The Winnipeg Blue Bombers unveiled its newest crop of talent this week, welcoming nine new players to the organization following the annual CFL draft Tuesday night.

The Blue and Gold struck an even balance of players, selecting five from defence to go with another four on offence. While the Bombers hadn’t indicated specific needs before the draft, their selections revealed a clear priority: bolstering defensive depth and enhancing special teams.

Winnipeg’s draft included three linebackers (one in each of their first two selections), two offensive linemen, a quarterback, a receiver, a defensive back and a defensive end. While no official contracts have been signed, Walters anticipates that several, if not all, of their draft picks will participate in training camp next month.

“The day after the draft, every team is going to say they felt pretty good about it,” Bombers general manager Kyle Walters said Wednesday. “We talked going in that we haven’t replenished the defensive guys. We had some injuries with our Canadians last year on defence and we really wanted to give the defensive coaches a few different pieces to play around with, with all the packages they do. So, that was a success.”

With the sixth overall pick, the Bombers selected linebacker Connor Shay from Wyoming, followed by linebacker Jaylen Smith from North Texas in the second round (15h overall). These two players have the most potential to contribute immediately on special teams, while also earning some reps in Jordan Younger’s defence.

However, Winnipeg’s third selection is likely to garner the most attention.

Graham Hughes / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES Laurier Golden Hawks quarterback Taylor Elgersma was chosen by the Blue Bombers in the second round of the CFL draft Tuesday night.

The Bombers selected quarterback Taylor Elgersma with their third pick. The selection came near the end of the second round, 18th overall, after Winnipeg was rewarded with an additional pick for having the most snaps played by Canadians across the CFL in 2024.

Elgersma joins the Bombers after a stellar season with the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks, where he was awarded the 2024 Hec Creighton Trophy as the top player in U Sports.

During his impressive season, he recorded 4,252 passing yards, including 35 touchdowns compared to 11 interceptions. The six-foot-six, 235-pound Elgersma is the first quarterback from a Canadian university to participate in the NCAA Senior Bowl.

Elgersma’s size and skillset have generated serious interest south of the border. Although he wasn’t selected in the recent NFL draft, he does have mini-camp invites with the Green Bay Packers and Buffalo Bills in the coming weeks.

“All along, we thought that second pick — the extra pick at the end of the second round — was a good spot for him, and if he was there, it would be a hard name to turn down,” Walters said. “It just so happened that on our board, he was the guy that really stood out after we took Jaylen. If Taylor was going to be there, we were going to make the move.”

Walters was cautious not to place specific expectations on the young quarterback, suggesting instead that he faces a significant learning curve in transitioning to the professional level. The 23-year-old will likely be under scrutiny during training camp, as media and fans will be keen to see if he can achieve what few before him have: succeed in a position predominantly held by American-born players coming from top NCAA programs.

“Every team is looking for that next starting quarterback in the CFL, and it doesn’t happen overnight.”–Kyle Walters

This perception has begun to change in recent years with the emergence of Canadian quarterbacks Nathan Rourke and Tre Ford with the B.C. Lions and Edmonton Elks, respectively. The 2025 season marks a historic moment for the league, with two Canadian quarterbacks slated to start in Week 1.

The hope is that Elgersma will follow in their footsteps and potentially become Winnipeg’s starting quarterback in the future. While an exciting prospect, this development is likely at least a couple of years away.

“Every team is looking for that next starting quarterback in the CFL, and it doesn’t happen overnight,” Walters said. “He’s going to come in and learn. It’s one thing to show well at an all-star game setting over a few days; this is a grind.”

He added: “You’re playing against professional football players, so we expect him to come in and learn and grow like all the young guys. For Canadians, regardless of the position, it’s a big jump coming from a U Sports school to a CFL training camp.”

The draft held added importance this year due to the off-season departures of defensive back Tyrell Ford and offensive lineman Liam Dobson, both of whom are Canadian and were used in starting roles.

The Bombers started as many as 10 Canadian players last year, more than any other team in 2024. But with the departure of Ford and Dobson and with limited depth behind them, Winnipeg won’t have the same flexibility in meeting the requirement of seven Canadian starters.

“Which is why we talked about bringing some versatile pieces on defence that can help with that,” Walters said. “One of the benefits of playing 10 Canadian starters is if you lose two, it’s still not a panic situation.”

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The offensive line is a position on CFL rosters that is frequently strengthened through the draft. Perhaps no team understands this better than Winnipeg, which has been the envy of the league in developing O-line talent in recent years.

While that depth has thinned recently, the Bombers addressed this by selecting Ethan Vibert from South Dakota State (3rd round, 27th overall) and Iwinosa Uwubanmwen (8th round, 71st) out of Alberta with their third- and eighth-round selections. That said, neither is anticipated to see significant playing time on offence immediately. Uwubanmwen will return to school this year after missing a significant portion of the 2024 U Sports season owing to injury.

This lack of depth could lead to a strategic shift on the O-line.

“We’ll have the option to play three Americans and we’ll kick the tires on that,” Walters said. “We think Gabe Wallace (2nd round, 17th overall in 2024) has a big, big future. He’s going to come in and push. We might not have the household names, but there are some younger guys that although are unproven, internally, we believe they can take the next step.”

The Bombers’ draft also included receiver Joey Corcoran (New Hampshire, 5th, 39th), linebacker Lane Novak (Saskatchewan, 5th, 45th), defensive back Ethan Ball (Calgary, 6th, 54th) and defensive end Trey Laing (Eastern Michigan, 7th, 63rd). Walters noted that all four players possess high character and will compete for playing time on special teams.

“Our special teams coach is pretty pumped,” Walters said, referring to text message conversation with second-year coach Mike Miller. “I was texting with Mike last night and he’s pretty excited about the draft, of having this influx of linebacker body types that can run around and do some things for him. It’s exciting.”

Darron Cummings / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES For their second and final selection in the global draft Tuesday, the Bombers chose Indiana Hoosiers punter James Evans (left) from Auckland, N.Z.

BOMBERS TRADE UP IN CFL GLOBAL DRAFT

Hours before the traditional draft on Tuesday, the Bombers made a trade to ensure they got their guy.

The Bombers acquired from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats former Alberta Golden Bears running back Matthew Peterson, as well as the No. 2 overall pick in the global draft and the 39th pick in the CFL Draft. In return, the Tiger-Cats received defensive lineman Kyle Samson, the eighth overall pick in the global draft and the 35th pick in the CFL Draft.

Winnipeg then selected defensive lineman Kemari Munier-Bailey, who played college football for the Weber State Wildcats. The six-foot-three, 230-pound native of England is coming off a season where he earned All-America and All-Big Sky honours.

For their second and final selection in the global draft, the Bombers chose punter James Evans from Indiana University. The Auckland, N.Z., native played four seasons with the Hosiers, averaging 42.4 yards per punt in his senior year.

Jeff.Hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Jeff Hamilton Multimedia producer

Jeff Hamilton is a sports and investigative reporter. Jeff joined the Free Press newsroom in April 2015, and has been covering the local sports scene since graduating from Carleton University’s journalism program in 2012. Read more about Jeff.

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