Neufeld re-signs with Bombers to pursue dream of hosting and hoisting Grey Cup

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This article was published 06/01/2025 (278 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It won’t come as a surprise to see Patrick Neufeld holding a clipboard on the sidelines or working the phones from an executive suite when his playing days are through.

Not only has he expressed interest in coaching and handling the operations for a pro football club one day, there’s no denying the fit for the three-time CFL all-star right guard, who quickly became one of the culture builders and core leaders in the Winnipeg Blue Bombers locker room when he arrived in 2013.

“It’s my passion in life — this game, this sport,” Neufeld said during a Zoom conference on Monday. “I’ve obviously been a lot more privy to the business side of it having done my own deals and just being around a lot longer and going through that CFLPA Mentorship Program a couple of years ago. So, I just can’t see myself doing something else, whether it’s coaching or football operations or something combining both.”

It’s hard to imagine anything being daunting to the 6-4, 300-pounder, but Neufeld said thinking about his future beyond the white lines is just that.

Fortunately for him, he won’t have to rehash those thoughts for another year.

On Sunday, the Bombers signed the 13-year veteran to a one-year contract extension that keeps the right side of the interior offensive line intact for another season. Neufeld, who has spent the last 11 seasons in Winnipeg after being traded from Saskatchewan, was scheduled to become a free agent in February.

Neufeld’s return appeared to be only a matter of time after he definitively stated his desire to be back with the club two days after Winnipeg lost the Grey Cup back in November.

The game’s outcome did not impact whether he’d be back with the Blue and Gold, he said. What was appealing, however, was the idea of winning a Grey Cup that is hosted by Winnipeg.

Given the club’s recent track record of reaching the last five championship games, it is certainly within the realm of possibilities, as the big game will be hosted in the Manitoba capital in November.

“Grey Cup is the only goal you have as an organization, I think in every CFL team, whether it’s spoken about or not. Ultimately, that’s your goal. And just having it at home in Winnipeg, in our stadium, it just means a little bit more knowing (that). You have to earn the opportunity to go play in that game, and I couldn’t imagine a better way to cap your season off with winning a Grey Cup at home,” Neufeld said.

“So I think that’s going to be a big draw for a lot of guys to want to come back and play and have the opportunity to compete to play in that game.”

Neufeld, whose salary will resemble the figure he’s made in recent years, is the fourth player signed by the club this off-season, following kicker Sergio Castillo, linebacker Tony Jones and left tackle Stanley Bryant, one of Neufeld’s closest friends on the team.

That means the Bombers should be active in the coming weeks as they try to retain more of their 24 pending free agents before they hit the open market on Feb. 11. That could be more difficult than in past off-seasons.

The club has become synonymous with team-friendly deals, as players buy into the team-first culture and are willing to take cuts on their salary to afford more talent on the roster.

It’s fair to wonder if face-planting at the finish line for the third year in a row may start a reversal of fortune for Winnipeg, one where its biggest names are no longer willing to put the team’s finances ahead of their own.

“It’s possible,” Neufeld said.

“I can definitely see that some guys would maybe feel different and want to explore free agency. The difference between 10 and 20 grand after taxes and the comforts of what we do with our team is probably negligible. But if you’re looking at 50, 60, 70, sometimes more, that’s a lot of money. Ultimately, that relies on if you have a family or if you’re a single guy, whatever position you are in life.

“I feel like just this off-season maybe we see a little bit more change with the team, probably because of that notion.”

Change has already come off the field, as offensive co-ordinator Buck Pierce was plucked by the B.C. Lions to fill their head coaching vacancy and assistant Kevin Bourgoin, who spent seven seasons coaching the Bombers’ running backs and receivers, joined him on the West Coast.

There was also the loss of assistant GM Ted Goveia, who is now the GM in Hamilton.

Neufeld’s return is a step in the right direction, though.

A fixture on the field and in the community, Neufeld spoke candidly about where he feels his game is at today in comparison to his prime years.

“I think I’m probably still in the 90s (per cent), honestly,” he said, adding he still loves every aspect of his job.

“I feel great. I still feel like I’m playing really good football. I still feel like I can contribute positively to the team, the organization, so I think I have a pretty good sense of when I won’t be at that level is when I’ll probably step away, but I don’t feel like I’m there.”

The headset and clipboard will have to wait a while.

joshua.frey-sam@freepress.mb.ca

X: @jfreysam