Well that loss stung last night. Not happy with the decision to kick the FG but that can be discussed elsewhere  All in all there was a lot of improvement this year over last year and looking like they are trending upwards. If Walters can pull off another great draft and some more key FAs this offseason I like our chances going into 2017. Who is on the FA watch list and what areas are we in desperate need of fixing?

It will be interesting to see how the two Eastern teams do, (Montreal and Toronto), in the upcoming free agency period. Montreal still leaves a bad taste in players' minds because of the release of some good players and their SMS situation. But hot holy damn,  Toronto doesn't officially have a GM in charge and no Head Coach. It would seem to be a bad idea to put your name on a contract over there.

3 minutes ago, Mr Dee said:

It will be interesting to see how the two Eastern teams do, (Montreal and Toronto), in the upcoming free agency period. Montreal still leaves a bad taste in players' minds because of the release of some good players and their SMS situation. But hot holy damn,  Toronto doesn't officially have a GM in charge and no Head Coach. It would seem to be a bad idea to put your name on a contract over there.

Rumour floating around that Trestman will be named coach...possibly gm as well, at the end of the week...Can't confirm it but if it happens it could be what the doctor ordered for the arenogoods..We shall see

1 hour ago, gcn11 said:

The reason first rounders sign initial contracts in that price range isn't a reflection of how good a player they are, it is a reflection on the fact that one team has exclusive rights to them. SHOULD Foucault get more...sure. Should JSJ have gotten more last year, or Sukh gotten more out of his rookie deal etc. etc., of course they should have. They just simply aren't in a bargaining position and therefore that is what the entry level price of a first rounder is. Not saying this isn't on the low end....just that it's not so outrageously low that there would be any grounds for anyone to do anything about it. It would be nearly impossible for the CFLPA or anyone else to prove bad faith in the negotiations. The offer is in line with first round salaries. Like it or not, Foucault has proven absolutely nothing in this league.

I agree with the just of what you are saying here. This kid however has kicked around the nfl for 3 years and actually started some games. No small feat. He is worth more than 80 IMO. One thing I will say is a lot of fans aren't old enough to remember this league tittering on financial ruin. Rookies holding out, and old vets looking to get paid more stresses the cap for each team. I would like to see contracts that have incentives in them, you play good, you get your respect/ money.

6 minutes ago, Ripper said:

I agree with the just of what you are saying here. This kid however has kicked around the nfl for 3 years and actually started some games. No small feat. He is worth more than 80 IMO. One thing I will say is a lot of fans aren't old enough to remember this league tittering on financial ruin. Rookies holding out, and old vets looking to get paid more stresses the cap for each team. I would like to see contracts that have incentives in them, you play good, you get your respect/ money.

I thought the SMS came after the league stabilized somewhat, as a prevention from it happening again. Back when owners could spend like drunken sailors this might have held true as the community owned teams would end up screwing themselves over spending just to compete. 

1 minute ago, Taynted_Fayth said:

I thought the SMS came after the league stabilized somewhat, as a prevention from it happening again. Back when owners could spend like drunken sailors this might have held true as the community owned teams would end up screwing themselves over spending just to compete. 

You are correct. Stamps paying Flutie a million dollars a year, stuff like that. I guess what I meant was, do we want a league where the rookies run things? If I was a GM I would play hard ball too with a unproven player.  No different that in real life where these young kids show up and want to make top dollar and be the boss, but haven't earned it. The cap makes it fair to a certain extent. Kavis has a lot of fences to mend to make Montreal a place where players want to sign.

45 minutes ago, Ripper said:

You are correct. Stamps paying Flutie a million dollars a year, stuff like that. I guess what I meant was, do we want a league where the rookies run things? If I was a GM I would play hard ball too with a unproven player.  No different that in real life where these young kids show up and want to make top dollar and be the boss, but haven't earned it. The cap makes it fair to a certain extent. Kavis has a lot of fences to mend to make Montreal a place where players want to sign.

The sms was a joke for a long time after it was brought in though. the 90s were a crazy era for the cfl. the rocket deal, american expansion, it was like the wild west. 

1 hour ago, Ripper said:

I agree with the just of what you are saying here. This kid however has kicked around the nfl for 3 years and actually started some games. No small feat. He is worth more than 80 IMO. One thing I will say is a lot of fans aren't old enough to remember this league tittering on financial ruin. Rookies holding out, and old vets looking to get paid more stresses the cap for each team. I would like to see contracts that have incentives in them, you play good, you get your respect/ money.

Problem with that structure has always been if you have too many floating numbers, you can handcuff yourself when it comes to mid-season roster needs.

Despite losing some legitimate starters on defence this year, Wally Buono is still plugging away signing his other potential Free Agents before the deadline on Feb.14. He replaced Leone with Swayze, and with the recent signing of Nick Moore and today's signing of National OL Hunter Steward, the Lions only have 12 players left in Free Agency mode. Although that number includes Anthony Allen and Paul McCallum, both of whom won't be back.
Edmonton has 15 players unsigned.
Calgary has 14 players unsigned.
Saskatchewan has 12.
Winnipeg has 12.
Hamilton has a staggering 25 players on the list. (Just re-signed Fulton)
Toronto has 20.
Ottawa has 20.
Montreal has 20.

The prevailing theme this year, with the abundance of free agents, is that the grass may not be necessarily be greener with another team.

Edited February 8, 20178 yr by Mr Dee

1 hour ago, Ripper said:

You are correct. Stamps paying Flutie a million dollars a year, stuff like that. I guess what I meant was, do we want a league where the rookies run things? If I was a GM I would play hard ball too with a unproven player.  No different that in real life where these young kids show up and want to make top dollar and be the boss, but haven't earned it. The cap makes it fair to a certain extent. Kavis has a lot of fences to mend to make Montreal a place where players want to sign.

Foucault is neither a rookie or unproven.  He would not even be eligible for the rookie of the year award.

Were teams offering Westerman $80,000 when he came north after a 6 year career in the NFL?

Part of the reason any rookie gets paid less than a vet is because you can, and part of it is because of the risk associated with an unknown quantity.  You don't know how they will respond in the pros and how long it take to develop.  With Foucault that unknown is not a factor.

I also do not want a league where rookies run things.  This situation is different than the St. John situation.  This isn't a situation where a young kid shows up and wants to make top dollar and be the boss but hasn't earned it.  This is a situation where he was working for a different company prior to coming over.

Definitely very curious what our plan at DT is, if Jabar isn't coming, and we're not retaining Cummings or Shologan.....

8 minutes ago, Noeller said:

Definitely very curious what our plan at DT is, if Jabar isn't coming, and we're not retaining Cummings or Shologan.....

It will be interesting to see what we do on the DL. It drastically under performed last year despite a ton of talent. 

hey I thought FA Day was the 15th (next Weds)......but CFL.ca says it's Tuesday the 14th......? 

 

http://www.cfl.ca/fa17/

37 minutes ago, mbrg said:

Foucault is neither a rookie or unproven.  He would not even be eligible for the rookie of the year award.

Were teams offering Westerman $80,000 when he came north after a 6 year career in the NFL?

Part of the reason any rookie gets paid less than a vet is because you can, and part of it is because of the risk associated with an unknown quantity.  You don't know how they will respond in the pros and how long it take to develop.  With Foucault that unknown is not a factor.

I also do not want a league where rookies run things.  This situation is different than the St. John situation.  This isn't a situation where a young kid shows up and wants to make top dollar and be the boss but hasn't earned it.  This is a situation where he was working for a different company prior to coming over.

What you are forgetting is that the Als hold the exclusive rights on him for 2 years from the time he first rejects their offer. This is not a Westerman or FA situation. This is a draft pick/exclusive rights situation and that gives Montreal the leverage. Please tell me what Foucault has proven in the CFL....nothing that I am aware of. He is in the same boat as the Gaydosh's and Greenwood;s etc that came back after failed NFL stints.

Edited February 8, 20178 yr by gcn11

1 minute ago, Noeller said:

hey I thought FA Day was the 15th (next Weds)......but CFL.ca says it's Tuesday the 14th......? 

 

http://www.cfl.ca/fa17/

feb 14th at noon

 

as far as Cummings I don't expect him to stick anywhere in the NFL, he could definitely come back at some point,  just a matter of when, and so long as the riders don't make him part of their 100 man try out throughout the season

Well ****...I gotta reset my schedule. Gonna be a great day Tuesday...

Just now, Noeller said:

Well ****...I gotta reset my schedule. Gonna be a great day Tuesday...

I hope so!!

 

2 hours ago, gcn11 said:

What you are forgetting is that the Als hold the exclusive rights on him for 2 years from the time he first rejects their offer. This is not a Westerman or FA situation. This is a draft pick/exclusive rights situation and that gives Montreal the leverage. Please tell me what Foucault has proven in the CFL....nothing that I am aware of. He is in the same boat as the Gaydosh's etc that came back after failed NFL stints.

I am aware they have his rights and any leverage.  His value is higher than a typical first round pick signing his first CFL contract.  Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady have also proven nothing in the CFL.  He proved himself against professional football players.  Better ones.  As opposed to having only proven himself against university players, which is the concern for rookies.  He got developed on someone else's dime.  Montreal doesn't have to pay him for two years while they bring him along like we did with Goossen and are doing with Couture.  He arrives pro-ready which is not the typical situation for a player picked in the Canadian draft.  His value is legitimately higher than a typical first round pick signing his first CFL contract.

If Mulamba finally came here we would end up paying him more than we are paying Couture.

Edited February 8, 20178 yr by mbrg

37 minutes ago, Noeller said:

Well ****...I gotta reset my schedule. Gonna be a great day Tuesday...

Finally you'll have something to do on Valentine's Day

8 minutes ago, Atomic said:

Finally you'll have something to do on Valentine's Day

Funny story -- when FA begins, I'm actually on a committee helping to set up a week-long curling bonspiel......because, of course I am......

On ‎07‎/‎02‎/‎2017 at 1:10 PM, Brandon said:

Why would you pick Reggie Slack as a comparison? Cato doesn't have a drug addiction and doesn't have blown knees?   

 

Stat lines are about the same, mediocre at best but serviceable.

1 hour ago, Atomic said:

Finally you'll have something to do on Valentine's Day

Noeller and 1785 already had plans to write McDavid love letters all evening.

4 minutes ago, mbrg said:

Noeller and 1785 already had plans to write McDavid love letters all evening.

again

15 minutes ago, 17to85 said:

again

And not the lamest Valentine's we've spent together...........

5 hours ago, Taynted_Fayth said:

feb 14th at noon

 

as far as Cummings I don't expect him to stick anywhere in the NFL, he could definitely come back at some point,  just a matter of when, and so long as the riders don't make him part of their 100 man try out throughout the season

Cummings was supposed to be a force up the middle of the D-line but for one reason or another, wasn't. His contribution can be easily replaced. The same goes for our tag-team Import defensive ends,

http://www.cfl.ca/2017/02/09/rosters-set-cfl-reveals-list-2017-combine-participants/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter