No one is served if an expansion team is purposely made too weak in the expansion draft .... and with all the free agency stuff I personally feel Ottawa didn't get enough "meat & potatoes" when they got to the table ...

 

Should the league be more generous in any future expansion draft?

 

They have better Canadians than us in their first year..

You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though. You have to accept that it won't be easy for an expansion team in their first few seasons. It takes time to build a team up. Should the league have given Winnipeg an expansion draft after Kelly torpedoed the teams roster just to keep things competitive? 

I thought the expansion draft was fair.  If Desjardins did a better job recruiting import WRs they would have won 5-6 games, which is reasonable for an expansion team.

"  You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though." I totally disagree ... no one is helped by a weakling club ... equalizing if done fairly is better for everyone's attendance ... your statement just reflects owners greed  and "how hard" they worked building their club to just give it away ... what crooked thinking

" You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though." I totally disagree ... no one is helped by a weakling club ... equalizing if done fairly is better for everyone's attendance ... your statement just reflects owners greed and "how hard" they worked building their club to just give it away ... what crooked thinking

Curious what your thoughts of what would have been a fair draft?

I also have a problem with making an expansion team stronger then the teams they are plucking from.

I thought the expansion draft was quite fair. Sure Ottawa sucked this year but they got some good pieces to build with and now get to add with another draft drafting first overall

Ottawa had the most liberal expansion rules ever for their draft. I agree with 17. Individual teams can only give so much & they did. Way more than the previous Ottawa expansion draft. Don't you remember Desjardins mouthing off that in the fourth & final round he didn't want a single player from us??? So he just picked a name. He also drafted Kohlert who he probably knew had no intention of staying in Ottawa. Well, the pompous jerk got what he deserved then. Two wins. He recruited absolute DOGS for receivers. But their OL is better than ours so they're already ahead of the game. So, I don't agree with the premise of this thread. 

Ottawa was competitive for most of the year I don't agree with ts

Ottawa was competitive for most of the year I don't agree with ts

You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though. You have to accept that it won't be easy for an expansion team in their first few seasons. It takes time to build a team up. Should the league have given Winnipeg an expansion draft after Kelly torpedoed the teams roster just to keep things competitive? 

 

 

 

" You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though." I totally disagree ... no one is helped by a weakling club ... equalizing if done fairly is better for everyone's attendance ... your statement just reflects owners greed and "how hard" they worked building their club to just give it away ... what crooked thinking

Curious what your thoughts of what would have been a fair draft?

I also have a problem with making an expansion team stronger then the teams they are plucking from.

I thought the expansion draft was quite fair. Sure Ottawa sucked this year but they got some good pieces to build with and now get to add with another draft drafting first overall

 

 

"I also have a problem with making an expansion team stronger then the teams they are plucking from."

 

Why?

 

Why not set up the draft so they have a middle of the pack team and are immediately competitive?

 

Why punish a newbie?

 

Had they hired a competent GM (read:not Desjardins), they would have been in the mix for the playoffs, so no sympahy from me here.

You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though. You have to accept that it won't be easy for an expansion team in their first few seasons. It takes time to build a team up. Should the league have given Winnipeg an expansion draft after Kelly torpedoed the teams roster just to keep things competitive?

" You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though." I totally disagree ... no one is helped by a weakling club ... equalizing if done fairly is better for everyone's attendance ... your statement just reflects owners greed and "how hard" they worked building their club to just give it away ... what crooked thinking

Curious what your thoughts of what would have been a fair draft?

I also have a problem with making an expansion team stronger then the teams they are plucking from.

I thought the expansion draft was quite fair. Sure Ottawa sucked this year but they got some good pieces to build with and now get to add with another draft drafting first overall

"I also have a problem with making an expansion team stronger then the teams they are plucking from."

Why?

Why not set up the draft so they have a middle of the pack team and are immediately competitive?

Why punish a newbie?

Because it punishes a fan base who has supported their team over the long haul. It would be a slap in the face to fans who have invested time and money into their teams only to have it dismantled for the "new" guys.

There is usually a honeymoon period with a new expansion team to get over the first few years of losing. And if the fan base can't accept that they don't really deserve to have a new team, because all teams will have to eventually weather those periods.

You still didn't answer what you thought would have been a fair draft.

If you ask me, they got too much.

 

What you're discounting way too much is that football is a team sport. Ottawa got a pretty talented roster in the expansion draft. They did pretty well in the draft and with a lot of their import recruiting. But that all takes time to gel. The staff needs to get to understand their players. The players need to understand eachother. You give them a competitive team right out of the gate and you're basically handing them a powerhouse once they gain chemistry.

 

That's way too much.

 

Think about it ... what'd they get handed to them by the expansion draft? A Canadian rush end who had 11 sacks this year, a 700 yard receiver, their top 3 special teams tacklers, a 500 yard Canadian receiver ... effectively their starting Canadian LB (by trading Glenn for him)

 

They got unbelievable pieces. Way too much, considering how much they got out of the last two CFL drafts as well.

They were set up as well as they could be, it simply takes time for that many new players/coaches coming together in a new system.

 

I don't think being able to take more or "better" players from other teams would have helped much.

 

EDIT: yeah, what Mike said.

You're right, Ottawa should be given a roster that makes them Grey Cup favorites next time.

 

You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though. You have to accept that it won't be easy for an expansion team in their first few seasons. It takes time to build a team up. Should the league have given Winnipeg an expansion draft after Kelly torpedoed the teams roster just to keep things competitive? 

 

 

 

" You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though." I totally disagree ... no one is helped by a weakling club ... equalizing if done fairly is better for everyone's attendance ... your statement just reflects owners greed and "how hard" they worked building their club to just give it away ... what crooked thinking

Curious what your thoughts of what would have been a fair draft?

I also have a problem with making an expansion team stronger then the teams they are plucking from.

I thought the expansion draft was quite fair. Sure Ottawa sucked this year but they got some good pieces to build with and now get to add with another draft drafting first overall

 

 

"I also have a problem with making an expansion team stronger then the teams they are plucking from."

 

Why?

 

Why not set up the draft so they have a middle of the pack team and are immediately competitive?

 

Why punish a newbie?

 

 

Okay. Let's all go out & sing coom by ya... 

What help was given to Winnipeg after the Kelly/Mack mismanagement? The Riders didn't get help after the Al Ford debacle. Hamilton had some brutal years between 2003 and 2009 and they didn't receive help.

There is no way to make it fair for an expansion team.  No matter who they get, they are playing together for the first time and have to establish a foundation.  An expansion draft can't do that.

 

And really, to add to what Mike said, they came into the CFL Draft with two QB's who started the last two Grey Cups in Glenn and Burris, along with a guy who started and won a handful of games for BC in Demarco.  You aren't going to get better than that as an expansion team.  IMO, the expansion draft should only cover NI players if there is ever another one, felt that way before the last expansion draft too.

Ottawa was competitive for most of the year I don't agree with ts

 

Well worth stating twice.    Ottawa was competitive in a lot of the games they lost and if not for severe bad luck probably could have had at least 3-4 more victories.  The building blocks are in place and with the right QB they should do alright in another 2 years.  Can't ask more from an expansion team imo.

You know, with Hank at the helm & a corps of great receivers that team might win 3 games next year. 

Desjardins made some stupid picks and some good ones.  Then he had a starting QB and screwed him over by grabbing Hank.  I feel for that city, but I agree, with Desjardins at the helm they pretty much kicked themselves in the foot.  They need to fire him and bring on a decent GM that will help that team out.  Giving more to that team wouldn't have done anything.

Yea I think they started with a great core of players; some can argue better than the core we started with going into the off season ourselves after the expansion draft.  Desjardins just didn't handle things correctly; and putting Hank in the QB position who really doesn't come off as a team player sort of guy.  Yes many of you will be how do you know, you can see him get angry and yell at receivers who don't run the route or drop the ball even if it is his fault. 

 

I think had they not over paid for Hank and stuck with Glenn they might have actually faired better than they did.  They also didn't do a great job on their receivers; but their defense and oline seemed decent this year. 

I think I have to agree that they got quite a bit... they will just need some time to develop...

 

IMO the 2014 Redblacks are much better than 2013 Bombers were... and we didn't get any "help" 

Desjardins made some stupid picks and some good ones.  Then he had a starting QB and screwed him over by grabbing Hank.  I feel for that city, but I agree, with Desjardins at the helm they pretty much kicked themselves in the foot.  They need to fire him and bring on a decent GM that will help that team out.  Giving more to that team wouldn't have done anything.

The ownership in Ottawa decided that a bilingual GM who was an Epic Fail in Hamilton would be better suited to run that team than someone else. 

 

 

You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though. You have to accept that it won't be easy for an expansion team in their first few seasons. It takes time to build a team up. Should the league have given Winnipeg an expansion draft after Kelly torpedoed the teams roster just to keep things competitive?

 

" You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though." I totally disagree ... no one is helped by a weakling club ... equalizing if done fairly is better for everyone's attendance ... your statement just reflects owners greed and "how hard" they worked building their club to just give it away ... what crooked thinking

Curious what your thoughts of what would have been a fair draft?

I also have a problem with making an expansion team stronger then the teams they are plucking from.

I thought the expansion draft was quite fair. Sure Ottawa sucked this year but they got some good pieces to build with and now get to add with another draft drafting first overall

"I also have a problem with making an expansion team stronger then the teams they are plucking from."

Why?

Why not set up the draft so they have a middle of the pack team and are immediately competitive?

Why punish a newbie?

Because it punishes a fan base who has supported their team over the long haul. It would be a slap in the face to fans who have invested time and money into their teams only to have it dismantled for the "new" guys.

There is usually a honeymoon period with a new expansion team to get over the first few years of losing. And if the fan base can't accept that they don't really deserve to have a new team, because all teams will have to eventually weather those periods.

You still didn't answer what you thought would have been a fair draft.

 

"Because it punishes a fan base who has supported their team over the long haul. It would be a slap in the face to fans who have invested time and money into their teams only to have it dismantled for the "new" guys."

 

It punishes no one ... and according to the longsuffering reasoning it asks to subsidize incompetency .... this assumption that you have to "punish" a new team is idiocy and entitlement reasoning

 

 

 

You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though. You have to accept that it won't be easy for an expansion team in their first few seasons. It takes time to build a team up. Should the league have given Winnipeg an expansion draft after Kelly torpedoed the teams roster just to keep things competitive?

 

" You can't handicap the existing teams just to cater to an expansion team though." I totally disagree ... no one is helped by a weakling club ... equalizing if done fairly is better for everyone's attendance ... your statement just reflects owners greed and "how hard" they worked building their club to just give it away ... what crooked thinking

Curious what your thoughts of what would have been a fair draft?

I also have a problem with making an expansion team stronger then the teams they are plucking from.

I thought the expansion draft was quite fair. Sure Ottawa sucked this year but they got some good pieces to build with and now get to add with another draft drafting first overall

"I also have a problem with making an expansion team stronger then the teams they are plucking from."

Why?

Why not set up the draft so they have a middle of the pack team and are immediately competitive?

Why punish a newbie?

Because it punishes a fan base who has supported their team over the long haul. It would be a slap in the face to fans who have invested time and money into their teams only to have it dismantled for the "new" guys.

There is usually a honeymoon period with a new expansion team to get over the first few years of losing. And if the fan base can't accept that they don't really deserve to have a new team, because all teams will have to eventually weather those periods.

You still didn't answer what you thought would have been a fair draft.

 

"Because it punishes a fan base who has supported their team over the long haul. It would be a slap in the face to fans who have invested time and money into their teams only to have it dismantled for the "new" guys."

 

It punishes no one ... and according to the longsuffering reasoning it asks to subsidize incompetency .... this assumption that you have to "punish" a new team is idiocy and entitlement reasoning

 

 

I thought we weren't allowed to call other opinions "idiocy"