Doublezero

If Bombers lose Jeffcoat and one of either Oliveira or Schoen, should be money in the kitty to go after Mathieu Betts.

Depth signing at this point. No guarantee he'll pass the training camp physical. And if he does? Can Jordan Younger stand up to MOS? Because, sorry to say it, but with both Jake and Biggie aging out - there's a real vulnerability inside the box.

I read somewhere that the only position group in the NFL that earns less than RB is long snapper.

Bombers have already demonstrated they're not prepared to overpay at the RB position. So Brady will be likely gone - even $180k is pushing it. I believe it's possible Schoen too signs elsewhere, not only because of a better offer from another club, but because he knows his career will be extended if he is paired with a QB who delivers the ball on time.

100% Also, could add a little wrinkle to the Wildcat and move Chris Freakin Streveler to Center - problem solved

Yup, thanks.

Question: Would an offer to Chris Streveler have to be registered with the CFL/CFLPA during the negotiation window? For example, if Bombers or Lions or any other CFL team makes an offer to Streveler between Feb 4-11 would that offer have to be shared with every other team in the same way as a regular offer to 2023 rostered free agents? Or would an offer to Streveler (since he was not on any CFL roster last season) not fall under those rules? If so, then there's nothing preventing any CFL club from making a quiet offer to him at any time, right? https://www.cfl.ca/2024/01/27/free-agency-negotiation-window-opens-feb-4/

Sure hope you're right. I could see us going with Zach-Strev-Barriere this season.

I don't know if Bombers called on their RBs to block very often. I mean, if it comes down to needing a blocker in the backfield, what's Damian Jackson - chopped liver?

I missed that. Oh well, there's Milanovich-Litre or Thomas Erlington or even an American back if BO prices himself off our roster. If it comes to a choice between keeping one of either a $200k Oliveira or a higher priced receiver such as Schoen - I'd keep Schoen. Also, I'd like to see two QBs in the backfield - Collaros and Streveler. One thing seems pretty clear, Bombers don't have $$ for Oliveira, Schoen and Streveler.

He just needs more touches. Watch.

I'm a fan, so it's great to see JA back - hope they locked him in for 2 years. Got a feeling he might see more of the ball. I see Jeshrun Antwi is still a free agent so who knows how it will all play out ...?

Sherry Hufnagel ends up as actual undisputed de facto GM.

Exactly. Reminds me of Ellingson TBH. Pass.

That description also fits Schoen to a T. I don't know if this has been discussed much but Schoen took some massive hits last season - dramatic, nasty hits - catching balls that were thrown late, and seemingly off target by Zach Collaros. I say "seemingly" because you never know 100% when the timing is off a little, whether the problem is with the QB or receiver. But it was clear last season that Zach was taking too long to process where to deliver the ball. Contrast that with Dru Brown who was able to get the ball off quicker. So Collaros ended up scampering around and made risky throws. Receivers really have to make a play on many of those types of balls. Would not be surprised if Schoen got fed up with getting hit so hard and often, TBH. Of course it goes with the territory, to a degree. But I could see him going somewhere where the QB gets rid of the ball quicker.

RedBlacks will have to wrestle him from the clutches of Sask first, apparently. Hate the thought of Brown in Sask BTW: ...." O’Day would not answer questions about (Dru) Brown directly while he remains under contract with Winnipeg but did admit landing the quarterback being dubbed ‘the next one’ by fans and media makes for a nice hypothetical. “That would be a very attractive scenario,” he grinned. “That’s the idea is you’d like to have the succession plan in place." https://3downnation.com/2024/01/13/riders-very-aware-of-need-for-trevor-harris-succession-plan-at-quarterback/#google_vignette

Dickenson opening up the Stampeders QB $$$ envelope to accommodate Brown. I hate this. Hey Kyle: time to re-neg Collaros's contract.

I like Johnny Augustine. Bring in Jeshrun Antwi and you've got the 2 Canuck RB formula for the ratio. Then maybe you've got money in the QB envelope for quarterback 1a.

For a club that's paying ZC $600k and therefore tight in the QB $$ envelope - I don't see how Strevy would be any more affordable than Dru Brown. Both would want starters money.

I hate this. Walters and O'Shea will some have some splainin' to do when the Stamps kick our ass around town with Brown at the helm.

I'll bet that with Scott Milanovich as HC, and even with BLM reportedly restructured and Taylor Powell still under contract, that Ti-Cats will still be in on the Dru Brown sweepstakes, driving up the final price for whoever gets him. Bombers do have the leverage of being able to guarantee 50% of the 2nd year of any contract offer for Brown. Will that be enough to keep him? If we lose Brown it'll be reminiscent of the Danny McManus situation after the '92 GC loss where Bombers let a promising rookie go in favour of an old veteran (loved Dunigan BTW) who was on the downswing. And we know what happened after that - McManus basically tore up the CFL throwing strikes for just about every team in the league - except Winnipeg.

It’s going to be tough for Bombers to keep Dru Brown without overspending in the QB envelope since we are already paying Collaros $600k in 2024. But then again, we might have some slight leverage over other teams beyond the fact that Bombers offer an offensive scheme, personnel and culture Brown knows well. For sure Brown is likely to get multiple offers in the Free Agency tampering window that starts Feb 4 and ends Feb 11. Of course one or two teams will go completely overboard with their offers for Brown. But, under the new CFLPA agreement, any club that signs one of its pending FAs to an extension can offer to guarantee 50% of the second year money. So, depending on how the deal is structured (signing bonus, hard money, incentives etc) no team other than Winnipeg can offer to GUARANTEE 50% of the 2024 value of Brown’s contract in 2025. That’s a pretty good inducement to stay home, baby. Explainer: https://3downnation.com/2022/09/28/jake-maier-taylor-cornelius-sign-landmark-partially-guaranteed-cfl-contracts/

You tell me! Not the first erroneous decision by Coach Reinebold. I liked him though.

Here we are running a dive play called a 44Woodie just before someone tapped me on the shoulder and whispered "coach wants to see you, bring your playbook" which of course meant I got cut. This was '97 camp, and I am moving Shonte Peoples (21) the hell out of the way - Ronald Humphries slipping through the gap. Jeff Reinebold was head coach. Might've been Milt's first season too. Camp was in Portage la Prairie. Chris Vargas and Kevin McDougal at QB along with ugh, the late Cody Ledbetter.

Regardless of where Dru Brown signs next season (I hope it's the CFL and Winnipeg) how much will he be paid? There's much speculation there will be multiple bids for his very obvious talent. Based on this list of top 15 CFL QBs in 2023, where do folks see Brown, a first-year starter, in 2024? https://3downnation.com/2023/04/17/the-cfls-15-highest-paid-quarterbacks-for-2023-season/ As there might be a bidding war, I see him falling somewhere between Vernon Adams Jr ($350,000) and Taylor Cornelius ($432,000). It's an interesting list, BC got fair value out of VAJ, I'd say, and Cornelius, among others, way overpaid obviously. If it were not for the fact that Cornelius is guaranteed 50% of his salary in 2024 - I could see Elks going hard after Brown and just cutting Cornelius altogether.