What’s next for the Bombers, now that Henry Burris has turned them down?

After putting up a 3-15 mark with a variety of quarterbacks in 2013, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers came into this offseason determined to get better at the position. So far, though, that hasn't worked out for them despite the abundance of quarterbacks on the market. Both Zach Collaros and Henry Burris were released by their teams in advance of free agency, and the Bombers went after both, but Collaros opted to go to Hamilton instead (triggering the Burris release), and Burris elected to join the Ottawa Redblacks. That's left Winnipeg in the cold, with only limited options. FromKirk Penton of The Winnipeg Sun:

Choosing between Kevin Glenn and Drew Willy isn't exactly an appetizing prospect, but it may be what the Bombers are left with. Neither's all that attractive of a choice at the moment, though. Glenn's a 13-year CFL veteran, and a guy who had success in Winnipeg before, and his 2013 stats with Calgary were reasonably impressive (2,710 yards, 18 touchdowns against seven interceptions, a 66.7 per cent completion rate), but they weren't on the level of Burris, who led the league with 4,925 passing yards (which explains why Ottawa would go after Burris despite already having Glenn). Glenn's also 34, so while he could have some good years left, he's not a long-term solution, and although he was more efficient than Burris last year in completion percentage and TD/INT, it's tough to say he's the better quarterback at this moment in time. He also didn't exactly part ways on good terms with current Bombers' offensive coordinator Marcel Bellefeuille, who implemented a two-quarterback system with Glenn and Quinton Porter in 2011, his last year as the head coach in Hamilton. Winnipeg could well wind up with Glenn, and he might provide them with a decent stabilizing veteran presence for a while, but for those fans who had dreams of Collaros or Burris, that would seem to be a disappointing outcome.

What about Willy? Well, he might be worth taking a look at too, as he impressed in fill-in work while Darian Durant was hurt last season. He's also only 27, so he could have plenty of good years ahead. However, he doesn't have a ton of CFL experience; he's been in the league for two years, but has only thrown 147 passes during that time thanks to being behind Durant in Saskatchewan. His career stats are promising (a 68.7 per cent completion rate, with nine touchdowns against five interceptions), but they're from a small sample size, and he's far from proven as a CFL starter. Winnipeg's been burned by going with inexperienced quarterbacks recently, so they may not want to go down that road again. Of course, the Bombers have internal options too, including season-ending-starter Max Hall, but no one in their organization really has shown much to date. The most likely outcome appears to be them winding up with Glenn, Willy or perhaps both, and while that's not catastrophic, it's not something that's going to inspire a lot of Bomber fans.

However, Bomber general manager Kyle Walters is drawing praise from some quarters for not overpaying for Burris. Here's what Gary Lawless of The Winnipeg Free Press wrote last night before the Burris deal was announced:

While the Redblacks' offer may have in fact been better (no word on the money yet, but they offered three years instead of two), Lawless' point about Winnipeg having other needs is a good one, and he also notes later in the piece that the team has properly invested in scouting and development staff now, including hiring Hall of Fame quarterback Danny McManus as a scout. That might give efforts to find and develop a quarterback more success than we've seen in the past. However, that doesn't mean they'll work out for sure. Moreover, while there's definitely a salary-cap upside to not throwing more money at Burris, that decision means that for now, the Bombers' quarterback situation isn't any better than it was at the end of last season. We'll see where they go from here, but the decisions of both Collaros and Burris to pass on Winnipeg don't seem to bode well for the team.