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News June 13, 2023

“I’m all for it. Whatever team role I can play, I’m all for it. It’s special here.” | Need To Know

@EdTaitWFC

It’s long been said there is a fine line between legend and myth and so Brad Muhammad wasn’t sure what to think about all the stories he had heard about the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and their vaunted culture.

His Canadian Football League resumé isn’t particularly long, but it does feature stops in Ottawa and, most recently, in Calgary where he started 16 games last year with the Stampeders. And so, he’s heard and seen some things.

So, when he sat in on a meeting with the Blue Bombers, his new squad, and did his best to immerse himself into his new surroundings he was, well, let’s have him tell it…

“Oh, man. Oh, man. You ask me about that and I’m almost speechless,” began the 27-year-old defensive back after practice on Tuesday. “You can see it from the way the guys communicate, the way the coaches communicate, to the players and the way they interact in the meeting room. It’s just… everything. It’s everything.

“It’s the way they approach working out. It’s the way they hang out outside the locker room. It’s a complete game-changer, man. I haven’t been around a locker room like this in a while, and I’ve been in some pretty good locker rooms.”

The Blue Bombers scooped up Muhammad this week following his release by the Stampeders, hoping to add more depth and more experience to the defensive backfield. Muhammad had two interceptions last year – both against the Blue Bombers – and had 50 tackles, 10 knockdowns, a tackle for a loss and a forced fumble.

He had re-signed with the Stamps in late February rather than hit the free-agent market, and then dove headfirst into a rigorous offseason program that had him in prime shape for camp. The Stamps releasing him was a shocker – and we’ll get to that further in a moment – but just as shocking was his first experience inside the Blue Bombers clubhouse.

“I was in the meeting room and they’re doing their thing,” Muhammad explained. “They’re congratulating each other on plays. You have the defensive line, linebackers, everybody in the same room going over the coaches’ adjustments and guys are complimenting players who covered them on such and such a play.

“I’m looking around in awe. I whispered to one of my teammates, ‘This is why you guys win so much. This is the secret ingredient. And I see why you guys win so much.’

“It’s hard for me to explain, but it was truly amazing to see it first-hand. That’s why I feel fortunate to be here. That’s why I’m saying that whatever I can do to help this team continue to win games and bring that Grey Cup back, whatever the coach needs me to do, I’m all for it. Whatever team role I can play, I’m all for it. It’s special here.”

The Blue Bombers have been able to successfully pluck players off the transaction wire and add them to their secondary effectively in years past. It was Nick Taylor and Mercy Maston back in 2019 after their release from Edmonton and it was Desmond Lawrence last season.

“The release from Calgary was kind of a shock,” said Muhammad. “It was a character check for me, just to make sure that I stayed even-keeled even as I was being taken through some adversity. Things worked for me and I’m just so happy to be here. It’s very tough going through something like that, but you have to have that mental fortitude to stay positive and continue to work. I actually went through something like this in college where I was released by FIU (Florida International Univeristy) but then picked back up. Although I was down, I knew I had to stay at it, and something would arise.

“Once I knew I was released my mindset wasn’t, ‘Can I play? Am I able to play in this league?’ It was making those corrections from Calgary so that wherever I ended up I could put my best foot forward.”

Blue Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea spoke of Muhammad’s experience at the halfback position being key in the club’s decision to add him.

“He’s got the ability to understand CFL offences and how they’re trying to attack him and all that stuff,” he said. “We felt we needed that kind of piece in house.”

The club also added former Old Dominion/Wake Forest defensive tackle Miles Fox on Monday.

“It’s interesting… he flashed on film,” O’Shea said. “I was watching B.C.’s preseason and just looking at guys and my attention kept on being drawn towards him. A great combination of power and speed and quickness – really agile for a larger man – and good strength, power. He just stood out like that.”

More from Tuesday’s return to practice in advance of Friday’s visit to Regina in this week’s NEED TO KNOW…

FYI: O’Shea had no update on DE Jackson Jeffcoat, who was injured in last week’s win over Hamilton, saying, “It’s football and he’ll be back as soon as he possibly can.” The daily injury report lists his injury as a calf.

Celestin Haba played well in Jeffcoat’s place and we told a bit of his story in Upon Further Review earlier this week.

Upon Further Review | HAM 31 WPG 42

Here are O’Shea’s thoughts on him from Tuesday:

“I liked him. He’s good. A couple minor details that he’ll work on, but for getting basically a lot more plays than he thought he was going to get he still showed a good motor right up to the very end, obviously. He’s got more than one move; he’s got a good dip on one side and he kept on coming.

“From the first couple days of camp that he was here he seemed to digest all the stuff we were asking him to learn very quickly, and he’s been a very quick study.”

Haba made a critical sack of Bo Levi Mitchell late in Friday’s win, flashing some of his skill off the edge.

“One play, and it happened to be at the right time,” said O’Shea. “I guess if you’re asking if he has a knack for big plays – if that’s what you’re asking – we’re one game in. Let’s sort of check back on that storyline Week 9 or something like that. I thought it was a good play, a good rush on the edge. But once again, with good pass rushers they’re setting things up all game and they’ve got good memories on what they’ve been doing, and they’ve got a plan.”

Receiver Dalton Schoen also did not practice on Tuesday, but there isn’t a great concern he won’t be available Friday against the Riders. Wednesday’s practice session is closed, with Thursday a travel day.

-HOUSTON BOUNCES BACK: Blue Bombers cornerback Demerio Houston was in the midst of a bust-out campaign last year when he suffered an injury that cost him the rest of his season. Our chat about that recovery – both mentally and physically – and how he responced with two interceptions, a fumble recovery, a pass knockdown and a tackle in Friday’s win:

https://www.bluebombers.com/2023/06/13/demerio-houston-june-13/

-MOVING ON: The Blue Bombers won their opener 42-31, but there were some warts. Leading 32-4 at one point, the club surrendered a block punt for a score, gave up a short TD after a kickoff fumble by Janarion Grant and then a third following a fumble by Zach Collaros.

“I thought we played a pretty good football game minus three plays that they maximized their return on,” said O’Shea. “Mistakes happen in football games. They’re a good football team with good players that certainly turned our mistakes into really big plays and points for them. Other than that, we played a damn good football game.”

-SALUTED: This week’s Pro Football Focus Honour Roll features three Blue Bombers in Zach Collaros, Brady Oliveira and Jermarcus Hardrick, while Winnipeg’s O-line also got some love. Read all about it here:

CFL Honour Roll, Week 1: Evans, Hardrick, Bombers’ o-line make the grade