2021 CFL free agency

[Murdoch]

I have to respect John Hufnagel for his managing ability and skill in turning over his roster to remain competitive.

Moving on from Eric Rogers and Cordarro Law would not have been easy. He could easily have re upped them both but maybe that's not how dynasty's work.

Must be that Kamar Jordan is healthy enough to play and possibly that Hergi Mayala is for real.

[SammyGreene]

Part of that salary is the fact that he is a big, strong target on an upward trajectory and is Canadian to boot, giving us options elsewhere. Slightly higher than I would have expected, but not by much (maybe 10 grand).


DH

$160,000 is about right David. Farhan had mentioned on Rod Pederson's show a couple weeks back he thought Durant's restructured deal would have been in the $150,000 range.

So does Burnham believe he is worth $25,000 more than Durant which would essentially put him almost exactly what he made in 2019 ($205,000)? If BC's offer is in the Derrel Walker range ($185,000) then I'm not sure saving the $15,000 is worth the backlash of letting arguably your most popular player walk.

[Murdoch]

For the money; Mike Reilly should be the most popular player and he better hope he is.

Burnham gives him half a dozen catches over the course of a year he doesn't get with other guys. One every three games is nothing.

In the end it is a team game. No one player does it on his own.

[Hambone]

I have to respect John Hufnagel for his managing ability and skill in turning over his roster to remain competitive.

Moving on from Eric Rogers and Cordarro Law would not have been easy. He could easily have re upped them both but maybe that's not how dynasty's work.

Must be that Kamar Jordan is healthy enough to play and possibly that Hergi Mayala is for real.

Calgary is kind of used to playing without Rogers and Law. Both have played only half of the Stamps' games since they returned from their NFL stints. Huf could simply be deciding to trust those abilities and skills he has demonstrated to move on from excellent players who have struggled with injuries.

Rogers originally arrived there late in the 2014 season. He spent 2016 chasing the NFL dream, missed all of 2017 due to injury and missed 9 games in 2018 due to injury. He finally got in 17 games in 2019. Since coming back to Calgary for the 2017 season he played 26 out of a possible 54 regular season games.

It was a similar story with Law. He was a late season addition to the Stamps in 2012. He played 16 games for them in 2013 then spent 2014 & 2015 chasing his NFL dream playing 17 games over 2 years for the Chargers. He finally returned late in 2016 for 4 games. Identical to Rogers he then missed all of 2017 and 9 games in 2018 due to injury before suiting up for 16 games in 2019. Since returning late in 2016 he played 29 out of a possible 58 regular season games.

[Hambone]

For the money; Mike Reilly should be the most popular player and he better hope he is.

Burnham gives him half a dozen catches over the course of a year he doesn't get with other guys. One every three games is nothing.

In the end it is a team game. No one player does it on his own.

I don't disagree on your theory on the half dozen catches. However what does make the difference with Burnham is those catches tend to be game altering difference makers in the final result. That is much more than nothing.

[B.C.FAN]

According to Farhan Lalji, the Lions have re-signed LB Isaiah Guzylak-Messam. I thought he showed great instincts when he was moved from DB to WILL in 2019. He just needs to work on his tackling.

Farhan also reports that the Argos have released Bo Lokombo. He said Lokombo asked for his early release to test the market.

[OV - 54:40]

Bo Lokombo comes home to sign with Lions !

Excellent get - guy is a stud D talent IMO, lots of CFL experience, and can play at both OLB (maybe MLB too) or safety, and even switch between LB and safety looks to confuse Ds.

[B.C.FAN]

Another former B.C. linebacker has hit the open market. Winnipeg released Micah Awe, who was reportedly due a $5,000 roster bonus on Monday. He wasn't scheduled to become a free agent this year but the Bombers had been trying to restructure his contract.

[Belize City Lion]

3DownNation reporting that Matt Nichols has been released by the Argos. He was due a $220,000 roster bonus tomorrow. This looks to me like the Argos are hedging their bets in case there is no 2021 season. If there is a season, they can sign Nichols later (if he is still available) if he will agree to a reduced salary.

Ottawa is in a similar situation with Arbuckle. His roster bonus is lower ($150,000) but the salary is much higher. So if Ottawa releases Arbuckle, his only option might be Toronto and Nichols only option would be Ottawa. However, the Argos were trying to reduce Nichols salary already so I don't see how Arbuckle will come down from the $495K the Redblacks offered to anything close to what Pinball wants to spend.

So IF Ottawa releases Arbuckle today, who might get burned in all this is Toronto. Nichols will sign in Ottawa for less than Arbuckle was going to make, while Toronto won't have the SMS room to sign Arbuckle.

[David]

Signing Bo is a huge deal for B.C. A ratio breaker and versatile athlete. We can put him in a few places of possible need and he will stand out. I'll never forget the hit he laid on our own Wayne Moore. I was in Montreal for the game and we could hear the jarring "pop" from where we were sitting!


DH

[Murdoch]

Right now the only team in the CFL looking for a starting QB is the Argos and the best FA QB on the market, is Matt Nicholls.

MBT is the guy I would go for. Not afraid to go over the top. Matt Nichols will be lucky to find a spot.

[Hambone]

3DownNation reporting that Matt Nichols has been released by the Argos. He was due a $220,000 roster bonus tomorrow. This looks to me like the Argos are hedging their bets in case there is no 2021 season. If there is a season, they can sign Nichols later (if he is still available) if he will agree to a reduced salary.

Ottawa is in a similar situation with Arbuckle. His roster bonus is lower ($150,000) but the salary is much higher. So if Ottawa releases Arbuckle, his only option might be Toronto and Nichols only option would be Ottawa. However, the Argos were trying to reduce Nichols salary already so I don't see how Arbuckle will come down from the $495K the Redblacks offered to anything close to what Pinball wants to spend.

So IF Ottawa releases Arbuckle today, who might get burned in all this is Toronto. Nichols will sign in Ottawa for less than Arbuckle was going to make, while Toronto won't have the SMS room to sign Arbuckle.

Not sure about the Argos not having SMS room. They were trying to get Nichols to take a hair cut and currently have no QBs under contract for 2021. Michael O'Connor is the only one on the roster and he's unsigned. The biggest sticking point for Nichols seemed to be that the Argos refused to agree to any upfront money. Every other QB who did renegotiate got some upfront/signing bonus coin. The Argos were offering a significant reduction with $0 upfront. Obviously if Arbuckle gets released he will have no choice but to take a significantly reduced salary over his Ottawa deal wherever he goes. Toronto, which would offer the only starting vacancy, will have room for that. They must have at least $500K available in QB budget for a starter and backup. If they don't then Pinball and Murphy have badly mismanaged their cap.

[B.C.FAN]

Lots of CFL action on the last Sunday in January.

According to 3downnation.com, the Lions have signed Bo Lokombo to a 2-year contract, just hours after he was released by the Argos.

Edmonton has also released Ricky Collins Jr., as had been predicted by Hambone.

https://3downnation.com/2021/01/31/cana ... b-c-lions/

[Hambone]

Love the Lokombo reunion. Now lets see some DL action.

[B.C.FAN]

Love the Lokombo reunion. Now lets see some DL action.

I don't know what Rick Campbell's intentions are with Lokombo and Guzylak-Messam. They're both versatile. One could easily start at WILL and the other at safety. The Lions still have pending free agent linebackers Adam Konar, Jordan Herdman-Reed, Mitch Barnett and Kevin Haynes unsigned.

I don't know why the DL has been neglected so far apart from the re-signing of Darius Allen and J.R. Tavai. The Lions have 7 others unsigned, including most of Ed Hervey's prized FA acquisitions last year.