Year-round Winnipegger Jefferson re-signs with Bombers

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This article was published 27/11/2022 (758 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Willie Jefferson wants to cement himself as one of the best players to ever pull on a blue and gold uniform.

It’s one of the reasons the star defensive end re-signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Saturday, one week after the team lost the Grey Cup in Regina 24-23 to the Toronto Argonauts.

“I look into those rafters (at IG Field) and see names like Doug Brown, Milt Stegall, (Chris) Walby, and you want to be those guys,” Jefferson told the media at IG Field on Monday.

“There’s things I want to do, records I want to break for this organization. You’ve got to stay around to do that so that’s what I plan on doing.”

The 31-year-old from Beaumont, Texas, inked a one-year deal and will enter his fourth season with the Bombers after originally joining the club as a free agent in 2019. It’s no surprise to see Jefferson pass on free agency and re-sign as soon as he did as he now lives in Winnipeg year-round with his wife Holly and their two daughters, Kelley and Rielley. Rielley was born in Winnipeg in September.

“Just to know I’ve been here for so long and put in so much work, for me to bring my wife and daughter here and for them to love it and now for me to have a Canadian daughter is amazing,” said Jefferson.

“I can’t wait to just show her the world through my eyes and do everything I can to help raise her to be a beautiful Canadian citizen.”

The Bombers have reached the Grey Cup, winning two of them, every year since Jefferson has been here and that’s no coincidence. Jefferson was the CFL’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player in 2019, a league all-star in 2021, and a West Division all-star this past season.

Jefferson had seven sacks, three forced fumbles, an interception and 33 defensive tackles in 2022.

“When I first got here in ’19, it was just different. That year, there were a lot of firsts for me. I was doing a lot of things on my own professionally and once I got here and the culture was already set and we began to build more while I was here it started to come together for me, for my family, this team and this organization. It just felt right,” Jefferson said.

“It’s just the culture, the friendships I’ve built with teammates, the coaches, the organization, the community. It feels like home. It feels good to be here and I just didn’t want to be anywhere else but Winnipeg right now.”

Jefferson, who previously played for Edmonton and Saskatchewan, is heading into his ninth CFL season and has no plans to slow down anytime soon.

“I hope I can go to my 40s. As long as I can go, as long as I can be productive, as long as I can affect the game in a good enough way to help my team, I could play until whenever,” said Jefferson.

The Bombers started the off-season with 26 pending free agents and have already cut that list down to 24 after signing offensive lineman Patrick Neufeld and Jefferson. Losing the championship game in heartbreaking fashion to the underdog Argos has already given Jefferson and his teammates even more motivation for 2023. While Jefferson stood behind the podium to speak to reporters, you could hear music blasting and weights dropping in the team’s training room down the hall.

“We made it to the Grey Cup three years in a row and that’s something we’re proud of. We didn’t end the way we wanted to, but it went down to the last play, the last second, and that’s something we can be proud of, that we can build on next year,” said Jefferson.

“That’s something that I told the guys at the end of the season, that’s going to drive each and every one of us, in a different way, this off-season, to be better, to come back stronger, faster, more ready for those situations.”

Bombers sign offensive lineman

The Bombers signed American offensive lineman Payton Muljo to the roster on Monday.

Muljo played 19 games in four seasons at Northern Michigan between 2017-2021 and was named an All-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference honourable mention in his final year.

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31