Published Sep 24, 2025 \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 4 minute read<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n You can save this article by registering for free here<\/a>. Or sign-in<\/a> if you have an account.<\/p>\n He was voted not only the top Canadian in the league last season but also the top player, overall.<\/p>\n Advertisement 2<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY<\/p>\n Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.<\/p>\n Exclusive columns by Ryan Stelter, Paul Friesen, Ted Wyman, Scott Billeck, Lorrie Goldstein, Warren Kinsella and others. Plus newsletters: Gimme Stelter for your beat on the city, The Exit Row for all your Jets news and On the Rocks for curling.Unlimited online access to Winnipeg Sun and 15 news sites with one account.Winnipeg Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.<\/p>\n SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES<\/p>\n Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.<\/p>\n Exclusive columns by Ryan Stelter, Paul Friesen, Ted Wyman, Scott Billeck, Lorrie Goldstein, Warren Kinsella and others. Plus newsletters: Gimme Stelter for your beat on the city, The Exit Row for all your Jets news and On the Rocks for curling.Unlimited online access to Winnipeg Sun and 15 news sites with one account.Winnipeg Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.<\/p>\n REGISTER \/ SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.<\/p>\n THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an Account<\/p>\n or<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n So, like star Canadian quarterback Nathan Rourke in B.C., what Winnipeg Blue Bombers running back Brady Oliveira says matters.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n The Winnipegger was as taken aback as anybody when commissioner Stewart Johnston announced the CFL\u2019s change of direction this week.<\/p>\n \u201cThe rules caught me off guard a little bit,\u201d Oliveira said on Wednesday. \u201cI didn\u2019t think there needed to be any rule changes. Getting rid of the 55-yard line, I don\u2019t know why that\u2019s even a thing. Why did they shorten it by 10 yards?\u201d<\/p>\n Going into Monday\u2019s big announcement, Oliveira thought it might be about a big new TV deal. That\u2019s something he would have got excited about.<\/p>\n Instead, he\u2019s left wondering if the changes, particularly the shortened field and moving the goal posts to the back of the end zone, will even make for a better game.<\/p>\n The Winnipeg Sun’s Daily Headline News<\/p>\n Thanks for signing up!<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Advertisement 3<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n \u201cIs that really going to increase touchdowns? Right now we don\u2019t really know,\u201d he said. \u201cThey think it\u2019s going to be a more entertaining and exciting game. Even if I think it already is a very entertaining game. I guess we just have to wait and see.\u201d<\/p>\n Oliveira feels for teammates Trey Vaval, the Bombers rookie sensation as a kick returner, and veteran kicker Sergio Castillo, both of whom will see their jobs lose some relevancy.<\/p>\n \u201cWe just saw it this past week with Trey,\u201d Oliveira said, referring to Vaval\u2019s missed-field-goal returns of 128 and 71 yards against Ottawa. \u201cIncredible. Will you see that anymore? That\u2019s going to be out of the game. That\u2019s what makes the CFL so amazing, especially with that return game.\u201d<\/p>\n Vaval went from setting a CFL record for missed-field-goal return yards on Saturday to, two days later, watching a former TV executive and rookie commissioner cut a third of his job off at the knees.<\/p>\n Advertisement 4<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n \u201cPretty sad,\u201d Vaval said. \u201cAs a returner, this league\u2019s unique. That was something we didn\u2019t ever do back in the United States, so that was pretty cool. So yeah, I\u2019m pretty sad. But \u2026 we\u2019ve still got punts and kick return, so can\u2019t complain about that.<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t dwell on it. I can\u2019t change it.\u201d<\/p>\n The league says the moves will reduce the number of field goals and increase the number of touchdowns.<\/p>\n Time will tell. Meanwhile, two things that make the three-down game unique will be erased.<\/p>\n From Missouri, Vaval can empathize with homegrown players such as Oliveira and Rourke. The Lions quarterback called the changes \u201cgarbage\u201d in a heartfelt response on Monday.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel for the guy,\u201d Vaval said. \u201cHe\u2019s a Canadian guy, grew up with this game. I feel his pain.\u201d<\/p>\n Advertisement 5<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n You don\u2019t have to be from north of the border to question the moves.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s a huge play within the CFL,\u201d Texas product Willie Jefferson said of the missed-field-goal return. \u201cThat\u2019s a staple play \u2026 a swing most Canadians grew up anticipating. They\u2019re going for a 55, 60-yard field goal, it\u2019s a possibility it\u2019s going to be missed, so it\u2019s going to be a return. Now we\u2019re taking that play away.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s something that Canadians are going to have to get used to.\u201d<\/p>\n The star defensive end can\u2019t believe the league didn\u2019t consult players, particularly those from Canada.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was wild to me,\u201d Jefferson said. \u201cJust to not have a say in the changes \u2026 especially when it\u2019s a player-driven league. For the commissioner to just come in and make some rule changes and not see how the players felt about it and where we wanted to go with it \u2013 talking to the guys in the locker-room and the guys around the league, it\u2019s not a good look.\u201d<\/p>\n Advertisement 6<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Oliveira agrees.<\/p>\n \u201cGuys like (Rourke) and Canadian coaches that are very passionate about this league, owners, GMs that are Canadian \u2026 maybe have a conversation,\u201d he said. \u201cJust have that discussion. I feel for the people that are upset about this.\u201d<\/p>\n Some worry this is simply the start of a slippery slope to more Americanization of the CFL down the road.<\/p>\n \u201cThey better not be getting rid of more of the uniqueness of the Canadian game,\u201d Oliveira said. \u201cWe still have other great things: 12 men on the field, the waggle \u2026 the ratio makes this great game, with so many amazing Canadian products on the field that Canadians are proud to watch. So we still have that to hold very close to our heart.<\/p>\n \u201cHopefully this isn\u2019t just small changes that will continue to get bigger as the years go on.\u201d<\/p>\n The league\u2019s top player has another hope: That the league\u2019s higher-ups actually know what they\u2019re doing.<\/p>\n \u201cI just want this league to continue to grow,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd if that\u2019s what they think is going to happen by making these decisions, then I\u2019m on board. Hopefully they have our best interests in mind.\u201d<\/p>\n paul.friesen@kleinmedia.ca<\/p>\n X: @friesensunmedia<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Share this article in your social network<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Breadcrumb Trail Links SportsFootballCFLWinnipeg Blue Bombers Get the latest from Paul Friesen straight to your inbox Sign Up…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":167520,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[437],"tags":[49,48,521,522,520,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-167519","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cfl","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-canadian-football-league","11":"tag-canadianfootballleague","12":"tag-cfl","13":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167519","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=167519"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167519\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/167520"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=167519"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=167519"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=167519"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Winnipeg](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0925oliveirasask-e1758758080717.jpg\")
Winnipeg Blue Bombers running back Brady Oliveira (right) is tackled by Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive lineman Malik Carney during the first half of CFL football action in Regina on Aug. 31, 2025. Photo by Heywood Yu \/The Canadian PressArticle content<\/p>\n![\"Winnipeg](\"https:\/\/dcs-static.gprod.postmedia.digital\/19.6.0\/websites\/images\/identity\/logo-identity-wsun-new.svg\"){kind=logo}
<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/dcs-static.gprod.postmedia.digital\/19.6.0\/websites\/images\/newsletters\/icon-sun-headlineNews.svg\"\/){kind=icon}
<\/p>\n