s back playing as the Bombers have extended him on the injured list until October. An ankle injury has kept him out since July 7.

Greg McCrae failed to fill his shoes, and defensive back Jamal Parker didn’t fare much better on Labour Day.

Parker gave up two rouges on punts against Saskatchewan and averaged 8.1 yards on his seven punt returns. McCrae was sent down to the practice roster Wednesday to make room for linebacker Malik Clements who’s back from injury.

“I was told to do exactly that. The only one that I’d probably want back is there was a shorter punt that I let hit the ground and we kind of lost yards. That’s truly the only one I want back, but the other two, I just did my job, honestly, with the points,” said Parker.

Parker is coming off a strong rookie season where he started eight regular season games as well as the West Division final and Grey Cup. He took reps at corner and halfback and recorded 37 tackles, a sack and an interception.

He’s been unable to build off of that as he picked up an injury in the pre-season finale which led to him starting the year on the six-game injured list. Parker has zero starts on defence in 2023.

“We got a deep room. We got a lot of good guys, so, you understand,” said Parker.

“Whenever my time is to play defence again, I’ll be ready. But until then, I’m gonna star in my role.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Bombers big names not concerned about lack of individual production – Winnipeg Free Press

[Stickem]

Haba to the pr.........shhhhh maybe nobody notices....Sometimes I wonder if OSH hasn't had a stroke.....If we lose this guy from a position desperately needed on this club, I'm going to be some pi$$ed off

[Mike]

56 minutes ago, 17to85 said:

This is an over reaction. It's not horrendous,  it's a couple questionable moves. If you can make a move or two and all is well it's not horrendous. 

No coach I’d rather have than O’Shea, but I’m with Booch … his roster management is horrendous. I’m not concerned with how good we’re doing, I’m concerned with how we could be doing so much better.

It’s almost comical in a way because everything that Booch and I have been saying all year is more or less exactly what has happened, but people still want to make excuses for it.

We said key injuries with improper use of the practice roster will lead to us not being able to replace guys adequately - look at Janarion Grant. We said not having a proper rotation on the DL will gas Willie/Jeffcoat - they haven’t had a sack in forever and are visibly gassed. We said rostering a bunch of special teams bodies in lieu of some actual defensive depth may cost us a game down the road - look at how gassed our D was in Ottawa, even if you want to put the blame for the L in other areas.

This roster management has been atrocious all year. Do I want O’Shea fired? No. Do I want someone to tell him that he needs to wake up and start doing a better job of it? Yes please. And don’t start up with this “he knows more about football than we could ever know” stuff, there’s a reason every single head coach gets fired at some point and it’s because they’re people just like us - with weak points, biases and blind spots that affect them just as they affect other human beings. 

[Bubba Zanetti]

You would think Walters has been seeing what were seeing. He's not blind. Would he not talk to O'Shea about it?!?

[Goalie]

3 minutes ago, Bubba Zanetti said:

You would think Walters has been seeing what were seeing. He's not blind. Would he not talk to O'Shea about it?!?

Maybe osh is actually above Kyle on the pecking order. I'd be a little frustrated tho. All Kyle I guess Can do is bring players in, guess its up to osh to play them. Is hall ok with this ?

Edited September 8, 2023 by Goalie

[Mike]

3 minutes ago, Bubba Zanetti said:

You would think Walters has been seeing what were seeing. He's not blind. Would he not talk to O'Shea about it?!?

I would be surprised if Walters (probably more so Danny Mac or Ted) aren’t maybe a little frustrated.

All that work scouting in the off-season really not getting much chance to show off in season this year.

[Noeller]

3 minutes ago, Goalie said:

Maybe osh is actually above Kyle on the pecking order. I'd be a little frustrated tho. All Kyle I guess Can do is bring players in, guess its up to osh to play them. 

We have no reason to believe that. Everything we've ever seen is that Osh, Walters and Wade do things in lockstep. Not saying that's still the case but that's the only rea evidence we have.

Edited September 8, 2023 by Noeller

[Goalie]

Then it comes down to complacency and favoritism 

[voodoochylde]

5 minutes ago, Noeller said:

We have no reason to believe that. Everything we've ever seen is that Osh, Walters and Wade do things in lockstep. Not saying that's still the case but that's the only rea evidence we have.

Not lockstep per se but they respect the boundaries of each position and allow them to do their jobs without interference.  That's the key thing that's made our turnaround possible.  

O'Shea's first few seasons weren't stellar and there was a lot of the typical knee jerk stuff being posted on various forums.   Miller stayed the course.   Walters stayed the course.   They allowed coach to grow, build and develop the culture we have now.  It's paid huge dividends in terms of our competitiveness and respectability as an organization.

That said (and as other's have noted) O'Shea has always made a few head scratching decisions that gives us fodder to keep chewing on.

[17to85]

14 minutes ago, Mike said:

No coach I’d rather have than O’Shea, but I’m with Booch … his roster management is horrendous. I’m not concerned with how good we’re doing, I’m concerned with how we could be doing so much better.

It’s almost comical in a way because everything that Booch and I have been saying all year is more or less exactly what has happened, but people still want to make excuses for it.

We said key injuries with improper use of the practice roster will lead to us not being able to replace guys adequately - look at Janarion Grant. We said not having a proper rotation on the DL will gas Willie/Jeffcoat - they haven’t had a sack in forever and are visibly gassed. We said rostering a bunch of special teams bodies in lieu of some actual defensive depth may cost us a game down the road - look at how gassed our D was in Ottawa, even if you want to put the blame for the L in other areas.

This roster management has been atrocious all year. Do I want O’Shea fired? No. Do I want someone to tell him that he needs to wake up and start doing a better job of it? Yes please. And don’t start up with this “he knows more about football than we could ever know” stuff, there’s a reason every single head coach gets fired at some point and it’s because they’re people just like us - with weak points, biases and blind spots that affect them just as they affect other human beings. 

Horrendous, atrocious,  these are the issues I have. It's hyperbole. It could be better but it's not ad bad as all that. You guys have different ideas and that's fine, but just because it's different doesn't make it horrendous.

[Goalie]

Killing the jeffs, no replacement for grant for 6 weeks 7 cuz God forbid we play the new guy, haba to pr, Jackson still rostered, 6 dl and 3 pretty much play all game,

(Bennett is awful, Thomas is old but gets reps ) dressing 20 lbs, the special teams scheme   

 

There's a few questionable decisions 

Kramdi starting over an American. 

There's a few. 

It's not just 1 or 2. 

Edited September 8, 2023 by Goalie

[17to85]

You know what was a bigger issue than the D getting tired later in the game? 0 passing yards and 0 completed passes in the first quarter. I don't care what the roster looks like that is unacceptable.