Doublezero

You are correct. Opposing teams are very thorough in their scouting and roster analysis. It's not that they would intentionalyl go after a specific player/injury. But the information that a player has a specific injury can and will be exploited, for sure.

On the sidelines this AM for an hour or so. Stoudermire, Gordon, Anderson and Veltung fielding punts. T. Sherman picked Willy. #22 Randle at RB working hard. Brohm gets rid of the ball quicker than Willy, even when there's no D to read. Bastien made a couple of very nice grabs receiving including an accurate thread-the-needle rocket from Yantz. Portis made a perfect long throw to Moore that was a thing of beauty from start to finish. Waggoner very energetic with good football instincts - ditto Derek Jones. Chungh looks to be winded all the time. Sorry I don't have more but had to leave ... Team looks to be very competitive across the board. Richards, who had company today among those watching, appeared to be a tad despondent at being held back by whatever little boo-boo he had going on.

Marve will never be #1 due to his knee. He started in the final game last season only because the 2 QBs ahead of him on the DC were hurt. If Willy struggles this year, Brohm will be the guy.

Thank-you Mike. Really looking forward to this season. Finally it is here!

NFL scouts suggest he's got good hands but slow off the line (which factors less with the waggle). He is a product of a good system and coaching, he became more productive each year as a CIS player, and was invited to the 2015 E-W Shrine Bowl (with Darryl Waud) and to the NY Giants minicamp, plus he's got good size. Looking forward to watching him - hoping he might surprise some of us who were initially skeptical of his selection in the #11 spot. Here's one scout report http://www.nfl.com/draft/2015/profiles/addison-richards?id=2552481

Around 9 mins in.

Now that I think of it, Kito Poblah had #1 after Charles Roberts.

Geez, how could I forget about Ken Ploen? But has that number been retired forever? Who else wore #1 besides Blink?

Don't know if these are etched in stone but Bombers have assigned numbers to some of the rookies and some vets have different sweater numbers this year. Stoudermire has gone from #15 to #1 for example. Jamaal Westerman is #55, Jordan Yantz is #18, Sukh Chungh is #69. If Addison Richards and Garrett Waggoner are signed to contracts, guess Waggoner could be #11, which appears to be open. Wow, lot of bodies on this roster: http://www.bluebombers.com/roster/index/team/5

I really don't think Lattanzio is competing to be the starting FB. I think they're looking at him to be used as a FB in certain situations, like Vega lining up as a TE on the odd occasion. Sure. But they're also looking for impact on ST, especially with the rule changes which will change the kick game substantially. Didn't Walters call Lattanzio "a rolling ball of razor blades?" So what's the point of having a guy like that sitting on the PR?

Some good players on the outside looking in. Could Lattanzio win a job over Pontbriand? It seems some folks are all over Sherman but I wouldn't be surprised to see Bucknor, Sherman and Jones on the 21. On the other hand, with the new kick rules, it might come down to speed on ST and younger legs so you could be right and we'll see Morgan. Not sure how cap hits are to be balanced but there's a lot of salary chewed up on the O line and an improved Canuck LB corps. Could we see Neufeld on the IR again and Goossen on the 21?

It's exiting to speculate how 2015 will unfold for the Bombers. Lots of new and interesting players under contract equals tough competition for jobs: some good players are not going to make this team. Sophomore season for MOS and a new and very experienced DC should spell fewer points against. It'll be interesting to see the league implement the new rule changes and to see the evolution of our CFL game - hopefully the changes are for the better. Who will be our kick returner(s) and have we found someone unforgettable there? Not really sure about our OC or Drew Willy but holding out hope that they will surprise. What will be the impact of a 'Thunder & Lighting' 2-back set? If we get a 1000 yard rusher and at least one 1000 yard receiver then we should make the playoffs where anything can happen. Go Bombers!

Guy is a rocket. It'll be interesting to see how he does on the wider CFL field and with the new kick rules this year.

Cool. We going to find out if Bombers brain trust has an eye for talent.

I've been wondering why they didn't replace Grigsby with Cotton sooner for that 7-8 game stretch where it was evident Grigsby was slow hitting the openings (such as they were) and that he was always down on first contact. Buck Pierce is the running backs coach, was it his call to keep Grigsby as starter while our run game sucked? That said - really pumped about the RB competition this year and will be extremely stoked if we actually go with a double RB set.

Wonder if teams are shepherding National QBs such as Yantz, Brandon Bridge and Andrew Buckley because they anticipate a possible roster rule change? Obviously it coudn't happen til next season. One option is to just change the ratio to accommodate several possible scenarios including 22 Nationals and 22 Internationals, as Andrew Bucholtz suggests: https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/blogs/cfl-55-yard-line/cfl-s-unfair-rule-gives-qbs-brandon-bridge--andrew-buckley-an-uphill-battle-222925652.html The list of Canuck QBs in the CFL isn't very long but we've seen some good ones who were weaned on the rhythm of 3 downs and the unique angles and options of a 65-yard wide field: Russ Jackson, Gerry Datillio and Frank Cosentino ... http://cfl-scrapbook.no-ip.org/CFL-CanadianQB.php

Hope the Blue Bombers can find a way to keep this Canadian player. Or to put it another way, hope Yantz can show he can contribute and is CFL ready.

I like what MTL and Calgary did in the draft. Just shows how much more CDN depth they have compared with Bombers.

Sukh Chungh would be a fab selection at #2 and then best player available to fill needs at #11 and #15. That's probably receiver and LB but could be another OL. With the acquisition of Jamaal Westerman and Ivan Brown via FA we are OK on the DL, I think.

I actually hate that Corey Watson is an Esk. He could be great for them. I hope he is actually, just not against us.

Or going with an International at SB? Or maybe Watson didn't want to report to Sask's camp? He seemed lukewarm ... probably wanted to go home to Mtl.

Wow. Just wow.

Who is the surprise cut? Well, if Paris Cotton isn't the best RB in camp I'm speculating he would not be content to sit on the IR or PR again. Can Bombers keep an extra RB on the 46-man? Unlikely. So he would be released or grabbed off the PR by another club. I'd be slightly surprised if this unfolded since I liked what I saw of Cotton last year, but you get churn at RB position until you land a great one.

I hate that there's no urgency to his game. You give him 20 beats between plays he takes them all. You give him 5 seconds post-snap he takes it all, and more. With the rule changes and emphasis by the league on moving things along more smartly, we'll hopefully see more hurry-up mode from a Drew Willy led offence. Otherwise I'd be more than happy to see Brohm in there. He does make quicker reads and decisions and seems to bring some pace to the O.

Paris Cotton is being challenged for the starting RB spot.