Tailbacks chasing Cotton for starting duties on Bombers

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This article was published 02/06/2015 (3769 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WITH a stiff breeze that made the passing game difficult, the five men auditioning to become the starting running back for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2015 got a chance to strut their stuff on Day 2 of training camp Monday at the University of Manitoba.

Paris Cotton and challenger Carlos Anderson had long touchdown runs on a day the running game got a long look from a coaching staff hoping to improve a ground game that was second last in the CFL last season in yards and last in average yards per rush.

Cotton comes into his second CFL season with the advantage of incumbency, having taken over the starting tailback duties late last season after the club jettisoned Nic Grigsby.

But Cotton says he has no illusions he is the starting tailback this season.

“We’ve brought in a lot of backs and we’re all here to compete,” said Cotton, a 25-year-old out of Central Michigan. “The best man will win it and the guy that does make this team will have a great team in front of him.”

While much has been made about the effect off-season improvements to the offensive line will have on the passing game, Cotton says all that new beef up front is also going to open up some big holes for the running game.

“The possibilities are endless, to be honest. If we do what we can do up front — and we’re looking great already — I’m really excited about this year… I’m seeing some unison with those guys already. It’s only the second day of practice and already those offensive-line guys are on the same page and getting the job done.”

Among the backs in camp is Bradley Randle, a late-season pickup by the B.C. Lions in 2014 who saw special-teams action in one game. Randle is no stranger to challenging an incumbent for the starting position — he was signed by the Minnesota Vikings in 2013 as an undrafted free agent and went up against some guy named Adrian Peterson in camp that year.

“Going up against guys like that just taught me that whenever you’ve got an opportunity, you just have to give it your all,” said Randle, a 24-year-old out of UNLV. “I’m excited. I’m happy. I’ve been in the CFL before and any time I can put pads on, I’m happy to do it. It’s just a blessing to be out here and play the game that I love.”

At least three players were conspicuous by their absence Monday. Non-import receiver Addison Richards, who turned heads with a strong rookie camp last week, missed a second straight day but head coach Mike O’Shea insisted it’s no big deal.

“From the time I said it’d be a day or two, it’s been a day,” said O’Shea. “So it might be ‘or two.’ “

Veteran linebacker Dan West and rookie cornerback Winston Wright have also yet to suit up at, although both men reportedly passed their physicals on Saturday. O’Shea refused to say why they haven’t practised.

“We’re not going to talk about injuries, not right away,” said O’Shea. “We’ll get into that later in the season to see how we want to deal with injuries on a personal level with players.”

The Bombers also announced they’ve signed import defensive back Patrick Hall (6-0, 185, USC).

A Different Perspective: Chad Rempel spent the first five years of his CFL career trying to find a place as a receiver. A fourth-round draft pick of the Eskimos in 2004, he bounced to Hamilton, Winnipeg, Toronto, Montreal, Hamilton, Montreal and back to the Argos before he discovered the key to his longevity in his league — by bending over and firing a football between his legs with a great deal of accuracy.

“It was the off-season after the 2009 season, before 2010,” said Rempel. “I had a lot of injuries as a receiver and still had the passion for the game and I wanted to find a way to continue to play. So, I taught myself how to snap. Long snapping is a repetition thing. I was able to throw it pretty well because I had some quarterback ability from high school to start with. And then after that it’s just rep, rep, rep, just like shooting free throws or a golf swing.

“Fortunately enough, at the time coach O’Shea had just got the special-teams job in Toronto and he was patient with me while I was learning and let me develop. It worked out very well.”

Now considered the CFL’s best long snapper, Rempel spent last year with the Chicago Bears and Saskatchewan Roughriders, and had a tryout with Indianapolis this winter before settling back with Winnipeg.

— Tait and Wiecek