Blue Bomber Free Agent Priorities

[Lyle_B_Style]

From CFL.ca I’ve obtained the list of Bomber FAs as of Feb 10, 2025
I’ve placed a rank from 1 to 5 for each individual - 1 being a very low priority signing, to 5 being a high priority signing.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Alexander, Brandon | DB - 2
Augustine, Johnny* | RB - 3
Benson, Mike* | LS - 3
Bighill, Adam | LB - 2
Bryant, Stanley | OL - 4
Cole II, Brian | LB - 3
Dobson, Liam* | OL - 3
Feltmate, Bailey* | LB - 2
Ford, Tyrell* | DB - 5
Fox, Miles | DL - 1
Garbutt, TyJuan | DL - 3
Gauthier, Shayne* | LB - 2
Haba, Celestin | DL - 3
Hallett, Noah* | DB - 2
Holm, Evan | DB - 4
Jefferson, Willie | DL - 4
Jones, Tony | LB - 3
Lawler, Kenny | WR - 4
Lofton, Eric | OL - 4
Neufeld, Patrick* | OL - 3
Parker, Jamal | DB - 2
Schoen, Dalton | WR - 4
Streveler, Chris | QB - 3
Taylor, Nicholas | DB - 1
Thomas, Jake* | DL - 2
Whitehead, Lucky | WR - 1
Wilson, Kyrie | LB - 2

Note: Only Ty Ford is a must sign-up. The 4s & 5s will be the ones other teams, including NFL chase after. The 1s + 2s, some 3s are what I call “loyalty re-hires”, not quite dominant at their positions but O’Shea & Walters like their level of loyalty to the organization.

Although Bighill indicates he’s rehabbing and will show up for training camp - I think the Bomber mafia would be well-advised to go after either a tweener college player or an NFL hanger-on who wants to play football. Perhaps Bighill could stay around as a linebackers coach?

[BetweenTheGoalposts]

I spoke recently with Ian Leroux’s agent—the same guy who represents Tre Ford, Davis Alexander, and practically every special teamer in the CFL—and he mentioned that Leroux’s contract is structured as a “starter” deal for a long snapper.

As for Benson, I haven’t heard anything definitive about his plans. Whether he’s considering retirement or the Bombers are moving in a different direction, it’s tough to say, but I’d be surprised if he’s still their starter in 2025.

Ford is absolutely a must-sign. Fingers crossed he stays up here in the CFL—pesky NFL teams always swooping in to grab our talent! I’d also love to see the Bombers bring back the Hallett brothers, along with Feltmate and Gauthier. All four of them have been contributors on special teams.

[Maaax]

On defense I hope we sign whoever our ace defensive coordinator Jordan Younger wants us to sign. That guy knows what he’s doing.

With only one side of the ball to worry about this season Kyle Walters can devote his considerable talents to signing whoever we’ll need to keep Zach Collaros from sucking so much come playoff time.

There’s no need to panic. Everything’s under control.

[hoth]

I hope the front seven gets an overhaul. Willie isn’t going anywhere. Tony Jones is the only (starting) linebacker on the team that I’d keep.
I’ve never seen a pro football team so completely inept at getting to & putting down the quarterback as the 2024 Bombers.
Younger deserves a medal for keeping this unit at #1. The secondary also deserves a medal & should be retained as much as possible. They did what they did on a team that had basically zero pass rush all season.
A proven commodity at defensive end opposite Jefferson should be the #1 defensive priority this offseason.
I want big, fast linebackers that can inflict pain. Simoni Lawrence, Jameer Thurman, McMannis, Sankey a guy like that. I did not see one impact play from the linebacker position all season.

[Maaax]

I can’t quite wrap my head around your upgrade suggestions @hoth. Unleashing that kind of Jordan Younger Beast on the rest of the CFL would be unfair (and possibly inhumane). I’m not sure that I want to live in a Blue Bomber world where the teams we face are afraid to come out of their locker rooms.

[pantsonfire]

@hoth

…etained as much as possible. They did what they did on a team that had basically zero pass rush all season.A proven commodity at defensive end opposite Jefferson should be the #1 defensive priority this offseason.I want big, fast linebackers that can inflict pain. Simoni Lawrence, Jameer Thurman, McMannis, Sankey a guy like that. I did not see one impact play from the linebacker position all season.

I quite agree with you on the front 7. Getting tired of hearing GC post-game “they got beat in the trenches.”

With 2 GC’s in the last 3 years sandwiched around a 16-2 season, everybody knows who is the team to beat. In the '80’s Bob Johnson realized that to win a CUP first they had to build a team made to beat the Oilers. If you want to beat the Argos you have to beef up both sides of the LOS.

Sure the Bombers have a VG team. Bryant is an excellent LT BUT the MOP @ OL was RT Ryan Hunter - last year’s MOP? Dejon Allen LT - Argos. Vs the Argos in 2 regular season games they allowed 12 sacks. Their DT’s toyed with Neufeld & his interior buddies. Constant pressure in the GC.

The front 7? Bighill is not McManus. Jake is not Jake Ceresna. Rookie Holley had more sacks than the other 3 DT’s not named Thomas. The Bombers have an excellent back end but were dead last in sacks, a full 22 behind the Argos. It’s been talked about a lot by CFL insiders. They allow a lot of pressure & have trouble creating pressure.

The good news is the Bombers are still a VG team. But if they stay the same they are not good enough to compete with the Argos & Als. That’s not being negative. It’s been clear for 3 years now that there is a new bully on the block.

I am really curious to see exactly what the Bombers are going to do. Should Pierce head to BC I don’t think that’s a bad thing. Some new blood might be a good thing.

[Jon]

@hoth

…etained as much as possible. They did what they did on a team that had basically zero pass rush all season.A proven commodity at defensive end opposite Jefferson should be the #1 defensive priority this offseason.I want big, fast linebackers that can inflict pain. Simoni Lawrence, Jameer Thurman, McMannis, Sankey a guy like that. I did not see one impact play from the linebacker position all season.

Generally agree with your post. The only issue I would have is that I think their best linebacker is Kyrie Wilson. He has been by far according to the PFF stats and has been rated in the top 5 linebackers in the league the last two years. The problem of course is that he hasn’t been healthy of late, including most of this year.

[Jon]

@pantsonfire

…The good news is the Bombers are still a VG team. But if they stay the same they are not good enough to compete with the Argos & Als. That’s not being negative. It’s been clear for 3 years now that there is a new bully on the block.I am really curious to see exactly what the Bombers are going to do. Should Pierce head to BC I don’t think that’s a bad thing. Some new blood might be a good thing.

Yes clearly the defensive front 7 is where improvement is needed the most for the Bombers. It’s amazing that they had the best defence in the league in spite of that. A tribute to far and away the best secondary in the league and Jordan Younger. A guy like McManis, who gets my vote for the best defensive player in the league, could make them very difficult to beat. The Bombers also have the best running back, the best receivers and the best clutch placekicker. We’ll see how much they improve their weak spots.

The Bombers though, like the Argos, are too early to judge for next year, as is any team at this point. The Argos need to sign several key players, including McManis and Ceresna. They are also always one bad tweet or one bad sound bite away from losing their starting QB for good.

I also think the Bombers would benefit from Pierce moving on. He didn’t have a good year and his play calling was unimaginative, especially in the playoffs. He failed to adapt well and in hindsight his past success could probably be attributable more to having outstanding personnel and Zach playing the best football of his life. La Po would do a far better job as OC in my opinion.

[MnBlueBomberFan]

@Jon

…arting QB for good.I also think the Bombers would benefit from Pierce moving on. He didn’t have a good year and his play calling was unimaginative, especially in the playoffs. He failed to adapt well and in hindsight his past success could probably be attributable more to having outstanding personnel and Zach playing the best football of his life. La Po would do a far better job as OC in my opinion.

I remember a number of times when broadcasters commented on WPG only rushing three guys. An extra guy in coverage could explain their good results downfield, as well as why their pass rush was rather weak. We’ll see if they have different priorities in 2025 when the newer cover guys have a year more experience.

[pantsonfire]

@Jon

…arting QB for good.I also think the Bombers would benefit from Pierce moving on. He didn’t have a good year and his play calling was unimaginative, especially in the playoffs. He failed to adapt well and in hindsight his past success could probably be attributable more to having outstanding personnel and Zach playing the best football of his life. La Po would do a far better job as OC in my opinion.

We pretty much agree where the club needs to improve. I would agree that the Bombers have the best RB but the 3rd best running ATTACK last year behind the Elks & Argos who use multiple RB’s & mobile starters @ QB.

And, inexplicably, having great receivers didn’t translate to a great passing attack. They had 2 total passing yds more than the 9th place Stamps. Wpg was also last in passing TD’s & 6th in pass efficiency & 30+ yds.

Also, Brady was the 3rd most targeted receiver & of his 57 catches for 476 yds, 420 were YAC. IOW the 57 completions travelled 56 yds in the air, indicating that the run heavy offence Pierce employed included a good dose of dump passes to their RB - essentially run plays set up by a swing pass.

IF Pierce gets signed by BC, it will be an opportunity to get someone in who can take advantage of a more balanced attack. Since Harris came over, succeeded by Oliviera, the Bombers have been #1 or 2 in rush attempts every year.

At this point, as you say, it’s hard to say how the teams flesh out. The Bombers with 27, Argos with 24 FA’s rank 4th & 2nd in fewest FA’s. That’s manageable.

[Lyle_B_Style]

@Jon

Generally agree with your post. The only issue I would have is that I think their best linebacker is Kyrie Wilson. He has been by far according to the PFF stats and has been rated in the top 5 linebackers in the league the last two years. The problem of course is that he hasn’t been healthy of late, including most of this year.

Ky Wilson is damaged goods. How far can you beat a rented mule?

[Lyle_B_Style]

@Jon

…arting QB for good.I also think the Bombers would benefit from Pierce moving on. He didn’t have a good year and his play calling was unimaginative, especially in the playoffs. He failed to adapt well and in hindsight his past success could probably be attributable more to having outstanding personnel and Zach playing the best football of his life. La Po would do a far better job as OC in my opinion.

Plop (LaPolice) is an excellent coordinator. He reached his highest level of incompetence as an OC, was a disaster as head coach. Pierce was OK but he had a relatively de-tooled #1 qb to work with. Spent too much time protecting Collaros. Fear is that Plop might try to do too much with Zach and Zach will invariably disappoint when asked to do more - with less.

[RedandWhite]

Why isn’t this thread in the BB forum?

[Jon]

@RedandWhite

Why isn’t this thread in the BB forum?

I wondered that myself when it started but then forgot about it.

I agree that the thread is better suited to the Bomber sub forum and will move it there.

[Maaax]

@Jon

I wondered that myself when it started but then forgot about it.

I agree that the thread is better suited to the Bomber sub forum and will move it there.

Bad news Herr Jon. Our Blue Bomber ‘sub forum’ currently under water. Captain @Paolo_X left the screen door open and we flooded out… again.

Sorry about that.