A little over a week into Blue Bombers training camp, many positional battles have arose throughout the roster. While many returnees and new faces such as receiver Nic Demski, dimeback Chandler Fenner, and linebacker Adam Bighill have locked up starting positions, a handful are still up for grabs among the 80+ participants at Blue Bombers training camp.

Breaking Down the Positional Battles

Backup quarterback

Darian Durant was a shoe-in for the backup quarterback spot behind Matt Nichols, but after Durant’s “controversial” retirement, a wide-open race has emerged between multiple inexperienced quarterbacks. At the start of camp, former BC Lion Alex Ross (the most experienced quarterback in camp aside from Nichols) appeared to have a sizeable advantage to become Nichols’ backup, but recently-graduated University of South Dakota Coyote Chris Streveler has since closed that gap with an impressive training camp. Zack Mahoney and Bryan Bennett are also in camp, despite both receiving limited reps in team sessions. Ross and Streveler have emerged as frontrunners although things could change after the club’s two preseason games.

Field wide-receiver

National Matt Coates was supposed to occupy this position in 2018 for Winnipeg after a season-high 100 yards receiving in the Bombers’ lone playoff game, but after Coates suffered a broken foot in the off-season, Winnipeg decided to part ways with the four-year veteran. Coates’ release opens up the starting Z wide receiver spot in the Bombers offence. The Bombers are more than likely going to start a National at this spot, making Drew Wolitarsky, and 2018 draft picks Rashaun Simonise (12th overall) and Daniel Petermann (26th overall) the most likely candidates. 2017 7th-round pick Brendon Thera-Plamondon and 2018 5th-round pick Tyrone Pierre are also getting looks at the field wide-receiver position, although both are viewed as long shots to beat out the competition.

Defensive end

Winnipeg found two effective defensive ends last year in Jackson Jeffcoat and Tristan Okpaluago, but with the arrival of former BC Lion Craig Roh, Jeffcoat and Okpalaugo’s starting spots are being contested. The three defensive linemen have all seen first-team reps throughout training camp, showing that the Bombers are not set on who will occupy both defensive end spots. Also, after Adam Bighill’s signing, there have been rumblings that Winnipeg is very close to the CFL‘s $5.2 million salary cap. It should be noted that in March 3DownNation’s Justin Dunk reported that Okpalaugo is set to make $178,000 in 2018, a hefty price for an International defensive lineman. While Okpalaugo is a proven CFLer, it has been speculated that he may be traded or released due to the business aspect of the league.

Field halfback

No team gave up more passing yards than Winnipeg last year (305.16 per game), which was mainly a result of two rookies occupying the field-side defensive back positions. Brandon Walker started at the field halfback spot for the majority of the 2017 campaign for Winnipeg but struggled with consistency at times. Along with Walker, returnees Kevin Fogg and Brandon Alexander are both in the conversation for the strong-side halfback spot, as well as former BC Lions’ defensive backs Anthony Gaitor and Steven Clarke.

Things get confusing regarding the Bombers’ field-side secondary when factoring in Maurice Leggett’s health. Leggett suffered a torn Achilles in week 17 last season and will likely remain sidelined when the Bombers’ kick off the 2018 season. Supposed starting boundary halfback Chandler Fenner has seen nearly every snap at the strong-side linebacker (Leggett’s position) with the first-team in team drills, and will likely suit up there come week one. Supposed starting field halfback Anthony Gaitor has since moved over to the boundary halfback position (Fenner’s presumed spot) in the meantime.

Whenever Leggett returns to the lineup, expect Leggett to play strong-side linebacker, Fenner to play boundary halfback, and Gaitor to play field halfback, meaning that the field halfback spot is only temporarily up for grabs.

Field cornerback

Rookie Brandon Alexander started the majority of the 2017 season at field cornerback and for the most part, progressed his game as the season went on. That being said, the Bombers gave up a ton of yards through the air last year – mainly via the strong side – and an improvement in that category is essential if Winnipeg wants to become an elite team. Aside from the pool of Alexander, Walker, Clarke and Fogg, rookies Marcus Sayles and Tyneil Cooper have had strong camps, pushing the veteran candidates.

As mentioned earlier, the Bombers are supposedly close to being over the salary cap, which is a plus for Sayles and Cooper who likely come in with lower salaries. This likelihood could serve as a temptation for Kyle Walters and co. to release a defensive back with a higher salary since Sayles and Cooper have so far shown that they could be capable of starting at a field-side spot.

Preseason action

All five of these positions and their respective starters will become more clear after Winnipeg’s first preseason game this Friday versus the Edmonton Eskimos as nearly every participant of the Bombers’ training camp will suit up and fight for a spot on the roster. Last year rookie defensive backs Brandon Alexander and Brian Walker cemented their spots on the Bombers roster during preseason action, could it be newcomers Marcus Sayles and Tyneil Cooper this year?

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