Arash Madani ‏@ArashMadani  8m8 minutes ago

Per @JDunk12: Esks, Riders talking trade. EDM wants No. 1 pick Josiah St. John AND a first for QB James Franklin. SSK, coherently, declined.

Ed Hervey vs. Chris Jones is going to be a real thing to keep your eye on over the coming weeks and months.

To reach for two first round picks, including No. 1 overall, in return for a back-up QB with a handful of pro starts is... hilarious, really

9 minutes ago, Atomic said:

Kind of a small detail but it seems like people are confused about the 96 number.  That is 96 players total, including the legitimate players.

46 on roster, 20 on injured lists, 10 on PR = 76 players.  So what they are reporting is 20 players being kept around illegitimately, not 96.  Still a huge number but far more believable than 96.

I would fine them 10,000 for every player kept illegitimately, plus take away their first round pick next year, and make Chris Jones sit in the dunk tank during the Banjo Bowl pre-game.

I'm actually going to disagree and say that's a huge detail... thanks for clarifying... 96 did seem ridiculous...

 

27 minutes ago, Mike said:

Without restricting the meaning of “a practice session” a player shall be deemed to be participating therein if:
(i) In attendance at a Club lecture, film session, or chalk talk; or
(ii) Physically present at the same time and place as the other team members for a conditioning exercise; or
(iii) Subject to the direction of the coaching staff in any manner whatsoever, except to the extent necessary for the supervision of treatment of an injury sustained while previously a member of the Club roster.

Pretty interesting. Players who are cut but asked to stay around while they recover aren't allowed to go to meetings, film sessions or even be physically present at a practice or conditioning exercises. I'll go on record as saying that every team has ignored this rule more than once. Furthermore the CFL knows about it and has turned a blind eye for years.

20 players in this situation (Thanks Atomic for some clarity) is way above normal so  I expect the CFL to step in and take action. I don't think they will suspend Jones at all, let alone for a long time. I expect they will add the money the Riders are spending (If they are stupid enough to do it on their books instead of through a secondary person) on extra players to their SMS and to fine the club as per section 8 that Mike posted. If that pushes them far enough over the SMS limit they'll have their 1st round draft pick taken away from them.

Madani says the league would be hesitant to come down too hard on Riders because "they are the league's cash cow" and "hurting them hurts TV ratings"......

 

Yuck.

1 minute ago, Noeller said:

Madani says the league would be hesitant to come down too hard on Riders because "they are the league's cash cow" and "hurting them hurts TV ratings"......

 

Yuck.

But they already suck anyways and we're doing record ratings.

4 minutes ago, Mike said:

I'm not suspending him because he's the coach. I'm suspending him because he's the GM, which means he's responsible for player personnel, which means ultimately he's responsible for ILLEGALLY PAYING player personnel.

I don't think Rider fans have fully grasped the severity of these allegations yet. Could be denial. Not really sure. But this could be bad.

I agree if anyone is getting paid it will get bad.  I also acknowledge Dunk is a idiot and not reliable to report on anything.  There are a lot of people that love thinking the worst about the riders and I get that.

Arash Madani ✔ @ArashMadani

#CFL will soon presumably call an "investigation." If the Riders send all these extra players home, investigation will hinge on financials.

 

Arash Madani 

 

✔ @ArashMadani

Issue for the #CFL is that Sask is the league's cash cow. Penalizing Riders hurts TV ratings and business. Someone wake up the commissioner.

 

Arash Madani ✔ @ArashMadani

If the #CFL does an investigation, also pop by Montreal and see how many guys the Als bring in before main training camp starts. Eye opener.

Edited August 11, 20169 yr by Noeller

1 minute ago, Ripper said:

I agree if anyone is getting paid it will get bad.  I also acknowledge Dunk is a idiot and not reliable to report on anything.  There are a lot of people that love thinking the worst about the riders and I get that.

Dunk is just about the most in touch reporter in the entire CFL right now.

I guess he was wrong when he broke the Brandon Bridge signing yesterday. Or the St. John signing when that happened.

You can't question the validity of the message just because you don't like it. Dunk is incredibly well connected and if you don't know it by now, you have no clue what you're talking about. You can question his motives (re: Greg Hardy story) but not his information.

Madani in full on scandal mode. He loves to make a scene.

The issue is deliberately breaking the rules there should be a punishment for that. We know Riders can pay the fine. So suspension or draft pick is the appropriate fine. Imo.

2 minutes ago, Mike said:

Dunk is just about the most in touch reporter in the entire CFL right now.

I guess he was wrong when he broke the Brandon Bridge signing yesterday. Or the St. John signing when that happened.

You can't question the validity of the message just because you don't like it. Dunk is incredibly well connected and if you don't know it by now, you have no clue what you're talking about. You can question his motives (re: Greg Hardy story) but not his information.

It was exactly the Hardy storey I was referring too.

3 minutes ago, Ripper said:

I agree if anyone is getting paid it will get bad.  I also acknowledge Dunk is a idiot and not reliable to report on anything.  There are a lot of people that love thinking the worst about the riders and I get that.

I had thought you were slightly different than most Rider fans until this.  If you don't think Dunk is credible, you should stick to drinking up Rod Pedersen's green kool aid.

I wonder what we could see as punishment? Multiple picks?  Jones having to resign and eat the crap on this one? Massive fine?

I'd prefer picks and a fine. Something like losing 2 years of their 1st and 2nd round picks, and, a 500k fine.

1 minute ago, Mike said:

Madani in full on scandal mode. He loves to make a scene.

EVERYONE PAY ATTENTION TO ME!!!!!

12 minutes ago, Ripper said:

I agree if anyone is getting paid it will get bad.  I also acknowledge Dunk is a idiot and not reliable to report on anything.  There are a lot of people that love thinking the worst about the riders and I get that.

Disagree. JDunk is one of the most reliable CFL reporter out there.

Edited August 11, 20169 yr by M.O.A.B.

1 minute ago, Ripper said:

It was exactly the Hardy storey I was referring too.

Again, question the motives not the validity of what he says.

You need a refresher course if you don't think Dunk is just about the most tuned in reporter in CFL circles.

2 minutes ago, M.O.A.B. said:

Disagree. Junk is one of the most reliable CFL reporter out there.

What an unfortunate nickname

4 minutes ago, Nash00 said:

What an unfortunate nickname

Sorry typo

Everybody has had guys "hanging around" for a millions years.  But it is the apparent scope and scale of the Riders set up, that spells big trouble for them.   If this league really has any stones.

If the spotlight gets turned on, a couple of other teams better brace themselves as well.

 

I think what we all want to know is, how come Rod Pedersen didn't drop this bombshell?

1 minute ago, M.O.A.B. said:

Sorry typo

I think it could catch on actually.

Just now, Nash00 said:

I think what we all want to know is, how come Rod Pedersen didn't drop this bombshell?

I'm surprised we haven't heard a story from Pederson yet about the quality scouting and roster management Chris Jones has done and how this is a non-story...

He was tweeting out last night how the Riders are the kings of the CFL

3 minutes ago, do or die said:

Everybody has had guys "hanging around" for a millions years.  But it is the apparent scope and scale of the Riders set up, that spells big trouble for them.   If this league really has any stones.

If the spotlight gets turned on, a couple of other teams better brace themselves as well.

 

That's what the storey is if there is one. Riders likely have more players than usual.

I equate to a cop will not pull you over if you are doing 105 in a hundred but if you are doing 150 you are getting the book thrown at you

The biggest punishment could be the alienation of the veteran players not just on the Riders but around the league.  Those guys don't want to deal with season-long training camps, they want a chance to win.

I guess Jones is confident enough in his ability to build a roster of inexperienced Americans.