Leaderboard

Fun to sit and watch practice today... Been about 20 years since I was last able. With respect to the late great Randy Turner, the king of Odds and Sods writing.... here's some thoughts: -All jokes aside, Jake Thomas looks like he's lost at least 30lbs and maybe 10 years. Not sure it'll translate but he gave himself a chance. -There were a number of guys who I thought looked leaner (Adams the DL and Wallace, notably) and I wonder if there's a concerted effort by Brendan the trainer to get guys faster this year -Makonzo got hurt. Wasnt carted off, but he landed awkwardly in coverage and came up favouring his wrist. Didn't look good. -Mitchell looks very smooth and runs good routes. -If Vaughters can stay healthy, he is just an absolute load. He and Willie would be very hard to handle. That said, they were doing a drill to see who could get off the line fastest without being offsides and Jake beat Vaughters and was giving him a hard time. We'll call that a one off. -Both Zach and Strev looked good, tho Strev had a couple brain cramps. One under thrown ball that he was immediately angry about and I think a botched run play that he took the heat for. Patterson definitely has a rifle arm... Accuracy is the question. - I have hopes for Keric Wheatfall to take another step this year. -Our LB corps, as already noted, is very very deep and the coaches have a lot of options. People were shifting around a lot but packages with Kyrie at MACK was interesting. -Watched a lot of OL/DL 1v1... OL wasn't terrible, though it seemed like there would be holding calls on a number of plays. DL are just so much faster and you're trying to not get put on roller skates. Thought Wallace showed very well and some of the Americans like Randolph, Vanterpool and Lofton as well. In the reps we saw, we didn't think Neufeld looked very good. It was a bit concerning watching him get "walked" by a few DL. -Its very impressive what Mike Benson does. He really whips that ball and it is so deadly accurate. -Coaches are all very engaged and animated. Osh was hollering pretty good at one point about a missed tackle "You gotta have that!!" Richie, JY, Costello, among others, very very active and involved. -Stan and Willie are both basically coaches. They do a lot of teaching. That's just a few thoughts. I didn't take notes or anything.. just tried to enjoy the sunshine and being at the barn again. I love the CFL, I love the Bombers, and I love Manitoba summers.... It's great to be home.

Went to practice this morning. Nothing ground breaking to report. Thought the running back 36, smaller American guy looked solid. Really effective blocker in the one on ones. Imo play of the day was made by Corcorcan(can't remember how to spell his name, but the wr they drafted this year). He is slow...there's no doubt about it. But he went up and made a great play on an under thrown ball that should have been intercepted. Schoen looked like himself out there. No brace on. No lack of speed etc. Routes were as sharp as ever. Talked to him after the practice and he said he was feeling great and anxious to get back out there. He was great with my son too. Talked to him a bit and gave an autograph. Sergio is the man...he came right up to my boy (who was wearing his schoen jersey) and talked a bit, then said he'd introduce him to Schoen after practice. Which he did. Needless to say, we had a great morning!

Tait says Schoen a full participant today for the first time. Huzzah.

Hey @Booch, I found your new homescreen pic.

If there’s one player—just one—in the entire Canadian Football League who absolutely screams 'poster boy for performance-enhancing drugs,' it’s got to be Zachary J. Collaros. I mean, the sheer physical dominance, the unstoppable power, the jaw-dropping speed... it’s almost too obvious, right?

Well the 2019 team was 3-5 with Streveler starting and 4-0 with Collaros starting. So he had some impact. D wasn't getting it done by themselves, they got smacked around pretty bad in majority of games after Nichols went down. Probably don't get to any of the post-19 Grey Cups if you don't host the West Final. Matt Nichols never hosted a West Final. Buck Pierce, Kevin Glenn and Khari Jones hosted 1 East Final each. Collaros has hosted 4. Good to have some perspective. The only comparison that will matter in the end is Dru Brown from 2024 on vs Collaros from 2024 on.

Zach suspended for the first game is perfect. Now his complete collapse at the end of the season will be delayed by one week! That means he'll dominate the Grey Cup and then crumble at the parade. He'll cut his thumb shotgunning beers, fumble the cup, fall off the back of the truck.

Yessir, 2 hours. I can't wait to set Doug up to rant about Collaros's suspension. He's going to light it on fire again!

I can't pay writers for new material all the time.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers bring back longtime DB Brandon Alexander as guest coach - 3DownNation

Winnipeg Blue Bombers post 2024 operating profit of $7 million – Winnipeg Free Press A profit increase of over 20% from 2023 despite having more expenses last year.

I say this every year, but thank you VERY much to those of you who follow Junior/CIS/NCAA and can provide some input on the prospects. It's greatly appreciated!

I hate the off season

Yep. Ayers is my biggest worry. That kid has soo much potential, work ethic and desire. He makes plays few people in football can pull off. Be it on teams or D. We gotta keep polishing that kid. If he half fulfills what he’s capable of, he’s the best defensive player in the league. Idk how many times we’ve seen guys who are that level of disruptive, but it’s been really rare for us.

Yeah. Second to injuries, (and rider wins) the thing I hate most in sports is wasted talent. Hope he manages to get him self sorted and back to where he needs to play. it’s been a lot of adjustments and trials of different combos. I don’t think Lofton has practiced much at all. Randolph has looked better than Lofton last year though imo. Hes settled into rt nicely. Vanterpool has taken a nice step forward in general. Wallace has been good. Saw him get beat off the line couple times but recover really well. Think that’s why he got a run at rt. He’s lost 15-20 from his pro day time and he hasn’t lost strength. Run block wise, he’s our best bet at guard imo. Pass pro, he’s worth growing with at this point. Eli is pretty much the usual. Much better at C than G, though playing beside the other Cs he was better than with kola. They really like vibert, and I could see him getting groomed on the pr for a year. Hes a nasty inside guy who can snap a bit and be groomed into a back up C pretty easily. Realistically could be a 6th ol in the league this year from what I’ve seen. Gets off the ball well, strong with a good base, nasty type we always like. Neuf looks significantly more mobile than he did all of last year. More explosive than he’s been in a while. If he stays healthy he should be as good as you’d hope. Among the other rookie imps, Atkinson is a throw back body style. He’s thick and strong and significantly heavier than his listed weight. He’s aggressive and got some good attribute's, but he looks like a straight up guard in need of polish. Which doesn’t happen up here. elsbury has the measurables and it shows on the field, but he’s raw. Reminds me of Randolph last year. I like Hemphills upside, he’s more polished and probably the best of the zone run blockers among the imports. I could see us easily keeping 1-2 imp ol on the pr and 1 ni, and probably another guy on the ir. Best ol imo: Bryant Neuf Eli vanterpool Randolph. realistically, we are gonna start kola if healthy and I don’t think we have the ratio at this point to go 3 imps with our hurting the d and teams. Bryant Neuf kola Wallace Randolph with Eli as the 6th is likely. I wouldn’t be surprised to see more Wallace at RT. I could see a world where we go 4ni ol with vibert on the ar and Wallace at RT easier than I can see us going 4 imp ol. If that happened, it’d be best to slide Neuf to his side to give him more help. Over all I like our ol crop, could still use more Canadian talent as always, we likely have to face more struggles with change though. Guys needs to gel, and take some lumps as starters at their positions. But that is coming for us no matter what. It’s a good time to move forward with young guys and build in near future replacements for Neuf and Bryant.

I hear Jake will be starting in 2125. I am planning to upload my consciousness to the Internet so it can complain about this.

Did that cause Nasty Nate to appear?

Winnipeg Blue Bombers sign sixth overall 2025 CFL Draft pick Connor Shay - 3DownNation

Quick Hits | Rookie Camp - Day 2 - Winnipeg Blue Bombers I am rooting for Bailey now.

The Bombers bankroll the U16 and U18 provincial teams along with camps run all winter and spring in preparation, and not just for the more elite group who end up making those teams. Also U12 and U14 academy programs on top of that. In addition to bankrolling WHSFL league operations, supporting RMFL and supplying all minor football programs, some more than others based on need. They've been running a flag program for a long time. Both at indoor soccer facility and a summer program. I'd bet amateur football in MB would shrink by half if the Bombers pulled back. It costs way less to run a high school program now than when I played because of their support, like by 1/3.

Ba calls it a career. https://3downnation.com/2025/03/09/veteran-bombers-db-brandon-alexander-announces-retirement-from-cfl/ 8 years strong with 1 professional team. To the Blue Bombers that gave me a chance to play ball again I’m grateful and hopefully every day of my 8 years, I showed how grateful I was/am for that opportunity. My teammates/fans over that period of time made it easy to go to put it on the line everyday. I can’t thank the fans enough that accepted me into your home of Winnipeg, Manitoba. You’ve seen me start my career as a 23-year-old young adult. Always stood behind me and watched me grow into the football player y’all loved to cheer for. Winnipeg only shines because you all put the lights in and on the stadium. I will miss the love I’ve felt over the years. #1 fanbase in the CFL without a doubt. And to my teammates, ya’ll already know what it is. Too many memories were given to me that I will carry for the rest of my life. Can’t replace that. “Love y’all boys.” 37 out”

https://www.bluebombers.com/2025/05/24/game-day-hq-preseason-1/ players and positions to watch; qb, ofc. Is strevy rusty? Is zach healthy? How does hogans play call and management look? ol, two open spots and an open battle at G for imp or ni. Randolph at rt and Wallace at G are the guys to watch. wr battle, the 3 free agents are all guys to watch. At dl, has adams progressed? Bailey and person are big ones to watch. I expect a lot from the starters with vaughters. lber is the deepest battle in camp. The Canadians, will Ayers step up and which jones wins out? Secondary, will griffin take a starting job, Parker at S, Gowan vs bridges on the corner and rookie vaval has had a good camp. punter and the wide open kr job will be great to see too.

1 Quinton Cooley. Boy he looked good pass catching and running 2 vaval and cam Allen. Both played very well. 3 adams ton of plays inside and out against starters and backups hh Evan’s 56 yard punt. Boy what a leg that kid has honourable mentions to Jonathon jones pointer person Ayers and Sergio. On the ol Wallace was good, vanterpool and Randolph looked really good post of the game is piggy 1 who hooked us up yet he working link which was more than the cfl or tsn could muster for almost a half.

57-18 record as a Bomber, 2 grey cup wins, 5 grey cup appearances. The greatest era in my entire lifetime. I’m going to reserve judgment until I see the numbers but if Zach wants to keep playing, and he’s willing to give up some money by us extending him now I would say this is perfectly fine, curious to see how our new OC uses him, with a healthy Schoen and a deeper (maybe not as top end talented) receiving core I’m hoping we can get a little bit of a bounce back year from Zach.

Holy crap, I literally just typed ourbombers.com into my browser this morning by accident.

I think we’re a bit thrown off by what this draft might do to our ratio and I would’ve taken Findlay over Jaylen Smith too but if I really sit down and think about it, the idea of playing Brady, Demski, Clercius, 2 OL and then having two Canadians flying around at all times is something I like the sound of. Kramdi, Shay, Smith has some real signs of versatility written all over it. Can do a lot with that and Lawson in the middle. Truly.

Some bombers visited rankin inlet, gabe Wallace included. Boy, he is looking lean and mean. He was 6’6 350+ in college. Came to camp 330-340 with a decent belly still. Now he looks like a stunt double for the mountain. Doesn’t look like he just lost weight either, looks like he put on some lean mass. Can’t wait to see what he brings this year.

Miller was the most important part and the key driver on turning what was a former embarrassing mess around...bar none...and doesnt get the credit he deserves on the culture and how we do business....from ball boy to Prez... It all comes from his original blue print and whom and what he put in place to get it done. Easily was the most significant and franchise changing hire...probably ever

This Thomas obsession is really getting old.

Funny thing about the complaining about kick returns as some kind of franchise curse is we have the most total return TD's and fewest return TD's scored on us among CFL teams in the past 10 CFL seasons.

Riders Suck. Go Bombers.

A mother f***in game day... By gar, it's been awhile... **** The Riders, and let's go Blue!!

yep. https://3downnation.com/2025/05/23/silence-at-last-montreal-alouettes-ban-air-horns-for-2025-season/ About time. Sounds like the cfl put their foot down and are holding the ALs responsible to the standard held across the league.

Not sure what thread this fits in, but the Bombers bringing in the Trews for the Home Opener Half Time Show. Frig I love those guys... Gonna be a hell of a time.

Of all the quarterbacks in cfl history, Trevor Harris is definitely one of them.

Reports from 2100 say Jake Thomas isn't practicing but is expected to start in his 89th season in Blue and Gold.

legend

so peruse this and tell me what you see says guy cant throw or run an actual offense....from 3 min mark through to the 4:30 mark shows ability to make throws in pocket with heat in his face and drop nice balls from a roll out/sprint.....and many of those runs were from a escape from pocket or a designed play Not bashing up the gut....and teams had tpo respect it...the 5:37 mark in particular..pocket collapsed but teams had to respect the reciever routes and he has ability to bust straight up gut and gouge the defence for a 30+ yard score...and in the first yr there was many like that...as well as his runs outside....when teams didnt basically have a run telegraphed to them with the stupidity we put him thru ;last yr I recall too in MTL at game I was at him dropping a 50+ yrd dime on Simonese down the rail from pocket in our endzone as well....dude has ability if allowed to actually play as a traditional QB....and he actually a more polished and refined passer now...he's evolved his technique and mechanics....4+ yrs in the NFL will help with that A guy who showed he can excel and knows the CFL game...and then 4 yrs getting better in the NFL to come back....foolish to not turn him loose as a QB

He tossed that beauty of a deep toss to Harris in the endzone in thr 2019 grey cup. Surprised people don't remember...

I think the CFL should have a Canadian kicker program like they do for QB's.

ZC should appeal. Typical CFL, Stuff that should earn a suspension doesn't but you suspend a guy for this?

I can't believe that's not the automatic standard... You can't reach him, then you call Wade, and Wade gets him in seconds.

If the CFLPA is saying they need to clarify the process and teams weren’t allowed to be contacted, that really shows there’s a flaw in the process

Thought I’d throw out the remaining schedule till kick off May 7th, rookie camp. May 10th cut down to 85 players excluding none counters May 11th TC opens May 13th cut down to 75 players May 24th first pre season game, at home vs ssk 4pm est kick off May 30th 2nd pre season game in ssk 9pm est kick off May 31st training camps close June 12th week 2 our first game at home vs bc 730 cst kick off. We will have a bit of extra time to finalize our game day roster, practice and be under the sms to start the season with the week 1 bye.

Bombers took Vibert OG South Dakota State in Round 3. Regina kid.

"I can't believe that guy was here for us" "Steal of the draft" "Walters is working his magic" "We took that guy?" "This draft is terrible" "What are we doing today?" I am ready for the draft.

If he wasn't the degenerate that he is...He's be holding a clip board down in The League....the fact that he isn't tells you all you need to know...He was on his last chance here...and really...If the Argo's and the League hadn't dropped the ball and had some stones....he's be outta football now

Really hope we get a big concert for half time that isn’t some country fried hick stuff.