David wrote:
So it's quite clear now that they're moving Hunter to his more natural tackle position (likely left tacke - I would suspect Foucault will initially back him up at LT or I could see them having him compete as a Guard, giving him every opportunity to start to justify the trade).
The question for me has always been: with Hunter's frame (height, long wing span) and quick feet,
shouldn't he have been playing tackle last year? I viewed him as a better option than Antonio Johnson (and not just because of the ratio, although that certainly helped), and light years ahead of the beleaguered Levi Adcock. I believe Wally was deathly afraid of not having a National back-up for him. But do you not worry about that if it should arise? Go to Plan B if and when Hunter goes down, replacing him
then with Antonio Johnson and adding a National elsewhere?
Can someone explain this to me, as I am completely baffled why Wally is telling the casual fan - who either takes everything at face value or doesn't has the depth of football knowledge, and media members who won't challenge him - that the Jovan trade allows us to start 4 Nationals across the O-line. New Flash! We could have done it last year. It's just that we'll (presumably) have much better depth with Foucault in 2017, if and when he signs.
DH
I don't think Wally was comfortable starting Steward, with his injury history, at tackle without dressing a capable national backup, and neither was I. All of the Lions other nationals last year were strictly guards/centres. Now that Steward has completed his first injury-free season, concerns about his health have eased somewhat but Foucault is the final piece of the puzzle that allows the Lions to comfortably start four nationals.
The move of Olafioye to left tackle last year was precipitated by the high-profile signing of Levy Adcock, a natural right tackle who started in Saskatchewan under Dan Dorazio and was brought in with great fanfare. Antonio Johnson was not in the equation at the start of last season. He was just seen as a rookie backup who got thrust into the starting right tackle position when Adcock took ill. He eventually played well enough to hold the position all year and presumably still be considered a starter (at a much lower salary than Olafioye) heading into this year. B.C. Fan
I find this entire topic interesting and intriguing.
I thought, like you did David, that Hunter Steward should start at left tackle last season and Olifioye remain at right tackle.
However, as B.C.Fan notes, Wally moved Olifoye to left tackle based upon the free agent signing of Levy Adcock. Wally was not comfortable starting Steward at left tackle, last season or this season without a National backup or has basically said so, in that he feels he can go with four Nationals on the offensive line for 2017 because he now has National backups who can step in there, in case of injury.
But I also think the reason last year and this upcoming season for not starting Steward previously at left tackle was more than just Steward's injury history. Wally is not comfortable starting a National without a backup at any position.
Wally has never been particularly fond of the notion of a Nationanal tailback due to not having a good National backup. That was his reason gien, (along with money amongst others) for wanting to go with an International tailback. Wally signed Bucknor this season in order to be able to have a backup for Kenyan Parker, who he would like to start at field corner. We always dress a National backup receiver and a National backup defensive lineman.
But what I find most intriguing is that Wally initially did not go after Facault, an offensive tackle in trading Olifioye to Montreal. Instead he first went after Phillipe Gagnon. I am not sure what Wally's thinking was, as Gagnon played guard for Montreal last season and played guard at university.
Either Wally felt that Gagnon would be able to be converted to a left tackle to backup Steward or Wally just wanted the player and felt he could draft a backup National tackle in this year's draft. No information has been provided as to why he wanted Gagnon first over Facault.
Oman wrote "No way he gets starters money ... that would be more than Jovan was making 200-250 for a CDN left tackle.He gets more than 80k MTL was offering ... probably $100-120k ... similar to high 1st round pick salary. The salary arbitrage is one the main reasons for the deal. Qman[/quote]My best guess is that Facault will get signed for starters money in the $100,000 - $120,000 range"
I don't see him signing for first year high first round draft money, which is generally around the range that Montreal offered. Olifioye was not paid just starters money. He was paid as a former CFL Best Offensive Lineman, a consistent CFL All-Star and one of the best tackles in the league. My best guess is that Olifioye was one of the very best paid offensive linemen in the CFL.
While I did not want to see Olifioye traded and would have rather us started Steward at left tackle this season, draft a backup National tackle, and start Olifioye at right tackle, I don't see us getting fleeced with this trade. There are positives. We've increased our National depth and opened up more options at the draft, we traded Olifioye to the East and got a former first round draft choice for him and one who has picked up some NFL experience too.
Olifioye did not want to leave but with his signing bonus and restructured contract he will likely make more this season in Montreal than here and he will be playing with Leo teammates Ryan Phillips and Jabar Westerman, which will ease the transition to the East and a different environment.
If we drafted a National who could back up Steward and Facault could start at right tackle, it would allow us to play five Nationals on the offensive line. While I do not see that happening in 2017, its not impossible. I always envied Montreal starting five quality Nationals on the offensive line when they did and were good.
A guess is that Facault could upsurp Fabian at guard. Whatever way he is used, he will create competition for either Steward, Vaillencourt, or Fabian.
What I hope doesn't happen is that Facault starts at left tackle, either relegating Steward to guard or a National backup. I would love to see Steward really given an opportunity at left tackle. He played very well here in the six games he started at left tackle a couple of seaons back.
Some Mike Beamish excerpts:
With the signing of dynamic free agents such as receiver Chris Williams and bump-ups for returning veterans, the perils of the salary cap weighed heavily on B.C. Lions general manager Wally Buono.
No matter how he crunched the numbers, he couldn’t make it fit. That led in short order to the dumping of a big salary — six-time CFL all-star Jovan Olafioye, believed to be one of the league’s highest paid offensive linemen — in a much-rumoured trade that finally came down with the Montreal Alouettes.
In return for a well-decorated offensive tackle who has played 126 games in the CFL and was named the league’s most outstanding lineman in 2012, the Lions get two for the price of one: import Vincent Brown, who has a single CFL game on his resume, and Montreal native David Foucault, who has yet to play in the Canadian league.
Dumping a star player is like a warship jettisoning cannons to get faster. The gain in speed is offset by the loss in firepower.
Still, Buono feels the Lions are a better team now than the one which closed out the 2016 season with a 42-15 defeat to Calgary in the West Division Final.
“These are the tough decisions you have to make as a GM,” he acknowledged Monday. “Obviously, Jovan is a great player. He did a great job for us here. But when you have to look at getting an asset, you have to move an asset.”
While not much is known about Brown, the 6-foot-8, 305-pound Foucault represents the anticipated asset gain in B.C., offering ratio flexibility, versatility and NFL experience.
Though he played five games with one start in his 2½ seasons in the NFL, Foucault hardly languished on the practice roster. He fought to maintain his spot and prepared himself to start every week.
Wherever Foucault lands — whether he competes with Steward for the starting left tackle spot, or serves as his backup — the Montrealer is looking for starter’s money.
For while the Lions now have Foucault’s CFL rights, they don’t have him under contract yet.
“I’m not a greedy guy,” Foucault maintains. “When I spoke to Wally (Buono), I’m thinking it’s going to be a good contract. But I don’t know the terms. My agent (Darren Gill) expects to get something done sometime this week. I just want the opportunity to play, to be one of the starters.”
In talks with Alouettes’ GM Kavis Reed, Foucault said it became apparent the Als didn’t regard him as a front-line player — at least not at the start.
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