Yikes! Lions 2024 potential free agents

[Toppy Vann]

Farhan suggests in his talk with Naylor that Betts would prefer to play where John Bowman is coaching but wants the big bucks.
He notes that with the Elks as Noel Thorpe was the DC, that this might turn him off from signing with Montreal given how he might see the fit structurally with what MTL wants to do defensively.

[SammyGreene]

Chris Streveler has reportedly signed a one-year contract in Winnipeg for $120,000, so he is off the market.

That’s a big ADD for the Bombers. Buck will have plenty of fun making use of his skillset again as a change of pace from Collaros. He probably throws the ball a whole lot better too thanks to his time down south. They won’t need Dakota Prokup for short yardage anymore either.

Now the key will be who are going to be the Bombers subtractions. For the Lions sake it better be at least Schoen or Oliveria for starters.

[don corleone]

I would give serious consideration to Dakota Prukop as a #2. He has more upside than is given credit for. Jim Barker has spoken up a few times about him. Appears he will not be back in Winnipeg.

Laughable that the Bombers are claiming Streveler's deal to be $120,000. I still don't think it is going to help them unless he plays linebacker. Outside chance of that.

[Hambone]

$120K is right where I thought Streveler would wind up because that's upper tier market value for a #2. Keep in mind that would be the hard money portion. No doubt there's also significant playtime incentives available to him as well. I'd wager those incentives could get him up into the $250K to $300K range if he hits them all. Of course that only happens if Collaros goes down for an extended period of time as in 6+ games in which case the money saved with Collaros on the 6G would cover Streveler's incentives. This past season Arbuckle was tops amongst backups at $130K hard money ($229K max) followed by Shiltz at $125K hard money ($205K max) and Evans at $94K hard money ($151K max). Caleb Evans had the wildest deal with $90K hard money and potential to hit $364.7K if he hit all incentives.

You pay him more if you're looking at him as a 1b QB. There was a comment Rick Campbell made in his interview the other day that touched on this. When asked about looking for a vet backup QB Rick talked about how there were some guys looking for an opportunity to be a 1a or 1b situation but such an opportunity flatly does not exist in BC. VA is undisputed #1 leaving the opportunity as #2 only. When I looked across the CFL I came to the conclusion there are no opportunities for Streveler to be a 1b save for arguably possibly Calgary. However they seem committed to Maier and don't need to put him a spot where he's constantly looking over his shoulder at Streveler whenever he makes a mistake. So that left Streveler having to cut the best #2 contract he could find. He likely took a home team discount as he absolutely loves being in Winnipeg where he carries near folk-hero status.

The only thing that surprised me is that he chose Winnipeg as clearly Collaros is #1 for 2 more years. Then again he only signed for 1 year which in reflection is smart. There is a huge benefit in returning to Winnipeg. Buck Pierce will have some packages for him and use him as he did back in 2019 when he often came in for a short yardage play and stayed in for the next set of downs. In Winnipeg he will see more playing time behind a healthy starter than he would for any other team. That's a terrific situation to showcase himself as a FA option next year when there could be more starting opportunities than there are this offseason. MBT is on a 1 year deal. Harris is 38 and on an expiring deal. Maier is on an expiring contract and needs to be better. Who knows what might happen in Hamilton and Ottawa.

[don corleone]

Interesting prediction by Matthew Cauz of Trevor Harris being traded to the Lions but can't see that one happening. Might be a good move from an injury depth perspective but the sms numbers would never work. Of course lucrative off field opportunities can happen anywhere. Doubt there is chemistry with Vernon Adams after their time together in Montreal and big surprise for me if VA re-negotiates to make room for TH.

Lots of running back rumours as well. We could have a pool.

I think A.J. Ouellette might go to Edmonton not to take away from Kevin Brown. Oliviera could get $200,000 from Sask. Stanback ends up in TO. Still leaves Kadeem Carey and Jamal Morrow.

[don corleone]

Farhan says $300,000 is a lot for Betts due to sms. Perhaps a lucrative off field opportunity comes along and he signs for $180,000.

[B.C.FAN]

Looking at the CFL transactions list, it appears that Vernon Adams, Garry Peters and TJ Lee have all renegotiated.

[Hambone]

Interesting prediction by Matthew Cauz of Trevor Harris being traded to the Lions but can't see that one happening. Might be a good move from an injury depth perspective but the sms numbers would never work. Of course lucrative off field opportunities can happen anywhere. Doubt there is chemistry with Vernon Adams after their time together in Montreal and big surprise for me if VA re-negotiates to make room for TH.

Lots of running back rumours as well. We could have a pool.

I think A.J. Ouellette might go to Edmonton not to take away from Kevin Brown. Oliviera could get $200,000 from Sask. Stanback ends up in TO. Still leaves Kadeem Carey and Jamal Morrow.

I read that too and wondered what he's smoking. Harris renegotiated the final year of his contract just 3 weeks ago. He's already cost the Riders and their SMS $250K in signing bonus. His remaining base is $189.5K plus he has $33.8K coming in marketing, housing and travel allowances. Having already tied up $250K in their SMS on Harris would they really move on from him? And even with that already covered by the Riders can the Lions justify $223.3K for a #2 QB? That would certainly take them out of the market to retain Betts and/or Hladik. I don't think VA is going to re-negotiate as far down as it would take to get Harris. I'd like to think the VA re-negotiation BCF alluded to along with those of Lee and Peters will help the Lions in their stated priority of retaining their own guys they still don't have under wraps such as Betts, Hladik , Edwards-Cooper, Knevel and Sayles.

As for chemistry between Adams and Harris VA did speak highly of their time together in Montreal saying he learned a lot from Trevor about preparation etc.

[Toppy Vann]

Chris Streveler has reportedly signed a one-year contract in Winnipeg for $120,000, so he is off the market.

That’s a big ADD for the Bombers. Buck will have plenty of fun making use of his skillset again as a change of pace from Collaros. He probably throws the ball a whole lot better too thanks to his time down south. They won’t need Dakota Prokup for short yardage anymore either.

Now the key will be who are going to be the Bombers subtractions. For the Lions sake it better be at least Schoen or Oliveria for starters.

Harris to BC makes no sense and not because VA didn't enjoy his time with him in MTL. VA enjoyed little there at the end.
The Bombers want no. 2 and 3 QBs who can contribute meaningly and BC better focus on that or the Lions are one hit away from being doomed.
Maybe keeping their QB interests under the radar is wise, but it's disconcerting when you have a starter and no back up who could win for you.

Streveler will get packages and Buck is not afraid to play his no. 2 situationally and it doesn't seem to bother Collaros.

Prokup would have to take a home town discount maybe to stay in WPG but I'm with those who feel he may have potential. BUT if the Bombers don't see him as a no. 2 maybe they know what we don't know. Streveler says he'd block LB if they wanted that.


3Down says the story quoted in this article is their 4th all time most read story when Boomer make his comments on the Reveler (sic) INT and the CFL/ Grey Cup. Got a lot of flack on Twitter from players and ex players like Chad Owens as it cuts them down too as the latter caught passes here.

https://3downnation.com/2024/02/01/chri ... ir-to-cfl/

[SammyGreene]

Looking at the CFL transactions list, it appears that Vernon Adams, Garry Peters and TJ Lee have all renegotiated.

Interesting. McElvoy/Campbell wanting extra leverage as 5 of their starters are about to at least hit Sunday’s FA negotiation window including arguably two of their top three nationals.

Wonder if that was the plan all along or just how the landscape is unfolding as FA draws nearer

[don corleone]

Assume they put more into a lump sum bonus payment which seems to be what it takes despite there being significant risk to the strategy in the event of an injury. Been a while since a player retired after getting the bonus but that risk is still there as well and it also gives bias to training camp competition.

Consider it a risky strategy and not really a fan to be honest. Thing is they are all doing it which at least somewhat levels the field.

[Hambone]

The pending FA stats as we are less than 48 hours away from the CFL's FA Communications Window. Unfortunately Lionbackers forum won't maintain the same format when I try to copy and paste from Excel so it comes across as a bit of a mess. It does work well in RF and Elksherd.

Total FAs 268 NATS 116
Extended 104 38.8% Extended 48 41.4%
Lost NFL 1 1.0% Lost NFL 0 0.0%
Retired 3 1.1% Retired 2 1.7%
Released 6 2.2% Released 1 0.9%
114 42.5% 51 44.0%

ALL Fas Total Signed Terms Retired Released Available % Avail
DB 49 16 0 0 2 33 67.3%
DL 44 18 0 0 0 26 59.1%
K/P 9 5 0 0 0 4 44.4%
LB 49 20 0 0 1 29 59.2%
LS 1 0 0 0 0 1 100.0%
OL 41 19 0 2 1 20 48.8%
QB 10 3 0 1 0 6 60.0%
RB 25 12 0 0 1 13 52.0%
WR 40 11 0 0 1 29 72.5%
Total 268 104 0 3 6 161 60.1%

NATS Total Signed Terms Retired Released Available % Avail
DB 12 7 0 0 0 5 41.7%
DL 14 6 0 0 0 8 57.1%
K 4 3 0 0 0 1 25.0%
LB 25 8 0 0 0 17 68.0%
LS 1 0 0 0 0 1 100.0%
OL 29 12 0 2 1 15 51.7%
QB 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%
RB 14 8 0 0 0 6 42.9%
WR 17 4 0 0 0 13 76.5%
Total 116 48 0 2 1 66 56.9%

TEAM Total Extended Lost Added Retired Released Resolved Still Available
BCL 22 9 0 0 1 0 10 12
CGY 37 16 0 0 0 0 16 21
EDM 18 10 0 0 1 2 13 7
HAM 37 7 0 0 0 0 7 30
MTL 23 12 0 0 1 1 14 10
OTT 34 15 1 1 0 1 17 18
SSK 30 13 0 0 0 1 14 17
TOR 32 10 0 0 0 1 11 22
WPG 35 12 0 0 0 0 12 23
NFL 3 0
UFL 0 0
Total 268 104 1 4 3 6 113 160


LENGTH
3 YEARS 4
2 YEARS 35
1 YEAR 44
UNKNOWN 21
Total 104

[Hambone]

The pending FA stats as we are less than 48 hours away from the CFL's FA Communications Window:

Total FAs 268 NATS 116
Extended 104 38.8% Extended 48 41.4%
Lost NFL 1 1.0% Lost NFL 0 0.0%
Retired 3 1.1% Retired 2 1.7%
Released 6 2.2% Released 1 0.9%
114 42.5% 51 44.0%

ALL Fas Total Signed Terms Retired Released Available % Avail
DB 49 16 0 0 2 33 67.3%
DL 44 18 0 0 0 26 59.1%
K/P 9 5 0 0 0 4 44.4%
LB 49 20 0 0 1 29 59.2%
LS 1 0 0 0 0 1 100.0%
OL 41 19 0 2 1 20 48.8%
QB 10 3 0 1 0 6 60.0%
RB 25 12 0 0 1 13 52.0%
WR 40 11 0 0 1 29 72.5%
Total 268 104 0 3 6 161 60.1%

NATS Total Signed Terms Retired Released Available % Avail
DB 12 7 0 0 0 5 41.7%
DL 14 6 0 0 0 8 57.1%
K 4 3 0 0 0 1 25.0%
LB 25 8 0 0 0 17 68.0%
LS 1 0 0 0 0 1 100.0%
OL 29 12 0 2 1 15 51.7%
QB 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%
RB 14 8 0 0 0 6 42.9%
WR 17 4 0 0 0 13 76.5%
Total 116 48 0 2 1 66 56.9%

TEAM Total Extended Lost Added Retired Released Resolved Still Available
BCL 22 9 0 0 1 0 10 12
CGY 37 16 0 0 0 0 16 21
EDM 18 10 0 0 1 2 13 7
HAM 37 7 0 0 0 0 7 30
MTL 23 12 0 0 1 1 14 10
OTT 34 15 1 1 0 1 17 18
SSK 30 13 0 0 0 1 14 17
TOR 32 10 0 0 0 1 11 22
WPG 35 12 0 0 0 0 12 23
NFL 3 0
UFL 0 0
Total 268 104 1 4 3 6 113 160


LENGTH
3 YEARS 4
2 YEARS 35
1 YEAR 44
UNKNOWN 21
Total 104

[Hambone]

Assume they put more into a lump sum bonus payment which seems to be what it takes despite there being significant risk to the strategy in the event of an injury. Been a while since a player retired after getting the bonus but that risk is still there as well and it also gives bias to training camp competition.

Consider it a risky strategy and not really a fan to be honest. Thing is they are all doing it which at least somewhat levels the field.

It's not really as risky as you think. Case in point Garry Peters. Last year per 3Down reports he made $123.2K including a $30K signing bonus = $93.2K base. On the SPC (Standard Players Contract) the base salary cannot be less than league min which is $70K. Typically teams will cut their overall cap hit by renegotiating the deal to be heavier in bonus and lighter on base with the theory being that even if the overall value comes down the player can benefit thanks to reduced tax exposure on the bonus portion. The player can take in less overall gross income but take home more after tax money.

In theory (without knowing the exact numbers) BC could turn Peters' $30K bonus + $93.2 K base into something like $73.2K base + $40K bonus = $10K SMS savings. Peters could come out of it with MORE after tax income while BC saves $10K on the SMS. It doesn't sound like much but in the economics of CFL salaries and cap if you can redo 4 or 5 deals like that you might gain an extra $50K in SMS room which can be the difference in keeping some players and having to let them go. To add the difference between paying Peters $73.2K base and $93.2K base is only $1111 per game. That doesn't make for a particularly big burden on the cap if injury happens and of course if the injury puts the player onto the 6G there is no SMS hit for every 6 game increment.

[don corleone]

If it keeps going in the direction it's going it won't be long before every import player in the league will be playing at league minimum salary with a bonus clause dependent on what they can squeeze. Better yet for the owners would be to end speculation and pay the bonus at the end of the year dependent on fulfillment of objectives. Players that pick the most cotton get the most money.

A secondary factor is Canadian players do not qualify which makes me wonder about those that qualify as CFL Canadians through a past family connection and if they are entitled to the discount. Hard to even believe the CRA lets either side get away with it. Who is looking after the tax payer and ticket holder?

It's easy to make a case for the spring league model where all players are paid the same and it doesn't seem to be the issue it is in the CFL as far as attracting talent. In some ways the CFL is it's own worst enemy considering it is a 9 team league.

As is teams are cutting it too close to the cap with little to no wiggle room for in season adjustments. Players deserve a more secure standing given it is their livelihood. It's an area that could use attention imo.

Meanwhile team presidents / football ops employment contracts are carved in stone. Yeesh !