The Winnipeg Blue Bombers seem to be heading into 2026 as the same old Blue Bombers in most areas of the roster and front office.

The organization brought back general manager Kyle Walters and coach Mike O’Shea on three-year deals, who, in turn, have already brought back most of the veteran core. Can you blame them? Though the team failed to make a sixth straight Grey Cup (as if making five straight wasn’t enough), the Bombers have made nine straight playoff appearances and are the model franchise of sustained success.

There are still areas that Walter, O’Shea, and co. will have to hit hard this period, however, with a couple of positions on the roster that need addressing.

The Free Agency Communication Window, in which teams can openly speak with any clubs pending free agents, opens Feb.1 at 12 p.m. ET and closes Feb.8 at 12 p.m. ET. The official CFL free agency period opens Feb.10 at 12 p.m. ET

Pending Free Agents

* = Canadian

QB Chris Streveler

SB Dalton Schoen

SB Jerreth Sterns

SB Kody Case

SB/WR Dillon Mitchell

WR Keric Wheatfall

OT Eric Lofton

DT Jamal Woods

DE James Vaughters

LB Shayne Gauthier*

NKL Enock Makonzo*

CB Demerio Houston

CB Terrell Bonds

NKL/HB Dexter Lawson Jr.

S Nick Hallett*

A lot of work has already been done, as the Blue Bombers enter the communication window with only 15 pending free agents remaining and three big positions to address: wide receiver, defensive line, and cornerback.

Offence

Blue Bombers

The offence was a mixed bag last season.

On one hand, the team was mauling in the run game, posting the second-highest rush yards per game (124.1) and the second-highest average gain per rush (5.5). The team struggled to move the ball through the air; however, posting the lowest passing yards per game by far at 235.0, which was more than 100 fewer than the leaders in the BC Lions’ last season.

This resulted in the team finishing middle of the pack in overall net offence and average yards per play, while the team struggled to put up points, specifically touchdowns, sitting bottom three in offensive points per game (23.1), touchdown drive percentage (15.8), and red zone opportunities (47).

Now the team appears to be retooling its offence for 2026, from coordinator to players. Jason Hogan – who remains on staff as the team’s running backs coach – is out as the offensive coordinator after one season, replaced by Tommy Condell.

Condell and quarterback Zach Collaros go back more than a decade, having worked together in Hamilton in 2014 and 2015. What the veteran coordinator brings is decades of experience, though he has traditionally called pass-heavy offences. Just last season, as the Ottawa Redblacks’ playcaller while they were missing starting pivot Dru Brown for nine starts and had a talented dual-threat backup, Dustin Crum, soaking up responsibilities, they still called the third most passing plays.

CFL teams’ pass play percentage vs run play percentage in 2025:

Toronto – 77.3% / 22.8%
Hamilton – 68.9% / 31.1%
Ottawa – 68.7% / 31.3%
Montreal – 67.2% / 32.8%
BC – 66.8% / 33.2%
Edmonton – 65.3% / 34.7%
Saskatchewan – 62.1% / 37.9%
Winnipeg – 60.6% / 39.4%
Calgary – 59.7% /…

— Coty Wiles (@CotyWilesSports) January 2, 2026

You will also find the Bombers towards the bottom in pass frequency from last season, and when you have Brady Oliveira on your team, you can always argue they should have run the ball more.

The Winnipeg native has been fantastic over the past four seasons, logging nearly 7,000 yards from scrimmage and 25 touchdowns, claiming the Most Outstanding Player award, back-to-back Most Outstanding Canadian awards, and two All-CFL nominations along the way. Just in 2025 alone, despite missing three games with a shoulder injury, the 28-year-old running back led the league in scrimmage yards (1,709) and yards per carry (5.8), while sitting second in receptions amongst backs (61) and fourth in rushing yards after contact (704).

Condell has never really had a bruising back who can catch like Oliveira before. The closest and most recent example is with James Butler in 2023, when Condell was let go midseason after the team started 3-5. For what it’s worth, Butler averaged only 10.8 carries and 50.8 yards per game in the eight contests he played in under Condell, before jumping up to 16.6 carries and 78.9 yards (with a slight increase in efficiency) in the nine games once Condell was let go.

Seeing the marriage between the pass and run game in 2026 will be interesting to monitor, though both Collaros and O’Shea have refuted that the run game will be abandoned, as Condell enters a situation where the personnel will dictate how the offence is run. And as of right now, the wide receivers could use some work.

The team currently has five pending free agents and presumably three out of five starting spots locked in, with Canadians in slotback Nic Demski and wideout Kevens Clercius, as well as American Ontaria Wilson under contract.

Demski is as solid as they come, recording three-straight 1,000-yard seasons while posting one of the highest contested catch rates last season (63.6). Clercius got more targets, receptions, and yards in year two last season (Joey Corcoran could also push for more time), and Wilson was one of the best deep threats in the league over the final six games of the season after coming back from a stint in the NFL.

That leaves two spots that need filling, and while the team has brought in numerous rookie Americans to compete, an established impact addition could make sense given the talent available.

Regardless of who gets brought in, the passing attack should see an uptick from its league-low output last season, given Condell’s experience and creativity in the pass game, plus a healthier Collaros, who missed five starts and didn’t finish three other games in 2025.

The offensive line seems to be in place to help accomplish that as the team brought future Hall of Fame left tackle Stanley Bryant and long-time right guard Patrick Neufeld back on one-year deals. At centre, the team released Chris Kolankowski earlier in the off-season and seems primed to roll with Asotui Eli at the position, who has bided his time as the backup/swing tackle who’s impressed in his more than 1,100 snaps across the past seasons.

Canadian Gabe Wallace, 26, will look to build after a successful first season at left guard that saw him register the second best pressure rate allowed (2.7) among interior linemen, while 27-year-old American Kendall Randolph was solid in all facets of the game in his first full season starting at right tackle.

Depth-wise, Micah Vanterpool has started games at left tackle and left guard for the team, while young Canadian draft picks Ethan Vibert and Iwinosa Uwubanmwen look to continue to grow in backup roles. A veteran addition is always possible, but given the number of Americans who have been brought into the competition, it seems unlikely.

Defence

Blue Bombers defence depth chart

While the offence seemed like it was trying to figure things out every week, Jordan Younger’s unit was dialled in from Week 1.

Since Younger was promoted to defensive coordinator in 2024, he’s put together an elite pass defence unit. Over the past two seasons, the Bombers have allowed the fewest number of passing yards per game (248.1), passing touchdowns (41), the lowest opponent completion percentage (61.6 per cent), and the most pass knockdowns (Willie Jefferson plays a big factor in that, too). As a former defensive back with over a half-decade of coaching the back end, this shouldn’t come as a surprise.

It starts with star halfback duo Deatrick Nichols (through 2026) and Evan Holm (through 2027), who are both back under contract. Both have gotten multiple All-CFL nods in their time as a duo since 2022 and are great in coverage. They are also both durable, with one game being missed between the pair since 2023.

Canadian Redha Kramdi (through 2027) and American Michael Griffin II (through 2026) join breakout player Cam Allen in the nickel/safety rotation. The 29-year-old Kramdi has grown into one of the best nickel players in the CFL, especially while defending the run, recording 106 defensive tackles over the past two seasons, while Allen impressed in his nine starts at safety to close the year.

They’ll have to figure out the outside corner spots, however, as the team released Jamal Parker earlier in the off-season while Demerio Houston and Terrell Bonds remain pending free agents.

The team has already brought in numerous Americans to compete at those spots, while the Blue Bombers confirmed Trey Vaval will also return after receiving six NFL workouts this cycle. The team could go shopping, one or both pending free agents could get brought back, while some combo of the rookie Americans and Vaval (who got 314 defensive snaps last season) could soak up snaps as well.

Overall, with the league’s best pass defence, they are fantastic on second down, allowing the lowest opponent completion percentage in 2024 (42.3 per cent) and 2025 (43.6 per cent). The team has also been the best at not allowing touchdowns, allowing the least number of opponents’ drives to end in majors in the Younger era.

Now, if you can pair this elite back end with a pass rush, you’d be cooking with gas, but generating pressure has been a challenge over the past couple of seasons.

This defence has ranked last in sacks (39) and tackles for loss (49) over the past two years, as this front is in need of a shot in the arm. It’s a unit that’s presumably going to look a lot different in a week, as long-time Canadian middle man Jake Thomas has retired and joined the coaching staff as the defensive line coach, while tackle Jamal Woods and edge James Vaughters remain unsigned.

Only two spots on the defensive line seem to be taken care of at the moment, one being the field edge, where Willie Jefferson has re-upped on a one-year deal as part of the veteran core returning, while younger Canadians Cameron Lawson (through 2027) and Tanner Schmekel have also returned and are projected to take up a majority of the snaps at nose.

The other two spots could use upgrades, and there are disruptive players still unsigned in those spots, like the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ edge Malik Carney and tackle Mike Rose. The pair sit atop the pending free agent defensive line ranks, as does Edmonton’s Jake Ceresna, as guys who can get into opposing backfields. These spots are the biggest needs of an upgrade on the roster.

Rounding out the defence are American veterans Tony Jones and Kyrie Wilson at inside linebacker. The latter is sticking around for his ninth season as a Bomber and is one of the better run defenders from the weak side in the league. The most important thing for the 33-year-old has been health, and the two-time Grey Cup champion played in all 18 games last season after combining for just 21 games played over the last three years combined.

The star of the middle is Tony Jones, however, who broke out into a divisional All-CFL player in his second year in Winnipeg. The 30-year-old finished second in the league in tackles (102), third amongst inside linebackers in tackles for loss (four), seventh in sacks (three), while adding a pair of interceptions and totalling the second most defensive plays (116).

Canadians Tanner Cadwallader, Lane Novak, and Connor Shay add depth at the position as well, while pending free agent and another one of those typical mainstays in Shayne Gauthier could be brought back.

By the numbers, this has been a top-three unit over the past couple of seasons that has the chance to still upgrade significantly by adding to its pass rush.

Playing to your strengths and leaning into making the defence even better through free agency is something Walters, O’Shea, and co. could do, rather than trying to patch every single hole around the roster.