There were a number of things that Bombers’ General Manager, Kyle Walters said in his media availability that should not be glossed over. The first one that I want to look at is his relationship with Bombers’ Head Coach, Mike O’Shea.
*Relationships Walters said that, “It is no longer a yelling match,” with each of them “trying to get their points across.” This may be a surprising development for some to know that the relationship between the General Manager, and the Bombers’ Head Coach has not always been amicable. But as reported last week, Farhan did mention that the Bombers’ organization was a “house of cards.”
*Not good enough in 2025 Walters was very forth coming when he said that the Bombers just were not good enough this year. He made no bones about it, and repeated that fact multiple times. However, when questioned about his decisions in free agency, he did double down, believing that he made the right move…something that I have criticized earlier this year. That lead me to ask the question, “Did Kyle Walters Fail The Bombers & Their Fans?“
*Elgersma The Bombers believe that if he does not sign in the NFL, that they may be able make a deal with him in February after the NFL completes their futures contract. When Bombers’ Head Coach, Mike O’Shea was asked by Paul Friesen about not having a three year plan at quarterback, O’Shea fired back. O’Shea said something along the lines of ‘you don’t think we have a three year plan? Well maybe you don’t know all our plans right now.’ I am fairly sure that Friesen was referring to the fact that Collaros might not have another years in him…and O’Shea was referring to their hopes/plans to bring up Elgersma. Elgersmas, must be a top priority for Walters.
*Upcoming retirements? Walters has not been made aware of anyone retiring yet. I am sure that it is still a bit too early after the season for players to be making those decisions…unless they had previously decided that this would be their last year.
*Oliveira The Bombers would really like to have Oiveira back…but Oliveira wants to get paid what he thinks he is worth. I also believe, as I have mentioned earlier, that if the Bombers’ offensive coordinator, Jason Hogan is back then Brady Oliveira will sign elsewhere. Here is another article I wrote about trying to keep Oliveira around…I wanted to be the first on record (this is from August 12, 2025). It is clear that Oliveira was not used properly this year.
*Final thoughts I expect the Bombers to approach this offseason and this free agency differently. Look for them to sign more offensive linemen and more proven receivers. I expect that they will back away from trying to fill the roster with roll players and will sign some superstars. Their idea of not spending to the cap early? I expect that they will leave some cap space for NFL castoffs – something that they never utilized this year – but will be much more aggressive in free agency. When Walters is asked in early 2026 about his roster, I expect his answer to be different than 2025 when he said, “Only time will tell, but I do like our roster.” And in 2026,I expect Walters will be way more sure about his roster than he was in 2025.
What are your takeaways from this press conference, an what do you think about Walters inking a new year deal?
What did you think? Let me know in the comments section wherever you are reading this.
