Blue Bombers lock up perennial all-star OL Bryant for 2023

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This article was published 04/01/2023 (623 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

One of the CFL’s premier protectors will play his trade for another CFL season.

All-star offensive lineman Stanley Bryant, who turns 37 in May, has agreed to a one-year contract extension with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

The 2023 campaign will be his eighth in Winnipeg and 13th in the league. The product of Goldsboro, N.C., joined the Bombers in 2015 after four years with the Calgary Stampeders.

Bryant will speak to media today.

Listed at 6-5, 313 pounds, Bryant is among the most decorated linemen in CFL history. He was named the 2022 most outstanding lineman, the fourth time he’s received the honour, and was selected as a league all-star for the seventh time.

He has suited up for 186-regular season contests, including 120 as a member of the Blue Bombers and has three Grey Cup titles (the 2014 crown with Calgary and 2019 and ’21 championships with Winnipeg).

The 2022 season ended in dismay for the Bombers, who fell 24–23 to the Toronto Argonauts in the Grey Cup and missed a chance to win a third consecutive CFL championship.

Bryant might have retired, however, he joined a long list of potential free agents returning for a shot at redemption. Fellow lineman Pat Neufeld, linebacker Adam Bighill, and defensive-linemen Willie Jefferson and Jake Thomas have all re-signed since the end of the season.

The CFL’s reigning coach of the year, Mike O’Shea, is also staying put. The Bombers bench boss signed a three-year contract extension in early December.

— staff