2024/2025 Blue Bombers Off-Season Thread

[wbbfan]

https://www.cfl.ca/2025/03/24/mmqb-ranking-the-cfls-top-3-defensive-ends/

 

Another craptastic cfl article, this time from cfl.ca The only one on the list I agree with is Flo. He is the best end in the league. WJ, as we saw in the GC game, can turn it on and play at that level. But he can't nearly maintain that level of play. He's just turned 34, and is far removed from his best days. He makes 200k, and when it comes to maintaining contain, run stopping, motor, finishing tackles and being read he's the worst in the league. 

 He can still jump passing lanes and get a knockdown every other game, and when he turns it on he can really blow your hair back with his pass-rush ability. If we run a decent nose in lawson/woods and severely limit the reps for jake, and don't have a free spot for the opposition OL on the other side of him he can still be really effective. Even more so if we actually rotate willy and keep him to between 40-50% of snaps. But he's a lost step and or an injury away from being done, and he plays a lot now like late stages Elfrid payton. 

 

Mauldin hasn't put up the same sacks since his career year, but he is always around the ball making plays. He covers as much ground as any DE, and is always generating pressures. He makes the guys around him better. My all cfl DL would be flo, ceresna, sayles, and mauldin. 

A lot of guys could be in contention for a 2nd team. A lot of guys struggled last year with the holding that was allowed, and with their teams schemes/talent. Toronto constantly pumps out extremely productive DL because they always put guys together who fit well, and who have extremely high potential. Who ever they plug in you can expect to be near the top of the league every year. 

 

[wbbfan]

https://3downnation.com/2025/03/24/seven-risers-and-fallers-from-the-2025-cfl-combine/
 

one of the guys on that list I like the most is haie. 5’11.5 199 4.65 40  14 reps 36” vert 10’6.5” broad 3.92 shuttle 6.62 3 cone. His relative athletic score is 9.27 out of 10 which is elite by nfl standards. The 4.65 40 is the only hold up. If he ran a 4.49 he’d get a late pick in the nfl. 
 Hes a prodigious teams guy as well. Instantly contributes there, and has sky high potential especially in a system like ours. 
 

I like Pyle too, he’s not a great athlete or an ideal body by any means. But he’s a nasty piece of work with enough tangibles to make it work in the pros. Especially if he can clean up his build while adding a few pounds. 

[rebusrankin]

Very curious to see what we do in the draft. Reports are that there are a lot of good DBs in this draft and that would be a nice place to add.

[wbbfan]

47 minutes ago, rebusrankin said:

Very curious to see what we do in the draft. Reports are that there are a lot of good DBs in this draft and that would be a nice place to add.

Couple really good, really athletic big dbs which is a rarity. Bunch of dl with good size d1 pedigree and questionable measurable. Good chuck of athletic tweeners at de/lber. Some good inside dl who I think will translate well but maybe not high upside.  
 A surprising amount of strong athletes at many positions too actually. 
 

can’t wait to see what we do either. Hoping for 1-2 ol, 1-2 dl, 1 db, 1 wr, maybe a rb. Maybe grab one of the athletic freaks no matter their position who we like best. We are gonna be very well poised to grab a couple guys who can make the roster this year. 

[3rdand1.5]

With the "weaker" o-line group and some really athletic guys across multiple positions I am curious to see who/what is available to us with our first couple picks. Depending on our draft board, we may be able to get one or two of our top o-line choices. I really feel we need to draft a couple guys along the o-line, being considered a "weaker" class this may be a tall task, but after Wallace our pipeline is pretty dry..........

Outside of o-line I think we can look at best athlete

[Booch]

we need to draft guys with potential/ability to take regular snaps and actually push to be a starter...or are a legit back-up and guy we groom...no more of this special team only guys...as its part of the reason why our depth eroded and we had issues fielding healthy guys when it mattered most

Depth as in guys on your roster, as opposed to depth in guys who can contribute on offense/defence with minimal to no drop off are 2 different things....and ours for the latter was trash....hence injured guys played over the "everyone is a starter" back-up and our propensity to play lesser talented guys...(Thomas..Schmeck..Hallets..etc) because...essentially our roster was built poorly and was teamer only heavy in depth

[wbbfan]

58 minutes ago, 3rdand1.5 said:

With the "weaker" o-line group and some really athletic guys across multiple positions I am curious to see who/what is available to us with our first couple picks. Depending on our draft board, we may be able to get one or two of our top o-line choices. I really feel we need to draft a couple guys along the o-line, being considered a "weaker" class this may be a tall task, but after Wallace our pipeline is pretty dry..........

Outside of o-line I think we can look at best athlete

I don't know that it's weaker, I think we don't have those top tier stars, but I think the 2nd and 3rd tier have a lot of depth. It's the kind of OL draft that your scouts earn their money on IMO. You're only gonna take 1, maybe 2 guys for each team, every single team needs to hit an OL. A few teams are going to. I hope we are one of them. 

Yeah, we need it for sure. I agree, I don't think we are locked in to other positions. We don't really have a huge need other wise. PBA / best projectable athlete picks should be our method. But you never know with us. Dl, DB, OL are what I see a lot of value in this draft, that also fits our system. 

29 minutes ago, Booch said:

we need to draft guys with potential/ability to take regular snaps and actually push to be a starter...or are a legit back-up and guy we groom...no more of this special team only guys...as its part of the reason why our depth eroded and we had issues fielding healthy guys when it mattered most

Depth as in guys on your roster, as opposed to depth in guys who can contribute on offense/defence with minimal to no drop off are 2 different things....and ours for the latter was trash....hence injured guys played over the "everyone is a starter" back-up and our propensity to play lesser talented guys...(Thomas..Schmeck..Hallets..etc) because...essentially our roster was built poorly and was teamer only heavy in depth

Yeah, we don't need high floor no ceiling guys. We don't need to be drafting for teams with out the ability to take positional snaps with improvement. 

That is a good point. Maybe our biggest need with NI talent, is guys who can push filler off the roster. I think Canadian depth will be a really good scrap in TC, if they are given the chance to take jobs. 

[GCn20]

58 minutes ago, wbbfan said:

I don't know that it's weaker, I think we don't have those top tier stars, but I think the 2nd and 3rd tier have a lot of depth. It's the kind of OL draft that your scouts earn their money on IMO. You're only gonna take 1, maybe 2 guys for each team, every single team needs to hit an OL. A few teams are going to. I hope we are one of them. 

Yeah, we need it for sure. I agree, I don't think we are locked in to other positions. We don't really have a huge need other wise. PBA / best projectable athlete picks should be our method. But you never know with us. Dl, DB, OL are what I see a lot of value in this draft, that also fits our system. 

Yeah, we don't need high floor no ceiling guys. We don't need to be drafting for teams with out the ability to take positional snaps with improvement. 

That is a good point. Maybe our biggest need with NI talent, is guys who can push filler off the roster. I think Canadian depth will be a really good scrap in TC, if they are given the chance to take jobs. 

We definitely need to get an OL that is capable of being a 6th. After that quality depth would be acceptable.

[Fatty Liver]

16 hours ago, wbbfan said:

Couple really good, really athletic big dbs which is a rarity. Bunch of dl with good size d1 pedigree and questionable measurable. Good chuck of athletic tweeners at de/lber. Some good inside dl who I think will translate well but maybe not high upside.  
 A surprising amount of strong athletes at many positions too actually. 
 

can’t wait to see what we do either. Hoping for 1-2 ol, 1-2 dl, 1 db, 1 wr, maybe a rb. Maybe grab one of the athletic freaks no matter their position who we like best. We are gonna be very well poised to grab a couple guys who can make the roster this year. 

I wonder if they bring back Bret MacDougall for his 3rd TC with the Bombers, 6'-3" 205 lb DB that returned to Windsor Lancers the last 2 seasons, good size and he's still only 23.

https://golancers.ca/sports/football/roster/breton-macdougall/8503

[Booch]

1 hour ago, wbbfan said:

I don't know that it's weaker, I think we don't have those top tier stars, but I think the 2nd and 3rd tier have a lot of depth. It's the kind of OL draft that your scouts earn their money on IMO. You're only gonna take 1, maybe 2 guys for each team, every single team needs to hit an OL. A few teams are going to. I hope we are one of them. 

Yeah, we need it for sure. I agree, I don't think we are locked in to other positions. We don't really have a huge need other wise. PBA / best projectable athlete picks should be our method. But you never know with us. Dl, DB, OL are what I see a lot of value in this draft, that also fits our system. 

Yeah, we don't need high floor no ceiling guys. We don't need to be drafting for teams with out the ability to take positional snaps with improvement. 

That is a good point. Maybe our biggest need with NI talent, is guys who can push filler off the roster. I think Canadian depth will be a really good scrap in TC, if they are given the chance to take jobs. 

it's hurt our depth....guys who can play legit reps...can also play teams....and some better than these teams only guys we got so fixated on

[WinnipegGordo]

 

 

[wbbfan]

2 hours ago, Booch said:

it's hurt our depth....guys who can play legit reps...can also play teams....and some better than these teams only guys we got so fixated on

Certainly, and imagine the upper-level talent we could've hit on after the 19 gc if we hadn't focused on high floor, ceiling teams guys? Especially since many of those guys didn't get much of a look even with in their niche. 

3 hours ago, Fatty Liver said:

I wonder if they bring back Bret MacDougall for his 3rd TC with the Bombers, 6'-3" 205 lb DB that returned to Windsor Lancers the last 2 seasons, good size and he's still only 23.

https://golancers.ca/sports/football/roster/breton-macdougall/8503

Wouldn't be surprised. Also don't particularly have any expectations for him. 

[Goalie]

51 minutes ago, WinnipegGordo said:

 

 

Beside Spencers last time. The old gangster clothes store. 

[JuranBoldenRules]

7 hours ago, 3rdand1.5 said:

With the "weaker" o-line group and some really athletic guys across multiple positions I am curious to see who/what is available to us with our first couple picks. Depending on our draft board, we may be able to get one or two of our top o-line choices. I really feel we need to draft a couple guys along the o-line, being considered a "weaker" class this may be a tall task, but after Wallace our pipeline is pretty dry..........

Outside of o-line I think we can look at best athlete

I'd expect to get 3-4 guys who can play this year.  The OL group is probably the deepest since 2019.  Talking about guys who will end up in the CFL.  There's a **** load of good edge/3 technique guys for DL.  Including the BYU guy who has potential to drop into a spot where he'd be a real steal based on how he's turned off the personnel guys in both leagues.  There's a ton of very good DB's.  There's a solid receiver group, although some guys in both receiver/DB group might get a good look in the NFL.

I kind of wonder what other teams are prioritizing.  There's a chance for the Bombers in the first round, remembering BC's pick is off the board and added back to the end of the 1st round to Calgary, to grab a real impactful DL, a OL who could play this year, or a starting receiver IMO.  Like if I'm Walters and our pick comes around, Ethan Jordan still on the board, don't think I could pass on him.  That guy is a star.

[rebusrankin]

16 minutes ago, JuranBoldenRules said:

I'd expect to get 3-4 guys who can play this year.  The OL group is probably the deepest since 2019.  Talking about guys who will end up in the CFL.  There's a **** load of good edge/3 technique guys for DL.  Including the BYU guy who has potential to drop into a spot where he'd be a real steal based on how he's turned off the personnel guys in both leagues.  There's a ton of very good DB's.  There's a solid receiver group, although some guys in both receiver/DB group might get a good look in the NFL.

I kind of wonder what other teams are prioritizing.  There's a chance for the Bombers in the first round, remembering BC's pick is off the board and added back to the end of the 1st round to Calgary, to grab a real impactful DL, a OL who could play this year, or a starting receiver IMO.  Like if I'm Walters and our pick comes around, Ethan Jordan still on the board, don't think I could pass on him.  That guy is a star.

So you feel he's the next star Canadian WR?

Interesting choice, Demski is aging and I like Clercius but he seems more solid Canadian than future superstar (not that there's anything wrong with that)

[Fatty Liver]

1 hour ago, rebusrankin said:

So you feel he's the next star Canadian WR?

Interesting choice, Demski is aging and I like Clercius but he seems more solid Canadian than future superstar (not that there's anything wrong with that)

Could be Cory Watsonish, but hopefully more durable.

[M.Silverback]

15 hours ago, JuranBoldenRules said:

I'd expect to get 3-4 guys who can play this year.  The OL group is probably the deepest since 2019.  Talking about guys who will end up in the CFL.  There's a **** load of good edge/3 technique guys for DL.  Including the BYU guy who has potential to drop into a spot where he'd be a real steal based on how he's turned off the personnel guys in both leagues.  There's a ton of very good DB's.  There's a solid receiver group, although some guys in both receiver/DB group might get a good look in the NFL.

I kind of wonder what other teams are prioritizing.  There's a chance for the Bombers in the first round, remembering BC's pick is off the board and added back to the end of the 1st round to Calgary, to grab a real impactful DL, a OL who could play this year, or a starting receiver IMO.  Like if I'm Walters and our pick comes around, Ethan Jordan still on the board, don't think I could pass on him.  That guy is a star.

I watched a lot of RSEQ football again this past season. Not as many high end prospects coming out of there this year as previously. However, I'd be shocked if Jeremiah Ojo doesn't turn into at least a solid rotational DL in the CFL. Tested really well at the combine, and was really dominant in RSEQ. He reminds me of Josh Archibald, who is now with the Alouettes, but I'd say he's quicker.  If Kyle Walters is reading this, pick him, and you're welcome. 

[3rdand1.5]

Wallace has for all intent and purpose impressed at every opportunity he has been afforded since being drafted. I don't recall last year was he a highly sought after? He, if I remember was our third pick late in the second round?? 

As has been hashed over many times most people have good hope for MCI and Clercius. IF Wallace continues to show growth and MCI develops into something for us, I would think we will look back and consider last year's draft a success from virtually every metric, just based on those three........My hope is we can get another Wallace...yes, I know easier said than done.....

IF we can grab another O-lineman with solid potential, I think we look decent with our CDN talent. DL, LB, DB based on best athlete available which all seem to be fairly solid positions in this year's draft with at least one Ol in our top three is gravy...

Honestly remember the old days of how our drafts looked......a draft result like we saw last year would have been unfathomable, now our expectations are that's our floor.....

[bigg jay]

35 minutes ago, 3rdand1.5 said:

Wallace has for all intent and purpose impressed at every opportunity he has been afforded since being drafted. I don't recall last year was he a highly sought after? He, if I remember was our third pick late in the second round?? 

He was fairly highly regarded.  The CFL had him as their #2 ranked player in the fall before he started to slide (#6 in the winter & # 12 in the spring).  We got him at 17 so a bit of a steal when you figure a few of the guys rated higher would be getting NFL looks.  FWIW, Ferguson had him going 3rd in his final mock draft while Hodge had him going 4th in his first mock (16th in his 2nd).

[GCn20]

13 minutes ago, bigg jay said:

He was fairly highly regarded.  The CFL had him as their #2 ranked player in the fall before he started to slide (#6 in the winter & # 12 in the spring).  We got him at 17 so a bit of a steal when you figure a few of the guys rated higher would be getting NFL looks.  FWIW, Ferguson had him going 3rd in his final mock draft while Hodge had him going 4th in his first mock (16th in his 2nd).

Wallace's slide was due to uncertainty about the level of NFL interest there would be in him IIRC. Not sure if it's been mentioned yet but Walters indicated that we would be going 3 IMP at OL to start the season as well in an interview on the Bomber site, in the article CFL Combine Day 1. Personally, I think this will be a good move and allows Wallace to break in a little more slowly.

Edited Wednesday at 04:50 PM by GCn20

[bigg jay]

13 minutes ago, GCn20 said:

Wallace's slide was due to uncertainty about the level of NFL interest there would be in him IIRC. Not sure if it's been mentioned yet but Walters indicated that we would be going 3 IMP at OL to start the season as well in an interview on the Bomber site, in the article CFL Combine Day 1. Personally, I think this will be a good move and allows Wallace to break in a little more slowly.

Sliding in the draft and sliding in the rankings are 2 different things though & he slid in both.  If there was legit NFL interest, his ranking would have gone up, not down.  There were a couple knocks on him (weight and foot speed) but nothing that couldn't be improved on over time.  It was also a deep draft after a bunch of players deferred from 2023 - he probably would have gone higher in other years.  Whatever the reason, I'm glad he fell far enough for us to grab him!

[3rdand1.5]

Thanks for the info, regarding Wallace......It's nice to have a place where people have knowledge top of head and are willing to share!

 

Here is to the hope another Wallace falls to us...Could someone on here who follows closer and has a better knowledge base of mine regarding the O-line prospects break down what they think of expected top O-lineman in this draft?

 

[CrazyCanuck89]

I honestly think you guys take Veresuk in the 1st.  He's 240lbs and moves well.  Plus Gauthier can't play forever and Veresuk has a high upside.

[bigg jay]

Bombers were one of the 4 CFL teams to be on hand to check out Ali Saad.

Canadian DL Ali Saad tests for 25 NFL teams, four CFL teams at Bowling Green pro day - 3DownNation

 

[Booch]

Wallace in my opinion is going to be the best O-line guy from that draft when all said and done...The professional coaching he has had already has advanced him so much...and from all I have heard he is a sponge and just "gets it" immediately...and....the bigger part he puts in the work for his craft

Not saying that because he is a Bomber drafted guy....Just based on what has been seen....and things talked about

If we get lucky and the kid who went to Detroit gets here....we will have grabbed the 2 highest upside oline guys in that draft