
Mike O'Shea during Grey Cup week in Vancouver
Mike O’Shea won’t rush the items on his to-do list — and that includes the search for the next offensive coordinator of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
O’Shea met with media via Zoom from Canadian Football League meetings in Charlotte, N.C. on Monday and offered updates on a few trending subjects, including the hunt for a replacement for Buck Pierce, who left his gig as the Blue Bombers offensive coordinator to become the new head coach of the B.C. Lions. Pierce also took receivers coach Kevin Bourgoin with him, leaving two vacancies on O’Shea’s staff.
“Working on it. I’ve had some good conversations with guys,” O’Shea said. “I’m just making sure I work through that process to discover what I need to discover and do it right.
“I like where we’re at. Not in any rush.”
O’Shea has started down this road before, of course, with Pierce a popular candidate to interview for other jobs across the league before landing the top job with the Lions. He did say he hopes to have the new offensive boss in place before the start of CFL free agency on February 11th.
“No matter who you sign as a coaching staff there will be players drawn to that or pushed away from that,” he said. “So, the timeline is interesting. To rush and get somebody done before free agency — which I think it will be done before free agency, I really do — but I don’t think that’s going to change, necessarily, a big bulk of the players’ decision (on where they might sign).
“There will always be, ‘Oh, I’ve worked with that guy before… I like him’ or ‘I haven’t worked with that guy before. I don’t know.’ Some guys might say, ‘I’ve never worked with that guy. I really like that.’ It depends on where they’re coming from.
“I do understand the question as it relates to the timing of free agency. But I don’t know that you rush this process. You work on it, you put the time in, and you come up with good answers and the right answers.”
Here’s the abridged answers on some of the other topics O’Shea hit on during his media session:
-The club announced the addition of veteran receiver Dillon Mitchell on Monday (after O’Shea’s availability) but here’s what he said about the list of pending free agents, now totalling 22 with the return of Willie Jefferson.
We have signed receiver Dillon Mitchell to a one-year contract.
🗒️ » https://t.co/qbZy50G5El#ForTheW pic.twitter.com/Td87ctsuHt
— Winnipeg Blue Bombers (@Wpg_BlueBombers) January 13, 2025
“There’s always some turnover. We’ve done really well for a long time at keeping a core group and I think this year will be the exact same — not in terms of everybody choosing to sign back, but in terms of keeping a good, solid core of guys that really understand what they want to get done in the locker room and how they want to play the game and understand what the coaching staff thinks and believes in. That’s not going to change.
“We have such a large group of guys that can lead and support each other in their leadership. There’s always a couple guys that change, but the group mentality stays really well intact.”
-On NFL interest for all-star cornerback Tyrell Ford and on Ontaria ‘Pokey’ Wilson signing last week with the New York Jets:
“Tyrell Ford is a fantastic player. Made a ton of plays for us. Was exciting to watch every game; he came in every day ready to learn and put it out on the field and he knows we’d love to have him back.”
“(Wilson’s) very tough. Athletic. He studies. It matters to him, and he cares a lot. I watch him in the meetings and he’s asking good questions, taking good notes, he wants to do it right. Pair that with that his athleticism and toughness — he’s a tough kid, he made some big plays for us. I thought he maximized his yardage when he had the ball in his hands. He’s an exciting athlete. He had 1,000 yards as a rookie which we had in Dalton Schoen, too.
“You just hope those guys get the best opportunity they can. I want Pokey to go down there and do well and keep getting more opportunities.”
-O’Shea didn’t provide too many details on his opportunity last week to travel with the Toronto Maple Leafs as part of their mentor’s trip. O’Shea was on his second trip in as many years with the Leafs and was a guest of long-time team masseuse Todd Bean, who previously worked in the CFL with Hamilton and Toronto:
“Excellent trip. Well worth it. i had a lot of fun. I learned a lot. I enjoyed my time. I’m grateful that I was afforded that opportunity.”
-On the health status of Adam Bighill, who is coming off an injury and a pending free agent:
“He’s working his tail off to get back. We’ll keep monitoring that. He’s got the ability to get so much done in a day. I’ve said it 100 times, he’s a worker besides being super talented and a good leader. All those things are well known.
“We’ll see where that ends up with us. That’s still conversations probably to be had.”
-On handling the emotions of the Grey Cup loss to Toronto:
“I don’t think you’re ever past it. I think it sticks with you forever. I got on it pretty quickly at the end of the season because I thought it was going to be a little rougher than normal. We spent a lot, especially with the way the season went for us, toiling at the beginning of the year and coming out of that and rising to that point to get to the game and then not doing our best, obviously, in that game.
“I tried to attack this pretty quickly because I didn’t think it was going to be easy — none of them are, but I thought this was going to sting a little bit more. They stay with you forever, there’s no getting over it.”
-And on the 2025 Grey Cup in Winnipeg and whether that means any extra pressure on the team and how it is put together:
“No. When you ask about the impact I think about the great opportunity for Winnipeg and Winnipeggers to show off, to show the kind of people they are and the kindness they show off on a daily basis to my family, us, the team, the players. It’s a chance for Wade (Miller, President & CEO) to put on an amazing show and they will.
“And it’s a chance for the city of Winnipeg to show off everything it has to offer. People pass through Winnipeg sometimes and they don’t get a full effect of how great a city it is. They stay for a few days, and they say they want to come back. Couple that with the greatest yearly sporting event in Canada and I think it’s fantastic.
“More pressure? I don’t think you can put more pressure on players. They’re wired the right way. The reason they’re pros is because they’ve been able to handle it. They put more pressure on themselves than anybody else could.
“I like (what the Grey Cup) can do for the local economy and for showcasing our great city and province.”