Off Season Concerns, any thought? let's here them

Winnipeg Blue Bombers
1

Well 9-9 record , improved from last year. But maybe if Glenn was healthy all year or we didn't play quinn for the games that Glenn was out maybe we would have a better record and would've had home field. Anyway's here are my concerns, please send yours.

QB - Glenn still hasn't shown me that he is worth being a starting QB - Dinwiddie showed nothing when he played (but is a very raw rokkie - still might have promise), Banks - Is a Free agent and is not worth the amount he earned while with the Renegades (he will be gone). I say we should go after a proven starter or i great backup, most other teams have very good back-ups, i persoannly like Jason maas and think we should go after him.

Recievers - Armtstrong, Milt?, Stoddard, Eckert, Cavil, AJ3, McCord, Thurman, Brazel. I hope Milt Plays one more year (no concerns here , i really like Eckert)

Rest of the offense - we need a healty crew for a full season up front, we have a great o-line as long as they stay healthy.

Running Back - Well Blink is the best, but i think we need another weapon out there , i still do not like Regimbald (we miss Mike sellers)

Defense - Canada, Walls, Brwon , Warner, Hebert, Simpson, Marlboro, malveux, Samuels, Evans, Bean ... i really like this group, they had a full year to JELL, now they know each other and should be a strong force next year.

Coaching - I think that Berry made some questionable decisions all year, but he is a rookie head coach and the players seem to like him, same story as the defense, has had a full year to learn the head coach position and shouls be wiser next year, after all 9-9 and making the playoffs is an improvement, it can't get worse, can it? Marshall (d-cord) might end up the being ti-cats head coach, i DO NOT like Mike Gibson (o-cord) play calling, he should be gone.

Here is a thought - Bring in the Don and reunite Mathews and Berry somehow.

Anyway's let's keep your thoughts coming and see ya all at the stadium next year.

2

....re-sign as many of our free agents as we can.....check the bank account and go after a seasoned CFL QB........if we have close to same unit as last year...with Sheridan, Goodspeed and Samuels coming back healthy.....i'd say we would be in pretty good shape....coaching wise ....get rid of Gibson....or reduce him to just handling the 'o' line.....pray we keep Marshal....and away we go..... :thup: :rockin: looking good for 07.... and we'll see what the off-season brings.... :roll:

3

all we need is a good reliable QB that can win games in the final stretch the only 1 he had was milt's great play but he closed his eyes and pray'd the rest was stegall and if stegall comes back i say we take it all i am almost willing to get a petition to have stegall play one more yr and send it to his wife lol

4

Overall a nice improvement over last year. Hopefully Stegall returns! IMO we need to go after a proven QB to at least compliment Glenn. I'am still not totally sold that Glenn is the answer. I'd say fire Gibson and hire either Buratto or Dunigan.

5

I agree with the firing of Gibson and hiring Buratto or Dunigan. as for Kevin Glenn, he has shown signs, but again i am not 100% sold on him. What we do need is a GOOD backup QB next year.

Look at the rest of the league and the backup QB's, every team has a good backup. After watching the Argo's game today, i have to say that BISHOP looks awesome, he has a strong arm and he can run, he will be a #1 QB next year in T.O unless someone can pry him from the Argo's ....

6

....i doubt whether Bishop will be available, as Damon is done.....Bishop will probably be fighting for the no 1 Argo job....now if Casey Printers was cut loose by Kansas City...i say go get him...we need to solidify the quarterback position on the Bombers...this team is one-step away from the BIG-TIME....and Printers would go a long way in getting us there... :wink: :rockin: :thup:

7

I don't get all of the complaints about Kevin Glenn. By his W/L record he was the #3 QB in the league this year. Put any other QB behind the chicken wire we had for an O-line and the team would not have been better off.

What changes?

  1. Coaching:
    Bob Dyce (receivers coach) - I've said it before, receivers not ready to play. Lousy routes, drops, little intensity. Should be gone.

Mike Working - QB coach. At no time were the QBs prepared to play. Also should be gone.

Mike Gibson - O-coordinator, O-line. Great work with the O-line, lousy work calling plays. No feel for the offense and incompetant use of the running game. Keep him but reduce his duties. I hear Damon Allen wll be looking for work.

  1. Receivers:
    For the most part this was pitiful. Gone should be Stoddard, Arjei Franklin, Andrae Thurman and Chris Brazzell.

  2. D-backs:
    The Semi-final turned on one play, Bishop's first pass for a touchdown. On that play Kelly Malveaux and another 'back failed to make the tackle. They didn't even try to make the tackle. That play was the season - over - finnito. There are some blue chippers among the d-backs but we also need some help from guys who won't take time off in crucial games.

Other considerations:

I said it while he was here, Marcus Howell should have been converted to D-back. When his contract is up with the Stamps an effort should be made to get him back here.

Make a commitment next season to get the ball to Charles Roberts on 50-60% of plays. Both the O-line and Charles will be much happier and healthier.

Make sure that Doug Brown is resigned, then pursue another killer linebacker who can stuff the run. At that point go to a 3-4 defence. A 4-3 is good for only 5 yards of pass rush - tops.

Platoon Milt Stegall. Move him from SB to weak-side WR and get him some help. If there were more quality receivers Milt would have been free more often and we'd have had a great season.

8

...agree with most of your comments 2soon...but i think you have to agree...a qb. with the staure of a Dickenson...or Calvillo...gets us a real good shot at the Cup next year....Glenn shows promise...but is very inconsistent....he needs more seasoning...and someone to come in the game when he either gets hurt....or has one of those ..' i'll throw the ball to anyone' games....Sure he would have done a little better if the 'o' line would have been intact for the year...but i'll tell you right now....his problems aren't stictly protection....Right now we have NO GO TO GUY...when Glenn poops the bed....so if we aren't going to make a move to get a suitable guy besides Kevin....we better hold our breath next year every time he goes down....cuz my friend that could be the season....i don't want to be strung out like we were this year....goBigBlue...

9

No argument from me papazoola.

But I do think from the fact that not one of the backups could run the offense, that there was more than a player problem this year. Sure Kevin G was inconsistant. A lot of that can be placed on the shoulders of Mike Gibson changing the game plan half way through a game, and on Mike Working who failed to prepare the QBs. That game-saving pass to Stegall in Edmonton was called by Kevin in the huddle after Gibson had already thrown in the towel.

It's a bit hard on the QBs too when there are only 2 receivers on the field and one of those is the running back. Despite miserable receivers, horrible play selection by the coaches and uncoordinated line play, Kevin G still finished ahead of the majority of QBs. If the team can sign a superstar QB I'm all for it. I wouldn't dump Kevin though until we have The Next Great One under lock and key.

10

I think this team will be just fine next season with everyone getting a season under their belt with the new coaching staff. But some changes that must occur are

  1. Samuals and Bean must become regulars in the secondary. I think Omar is the odd man out.

  2. Weak side linebacker killed us many times this season, Charleton is a keeper but neither Carter or McKinnley have what it takes.

  3. Kevin Glenn needs an offensive coordinator he can get on the same page with or else let him call his own plays. Too many times after the opening drives in games we failed to keep any momentum going.

11

i say sign all the more important free agents, sign burrato as OC, and Dunnigan as QB coach.

then look for a good back up, or try for printers. if we land printers, keep Glenn somehow, have em fight for first tring. Over on ourbombers.com someone mentioned that its a gamble bringing in casey and handing him the job. i totally agree! casey had one great season, then the next wasnt so great, plus hes a locker room cancer. so keep Glenn around, and either have the best QB depth in the league, or have Glenn for insurance.

Kevin is coming along very nicely! i think next year, if stegal comes back, e have armstrong and cavil in the lineup, and keep stoddard at slot...... and our o-line tays healthy, kevin will shut up every critic, except for those who hate him just because of the fact that they dont want to be wrong and are to tubborn to admit it.

the other guy coming along nicely is brad banks, i seen some big development in him in the last game of the season. hes learning extremely slow, but hes learning. maybe we already have a back up QB.

another thing that would be very nice, is a good candian safety, weather it be a free agent, or we develope logan. then sign grace and put him n at strong side, hebert and or charlton at weak(depending if charlton goes to free agency).

thats my two cents, now lets see what happens

12

Guess it's nice to dream 123, but Printers won't be dawning any CFL colors in the near future and as Far as Brad Bank goes he is a free agent and his near $100,000 contract is not going to happen again for a back-up, i agree he has potential, but in order for us to keep Banks, we would need to lower his salary significantly. I think Glenn and Banks are good for competition sake in 2007 training camp, and Taman already stated he was going to bring in 2 former NFL QB'S as well as Dinwiddie again to push for the 1-2-3- QB Jobs.

I'll make it clear right now, the trade rumours for Anthony Calvillo are just rumours, we don't need him (too old and at the end of his career)

Now my opinion is to go after 1 of 3 UNHAPPY QB'S (in this order)

  1. Jason Maas (wants out of steel town)
  2. Henry Burris (on the hot seat in Cgy) and they would trade him
  3. Last option keep Glenn, Banks and trade for one of the backups in the league to push them (Crandell, Greene, Bishop, Brady, Butler and a very long shot Buck Pierce) the most logical is Nealon Greene cause he doesn't like Montreal and being 3rd string.

But again that is my opinion and i hope Taman isn't stupid enough to trade Glenn and Barrin Simpson for Calvillo, that would be one of the worst trades in recent history.

On a final note if we were to trade Glenn, Simpson and another player, wouldn't it make more sense to go after Jason Maas and Cody (i love that guy-hard worker) and i think we have to look at the recievers one more time, especially if Stegall doesn't come back. And if we trade Glenn, Armstrong is sure to be next to leave (they are best friends). So Taman has alot to think about before considering trading anyone, such as the other players that would want out.... ie. Glenn goes - Armstrong goes then we are back at square one. I am far from being a GM but they have to think about long term and short term circumstances. WE NEED ARMSTRONG.

13

...my thinking exactly...blue&gold.....Armstrong signed on with the Bombers because he knew Glenn...and had great chemistry with him...Glenn goes....Armstrong will probably not re-sign.....My biggest concern with Glenn ...besides his brain cramps every once in awhile...(that can be corrected) is that he isn't durable enough and a little on the small side...If you go back to the final against the Argos...that pick he threw to Steinauer....was caused by two things....his difficulty in reading defences...and he throws when he can barely see over on-rushing defensive line-men.....final summation...He's a great back-up ...not a starter...Thats the facts...After stating that...i would not part with Kevin...He still can mature and alter his game....BUT...if we are looking for a winner with the great personnel we have on this team right now...we are not going to get it with only Kevin Glenn at the helm...Where we are going to get another reliable qb. is the concern...if it is via trade....we cannot give up very much and keep the corps of this team intact...on the other hand we cannot pick-up the likes of a Nealon Greene....he throws the ball away more often than Glenn...might as well go after Ted White ....sooo the hunt is on...and i would say a trade for Calvillo...to play out the rest of his career...and a good possibility of another Cup...should not be out of the question...The only concern i have with that is giving up too much to get him...and i know you don't get something for nothing...we have to be very careful in our dealings...and i.m sure Taman is quite aware of all the angles....There will be moves by the Bombers....and they better be the right ones... :wink:

14

To: Papazoola, 2much2soon, and 123James321:

Are you crazy? Which is it? Players or coaches? You can't blame the coaches if we have bad players, and you can't fire the players and coaches on one side of the ball and expect to be good with no continuity.

You all say Kevin Glenn got better. Yet you all say fire the qb coach. We started with people thinking Michna should start over Glenn!!! Our coices were Michna, Quinn, or Glenn. Glenn is maybe the highest rated passer in the East now and you think we should fire the qb coach? Classic Winnipeg fans.

You seem to think the line played well? Are you nuts? We were injured all year on the line. Our qbs were injured all year because of the injured OL. Yes, CHarlie won the rushing title - because he is our ONLY ball carrier. Calgary is a two back team.

The truth is - we need to keep our coaches. All of them. Starting with Greg Marshall. Three teams are interested, and if he goes, DL coach Richard Harris goes.

I would keep Mike Working. Kevin has had new qb coaches every year. The first six weeks of the year are spent unlearning the offence and teachings learned last year. I also think that it will be hard to keep Mike Working.

We have already offered to renew him, but Charlie Taaffe wants him (as they are old friends), and Greg Marshall will also take him as they are roommates.

What should be the biggest focus? Keeping our good coaches!! We need to build on this year, not build from scratch with a new system next year.

15

Players.....we need to improve at qb.///that is a no-brainer....if you think we can win with an oft injured...and inconsistent qb. you're dreaming in technicolour....we should also be looking to improve our 'o' line and secondary..

Coaches....Marshal did a helluva job turning the Bomber 'd' around.....if he goes and we don;t find anyone else of his calibre...we're in trouble...Gibson did not impress me with his offensive schemes...need to replace him with a guy with some depth

there you go rattlebones....there's a start....and it involves PLAYERS & COACHES.... :wink:

16

Hello Mr. Rattlebonesjones

Now there's a handle!

My objection to Mike Working has to do with QB preparation. When Kevin came back from injury he was as ineffective as any of the backups. He has some experience in this league and seemed able to get himself back into games. The others all looked lost. The primary job of the QB coach is to prepare all of the QBs to play every week. I didn't see one week in the regular season that any were fully prepared. In the pre-season Quinn looked great, but that was after the intensive preparation on training camp. Once the season began preparedness fell apart.

The receivers under Bob Dyce ran routes poorly and failed to work properly with the QBs. It's Dyce's job to hammer out all of those problems, yet like the QBs, the receivers were not prepared to either run routes or recognise defences. Yes, the receivers were a sad lot this year but to have only 2 guys be reliable tells me that something deeper is wrong.

17

I think that Glenn may be the ninth best, and ninth toughest qb in the league, but still better than Banks and Dinwiddie. That said, Glenn finished like third among starters in efficiency rating after the reg. season. I think that means Working did a god job, and Glenn improved. Most people didn't think he should start this year.

One of the reasons that back ups don't look good is because they aren't given reps in the team session of Coach Berry's practice plan. Do you remember Banks in the preseason? He might not have completed a single pass. At the end of the year after the second half in B.C., there was legit debate about whethr he should start over Glenn. I think we got better at qb and continuity would be good.

Ask yourself: Is Glenn better? yes. Is banks better? Yes. Is Dinwiddie better than Michna and Quinn? I would say yes, even though he joined late in the year (week 12?)and did not have much time to grasp the system.

I think if the starter, back up and third stringer got better - why fire the coach? They can only get so much better. We have come a long way from Tee Martin, Michna, and Glenn. We should keep him if we can.

I was not as impressed with the wrs until Armstrong arrived. I thought that hampered play caling ability. Every team in the league has 3 good wrs, sometimes 4. We had one, and when Milt was hurt none. All the more reason that I think Glenn's improvement is quite impressive - and the qb coach shold get a little love.

18

A case well presented. We won't know until next season who read it all correctly.

19

I remember reading a post on this site at the start of training camp about the biggest questions to be answered this year. The #1 question was "who will be the quarterback in Winnipeg?" That question was answered. We absolutely got better with what we had.

The real debate is: can we get better by bringing in new personnel? There is no question in my mind that we got better at qb. And you're right, we'll see if we get better next year. The question is not with the coaching, but the talent pool. We need one more gd qb.

Working has a rep as a horse whisperer for qbs. Both candidates for the job in Hamilton have already contacted him about moving to Steeltown. I worry that the job would be tempting. Kevin got better, but isn't very tough. He got better, but may have hit the ceiling as he hasn't proven himself a winner. Maas had a horrendous year, but has more upside, so there is more room for improvement, and a coach to get credit for that improvement. A perfect job for a horse whisperer.

Also, Working is from the East and would be closer to his family. I hope he stays, because I think Kevin needs one more year, and if he isn't outstanding, he should be traded. Actually, if he isn't outstanding by mid-season, I'd like to see some more of Dinwiddie. I was at B.C. Place that night, and I though he looked very good, until a 26 second stretch in the last minute of that firt half, and that was against the best defence in the league.

For a kid who has never taken a snap of Canadian football live, to come in and play a half, after Kevin went down(meaning without many reps in practice that week) against by far the best Defence in the league. . . . . I thiought he showed promise.
I think the 28 minutes of good play hows he was prepared well.

B.C. had like 3 player of the year awards on D, not counting Simon Glatt who may be the best and was an able replacementfor Barrin. Their D-Coordinator is moving back up to a head coach. I don't thik there could have been a tougher test for Dinwiddie.

Dinwiddie was on for thirty minutes . .. but those were two BIG BIG mistakes in twenty seconds (I don't count the hail mary interception as a bad play, I was glad he took a shot). . . and rookies make mistakes. You can't coach mistakes out of rookies . . . they're rookies.

Learning from the mistakes makes them veterans.