2018 CFL Season Thread

[Drake]

So Winnipeg knew, told the CFL who then let him play with Edmonton, who didn’t know? Weird.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers say they were aware of a police investigation into then-Bomber Euclid Cummings after an incident in Vancouver in 2016 and informed the league it was underway.

The Bombers say they were contacted by Vancouver police about the incident that ultimately led to the charges and passed that information onto the league.

The Eskimos say they weren’t aware of the incident or the charges before he was signed or while he was a member of the team.

http://3downnation.com/2018/03/07/bo...rds+√%29

[dash_pinched]

https://twitter.com/user/status/973234416519561217

[Drake]

3DN is a disgrace. They define "fake news".

@DC_CHILLIN_8:
Look at these jokers again🤦🏾#♂️ I should sue 3rd down nation for defamation!!! Can you do late in CA??? https://t.co/DRaVwhXM34

I definitely should be getting paid for being their only source of clicks 😂😂😂 I need a Ontario lawyer I think right?? https://t.co/DRaVwhXM34

[Joborule]

So there's been discussion before about whether the league should move the schedule up in order to have more summer games, as well have the important games played in warmer temperatures. The idea would be that more people would go to the games then, especially in the later part of the season.

So for fun I decided to compile the attendance for each team from last season, and see if there is much of a drop off from the earlier games compared to the later games. At the bottom is the season average for the teams' games. On the far right column, it's the average throughout the league on attendance for the home game number. This again, was for the purpose of seeing the attendance drop off. I also put in playoff numbers (that didn't count towards average) for teams that hosted games. These would've been in November.

Game #	CGY	TOR	WPG	MON	OTT	HAM	EDM	VAN	SSK	League Avg.
1	24,613	13,583	30,165	20,129	24,565	24,135	31,828	19,175	33,350	24,616
2	30,274	11,219	25,085	18,728	24,347	23,531	36,260	21,017	33,050	24,835
3	25,492	15,801	25,931	18,610	24,756	23,517	32,837	23,415	33,350	24,857
4	26,150	11,616	30,554	19,712	23,725	23,524	27,078	20,622	33,350	24,037
5	33,731	16,326	33,134	18,564	23,851	23,926	41,738	18,029	33,350	26,961
6	28,176	13,182	26,588	18,325	24,887	23,604	34,312	18,091	33,350	24,502
7	26,394	12,862	26,204	22,596	24,901	24,067	30,524	19,324	33,350	24,469
8	27,316	15,102	26,434	18,849	24,893	23,672	26,738	19,816	30,083	23,656
9	24,281	15,532	25,034	20,184	24,781	23,526	30,601	19,233	31,627	23,867
Playoff	30,116	24,929	27,244		24,107					
Average	27,381	13,914	27,681	19,522	24,523	23,722	32,435	19,858	32,762

So obviously this isn't a perfect format to draw conclusions from. It doesn't take into account when the games were played, the weather, team record, and the attendance figures itself may not necessarily mean who showed up to the game. And this is only off one season, rather than compilation of multiple years.

Either way, I found it interesting since it seems the attendance across the board didn't fluctuate as much as I thought it would. There are a few games that had noticeably bigger turnouts than others (rivalry game and labour day), but for games that would be in the fall (after game 6 usually), there's some that have turnouts that are similar or better than those in the summer. And the playoff games turnouts were good in relation to their regular season average. Again though, it doesn't take into account weather, which can have a significant impact on turnout. This was a warm November in Calgary for instance, and probably was one of the warmest western final here.

Looking at the numbers through, if the season was to be bumped up, would it actually make a difference in attendance? From last season alone not taking factors into consideration, maybe not. For Toronto and Montreal which have a high metro population, the summer numbers were actually fairly low, and actually had equal or better turnouts in the fall.

For Vancouver, they're the one team that had did have better attendance in the summer than in the fall, despite being in a dome venue. Although their dome has a retractable roof, which could have played a factor? The idea of being inside a concrete shell with no natural lighting could be viewed as a negative experience to the attendee?

I go back and forth on whether the league should bump up the schedule. On one hand, I feel the CFL should because along with more favorable weather conditions, it's less competition with the NFL since once that season begins my attention with the CFL is diminished. On the other hand though, winter is Canada, and having the season feature snow games is embracing what makes Canadian football. As well, U SPORTS season goes on from September-November, and if the CFL was to move the season up, how would it affect university football? I feel that U SPORTS season needs to be aligned with the CFL, and that wouldn't be possible since the season would be too short unless they're willing to push the season into the summer months when students aren't around, which isn't ideal I feel.

Apparently the CFL is pursuing a deal with the NFL Network, and if they get it, that would be the catalyst to move the season up. The CFL needs to go after the money so it seems that it's inevitable that it's gonna happen since if the opportunity is there, they gotta take it.

[tvp2003]

Originally Posted by Joborule

Apparently the CFL is pursuing a deal with the NFL Network, and if they get it, that would be the catalyst to move the season up. The CFL needs to go after the money so it seems that it's inevitable that it's gonna happen since if the opportunity is there, they gotta take it.

This would be great in terms of league exposure down south. I'm still surprised they have enough content throughout the year to broadcast on NFL Network -- better to fill that time with actual football (especially if they can emphasize where they played college ball as well as educate them on who the stars of the league are and what they have accomplished).

[dash_pinched]

Hey, good news for Anthony Parker (sorry, couldn't resist)

“The new ball is virtually identical, to the eye, to the old one. It has the same laces and markings including our stripes. But it is made of a slightly harder leather. Our partners at Wilson say that allows it to hold its pebbles better.”

The new ball may also be just a tiny fraction larger. It is the same length as the old one. But Wilson provides a range for what constitutes an acceptable circumference upon inflation and that could be up to an eighth of an inch larger for the new ball.

Each team had samples of the new footballs throughout 2017 – distributed in April and kept highly secretive – that were made to the same standards as pigskins used in the NFL. Sources say the move makes the balls easier to throw and catch, which should improve scoring.

http://www.3downnation.com/2018/03/1...ved-footballs/

[MoneyGuy]

Originally Posted by dash_pinched

Hey, good news for Anthony Parker (sorry, couldn't resist)

“The new ball is virtually identical, to the eye, to the old one. It has the same laces and markings including our stripes. But it is made of a slightly harder leather. Our partners at Wilson say that allows it to hold its pebbles better.”

The new ball may also be just a tiny fraction larger. It is the same length as the old one. But Wilson provides a range for what constitutes an acceptable circumference upon inflation and that could be up to an eighth of an inch larger for the new ball.

Each team had samples of the new footballs throughout 2017 – distributed in April and kept highly secretive – that were made to the same standards as pigskins used in the NFL. Sources say the move makes the balls easier to throw and catch, which should improve scoring.

http://www.3downnation.com/2018/03/1...ved-footballs/

So we really do have bigger balls in the CFL?

[Julio]

Originally Posted by Joborule

So there's been discussion before about whether the league should move the schedule up in order to have more summer games, as well have the important games played in warmer temperatures. The idea would be that more people would go to the games then, especially in the later part of the season.

So for fun I decided to compile the attendance for each team from last season, and see if there is much of a drop off from the earlier games compared to the later games. At the bottom is the season average for the teams' games. On the far right column, it's the average throughout the league on attendance for the home game number. This again, was for the purpose of seeing the attendance drop off. I also put in playoff numbers (that didn't count towards average) for teams that hosted games. These would've been in November.

Game #    CGY    TOR    WPG    MON    OTT    HAM    EDM    VAN    SSK    League Avg.
1    24,613    13,583    30,165    20,129    24,565    24,135    31,828    19,175    33,350    24,616
2    30,274    11,219    25,085    18,728    24,347    23,531    36,260    21,017    33,050    24,835
3    25,492    15,801    25,931    18,610    24,756    23,517    32,837    23,415    33,350    24,857
4    26,150    11,616    30,554    19,712    23,725    23,524    27,078    20,622    33,350    24,037
5    33,731    16,326    33,134    18,564    23,851    23,926    41,738    18,029    33,350    26,961
6    28,176    13,182    26,588    18,325    24,887    23,604    34,312    18,091    33,350    24,502
7    26,394    12,862    26,204    22,596    24,901    24,067    30,524    19,324    33,350    24,469
8    27,316    15,102    26,434    18,849    24,893    23,672    26,738    19,816    30,083    23,656
9    24,281    15,532    25,034    20,184    24,781    23,526    30,601    19,233    31,627    23,867
Playoff    30,116    24,929    27,244        24,107                    
Average    27,381    13,914    27,681    19,522    24,523    23,722    32,435    19,858    32,762

So obviously this isn't a perfect format to draw conclusions from. It doesn't take into account when the games were played, the weather, team record, and the attendance figures itself may not necessarily mean who showed up to the game. And this is only off one season, rather than compilation of multiple years.

Either way, I found it interesting since it seems the attendance across the board didn't fluctuate as much as I thought it would. There are a few games that had noticeably bigger turnouts than others (rivalry game and labour day), but for games that would be in the fall (after game 6 usually), there's some that have turnouts that are similar or better than those in the summer. And the playoff games turnouts were good in relation to their regular season average. Again though, it doesn't take into account weather, which can have a significant impact on turnout. This was a warm November in Calgary for instance, and probably was one of the warmest western final here.

Looking at the numbers through, if the season was to be bumped up, would it actually make a difference in attendance? From last season alone not taking factors into consideration, maybe not. For Toronto and Montreal which have a high metro population, the summer numbers were actually fairly low, and actually had equal or better turnouts in the fall.

For Vancouver, they're the one team that had did have better attendance in the summer than in the fall, despite being in a dome venue. Although their dome has a retractable roof, which could have played a factor? The idea of being inside a concrete shell with no natural lighting could be viewed as a negative experience to the attendee?

I go back and forth on whether the league should bump up the schedule. On one hand, I feel the CFL should because along with more favorable weather conditions, it's less competition with the NFL since once that season begins my attention with the CFL is diminished. On the other hand though, winter is Canada, and having the season feature snow games is embracing what makes Canadian football. As well, U SPORTS season goes on from September-November, and if the CFL was to move the season up, how would it affect university football? I feel that U SPORTS season needs to be aligned with the CFL, and that wouldn't be possible since the season would be too short unless they're willing to push the season into the summer months when students aren't around, which isn't ideal I feel.

A few thoughts, not so much on the concept (I wouldn't mind if they moved the season up a week or two, but not the month some are talking about) but the analysis:

-It would be interesting to see how overall the Thursday night games did. I would expect them to be amongst the lower attended games.

-As for the games later in the season, it might have been relatively nice at the Western Final, but it was horribly cold for the last regular season Stamps game. The announced attendance is easily twice the number of people that came through the gates. The Riders actually discounted tickets for their last regular season game, and still had one of their lowest attendances, also with a ton of no shows.

The Stamps game was a worst case scenario (nothing for the Stamps to play for and bad weather) but rather than the time of year, I would suggest the time of day is important to the attendance. I did notice no Friday night games at the end of the season at McMahon this year.

As for the amount of fluctuation, I would suggest that it might indicate that the amount of casual fans that go to the odd game is a pretty small percentage. Certainly there wasn't much for walk up sales for the last Stamps game.

[Drake]

Proposed rule changes for 2018. There is also a proposal that illegal contact is no longer a play that can be challenged.

I. Make it illegal for any player to deliver a forcible block on an opponent while moving back towards his own goal-line, sometimes referred to as “blindside” blocks;

II. Outlaw low blocks that occur outside of the “tackle box,” an area that extends from tight end to tight end and from the quarterback or kicker to two yards beyond the line of scrimmage;

III. Widen the definition of spearing to include any situation where a player delivers a blow with his helmet as the initial or primary point of contact. This does not apply to a low running ball carrier;

IV. Eliminate a loophole in the “sleeper” play rule by making it illegal for a player who enters the game and remains outside the numbers to receive the ball in any manner including a kick or lateral;

V. Simplify the rule on what constitutes a quarterback making a legal pass behind the line of scrimmage by defining it as the passer having at least one of his feet on or behind the line of scrimmage instead of requiring that the release point of the ball be behind the line of scrimmage;

VI. Eliminate the “force out” rule by requiring a receiver catching a ball to place at least one foot inbounds regardless of whether he was contacted in mid-air;

VII. Increase the penalty for “pyramiding” — the practice of using another player to elevate one’s self in an effort to block a kick — from five yards to 10 yards to deter the behaviour.

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sp...477703833.html

[Lubicon]

V. Simplify the rule on what constitutes a quarterback making a legal pass behind the line of scrimmage by defining it as the passer having at least one of his feet on or behind the line of scrimmage instead of requiring that the release point of the ball be behind the line of scrimmage;

VI. Eliminate the “force out” rule by requiring a receiver catching a ball to place at least one foot inbounds regardless of whether he was contacted in mid-air;

I don't mind these two at all. Now if they would just change how the clock runs (should be similar to US College rules IMHO) and change a couple of the kicking rules I would be happy.

[tvp2003]

VI. Eliminate the “force out” rule by requiring a receiver catching a ball to place at least one foot inbounds regardless of whether he was contacted in mid-air;

Was this a problem in the past? Too subjective for the refs to call? I'm generally not a fan of rule changes that prevent offence so this one is a bit of a headscratcher for me...

[Otto-matic]

https://twitter.com/user/status/977265885801951232

Here comes a year full of this stadium is too old tweets from everyone.

[Joborule]

The stadium is too old.

Surprise instant government grants to spur McMahon redevelopment?

[Otto-matic]

Originally Posted by Joborule

The stadium is too old.

Surprise instant government grants to spur McMahon redevelopment?

The good news is, if the CFL does bump the season up a couple weeks in 2019. It won't be so bloody cold out.

[tvp2003]

Originally Posted by Otto-matic

https://twitter.com/user/status/977265885801951232

Here comes a year full of this stadium is too old tweets from everyone.

Terrific news. Went to my first GC back in Vancouver in 2014 and will likely make the drive up to Edmonton this year (hopefully to cheer on the Stamps).

[M*A*S*H 4077]

Originally Posted by tvp2003

Was this a problem in the past? Too subjective for the refs to call? I'm generally not a fan of rule changes that prevent offence so this one is a bit of a headscratcher for me...

I really like this rule, I think it is too subjective and pushing the receiver out of bounds is a good defensive play

Now, I wish they’d call spearing on a low running runner too. You’re just asking defenders to get into the knees to get lower than the runner now. Sure it would be a pretty drastic change to football but it would create a much safer product. Otherwise I really like all of the other proposed rule changes

[Drake]

Hardaway's an #######. CFL players need to fire Jonathon Hardaway as their agent.

@FarhanLaji:
Rice OL Peter Godber #4 ranked prospect in #CFLdraft is being sent home from combine after opting not to test sat-sun. Advised by agent to wait for upcoming pro day. Team officials not impressed

[Joborule]

Originally Posted by Otto-matic

https://twitter.com/user/status/977265885801951232

Here comes a year full of this stadium is too old tweets from everyone.

Interesting from the olympic bid report on what redevelopment at McMahon Stadium would look like if it was to be carried out - which could be done in eight months. (Option 3 - vision concept in latter pages of report)

Originally Posted by krazycanuck

There are a few interesting concepts through this the report here on what could be done:

http://www.calgary.ca/_layouts/cocis...edirect=1&sf=1

[dash_pinched]

Some sad news - James 'Quick' Parker has passed away. He was a dominant defensive player for both the Eskies and Lions.

https://twitter.com/user/status/978798596886876161

[transplant99]

He was a tremendous football player.