‘Want to still prove that I can run with the young dogs’

Nick Hallett was the last returning Blue Bomber to be offered a contract this off-season.

It looked like the club was moving on from the 32-year-old special teams ace when finally, a deal got done on Feb. 11.

Even though he had to wait the longest for it to be his turn, the defensive back from London, Ont., has no complaints. If anything, he understands why it might have gone down to the wire.

“I’m really happy to just be back on the team this year,” Hallett told the Free Press after Wednesday’s training camp session.

“I wanted to be back here. It took a little bit, but I love the guys, I love the team, I love the locker room. I feel like I wasn’t as good last year as I have been in previous years, but I want to try to rectify that and help the team in any way that I can.”

Hallett didn’t miss a single game in his first five seasons, but a neck issue sidelined him for four contests last year.

Despite ranking sixth in franchise history with 80 special teams tackles, Hallett feels like a young player again — one with a chip on his shoulder and something to prove.

“I do want to still prove that I can run with the young dogs. I still feel great,” he said. “I felt good that last playoff game, so, I just want to prove that I can still do it. The main thing is help this team because I know where we can be. Looking at the pieces, we just need to put it all together and I know what we can achieve.”

Regardless of what he has left in the tank, Hallett’s career is a shining example for the rookies in camp that it doesn’t matter where a player gets selected on draft day.

The 5-11, 190-pound defender was chosen in the seventh round, 61st overall, in the 2019 CFL Draft out of the University of Toronto.

“It really doesn’t matter. I’ve seen first rounders not make it, I’ve seen seventh, eighth rounders make it and have long careers,” said Hallett.

“It’s really just what you do with that opportunity. I try to bring all the young guys along and do my part, like the vets did before with me.”

Hallett celebrated a milestone in 2025 by appearing in his 100th career game with the Bombers. He started seven of those at safety.

“Watching him operate, he seemed to get a lot of joy out of simple things and you can watch him having his own fun on the practice field while he was waiting for a rep,” said Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea.

“And then with his role on special teams, he just places such a high importance. As much as everybody wants to do other things, too, he doesn’t let that part of it distract him from the plays he’s involved in on special teams. He takes that as seriously as anybody, and puts all out effort into his special teams play.

“For young guys that are coming in, they have to show us that’s the kind of attitude they’re going to have,” O’Shea added.

And for those young players, it might help their case if they arrive with the same mentality Hallett had as a rookie — unsure of exactly how everything worked.

“I came in not knowing the rules. I thought as a draft pick, you can still get cut at any time. I didn’t know that you don’t count to the roster, so every day, I was like, ‘This could be my last,’ which I think probably helped me,” he said.

“I not only made the team, but I dressed and was playing special teams right away. It almost doesn’t feel that long ago, but I know it has been.”

Let’s play some football

Wednesday officially marked Day 11 of Blue Bombers training camp.

Players are physically and mentally exhausted at this point, but if you want to see their faces quickly light up, just mention the fact that they are days away from going up against an actual opponent.

The Bombers kick off their pre-season on Saturday when they meet the Saskatchewan Roughriders in Saskatoon at 6 p.m. CT.

“I think we’re all itching to play,” said rookie quarterback Taylor Elgersma.

“We’ve been hitting each other for long enough now that I think it’s time that we’re all wearing the same colour and going to hit someone else.”

Pre-season action is far from fascinating, but the Bombers will be worth watching thanks to their intriguing backup quarterback battle.

“Oh, yeah, fun,” admitted O’Shea, before pumping the brakes.

“The game will play out, there will be bits of information that we can take in, there will be facts, and there will — probably, outside of the building — there will be things made up about what they see. And here, we’ll stick to what’s really going on.”

Elgersma has, far and away, looked the most impressive out of the four arms — Terry Wilson, Bryce Perkins and Payton Thorne being the others — vying for work behind starter Zach Collaros.

His decisiveness and arm talent have stood out, and a strong showing by the 24-year-old Canadian against the Riders will only further strengthen his argument as to why he should be the No. 2 pivot.

O’Shea and offensive co-ordinator Tommy Condell planned to meet Wednesday night to discuss how they plan to use the quarterbacks on Saturday. They’ve learned a lot about the group in these last two weeks, but they’ll learn a whole lot more when they see them perform live against true competition.

“When there’s an opponent there that’s actually going to hit you — because we can’t practice like that and we won’t — what are their reactions? Do they rise or do they not?” said O’Shea.

“Even in practice when you’re running a skelly practice and you’re throwing, the DBs aren’t necessarily breaking up through receivers so the timing is always good for the most part. So, now the receivers will be getting hit and the timing has to be better.”

It’ll be Elgersma’s first game action since Aug. 23, 2025, when he was with the Green Bay Packers and went six-for-eight for 33 yards and a passing touchdown in their pre-season finale — a 20-7 win over the Seattle Seahawks.

“It was obviously very exciting being able to get out there and being at Lambeau (Field) for the first time and running out of that tunnel for the first time was definitely a cool experience,” said Elgersma.

“But I’m excited to get playing here.”

The Bombers play their second and final pre-season game on May 29 when they host the B.C. Lions.

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