With rookie camps completed and training camps already underway, CFL football is officially back.
As teams start their preparation for the 2026 season beginning June 4 on TSN, every franchise has one big question heading into the new campaign that needs to be answered.
Before free agency, it seemed the Winnipeg Blue Bombers were 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, brought back most of the veteran core.
After failing to make a sixth straight Grey Cup however (as if making five straight wasn’t enough), the Bombers made multiple splashes in free agency, adding in five impact players in receivers Tim White and Tommy Nield, offensive tackle Jarrell Broxton, and defenders Jonathan Moxey and Jake Ceresna.
Winnipeg needed the most help on offence. The unit 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.
The team also 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).
Along with a new creative passing offensive coordinator in Tommy Condell and three-time CFL all-star White and 2025 Canadian breakout Nield, the upside in the pass game is much more prevalent.
And while receiver was the main area of concern heading into the off-season, the pass protection got even better as well in the form of Broxton, who was arguably the best player overall available. The 33-year-old lineman has allowed the lowest pressure rate among qualified tackles over the past two seasons and now plugs in opposite four-time Most Outstanding Linemen and eight-time All-CFL member Stanley Bryant at tackle.
It’s hard to see how the offence could perform worse in 2026, as the unit is littered with veterans and All-CFL talent and has the potential to be more balanced.
Defensively, Winnipeg addressed a weakness of a group that was already really good.
Jordan Younger has put together an elite pass defence since being promoted to defensive coordinator in 2024. 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, only getting better by shoring up corner in the form of Moxey.
Where they needed help was up front, specifically a pass rush as this defence has ranked dead last in sacks (39) and tackles for loss (49) over these same past two seasons. Enter Jake Ceresna, who has been one of the most disruptive interior pass rushers north of the border for half a decade, recording 44 sacks in his last six seasons.
Overall, this is a team that has made nine straight playoff appearances and has only surround its already established, talented core by reloading with more star talent into the weaknesses.
This organization is the model franchise for sustained success, and at least from an on-paper perspective, they addressed the deficiencies that led to an un-Bomber-like finish in 2025 and could have the right mix to get right back to the big dance in 2026.
