The Place for BC Lion Discussion. A forum for Lions fans to talk and chat about our team.
Discussion, News, Information and Speculation regarding the BC Lions and the CFL.
Prowl, Growl and Roar!
notahomer wrote:And I think the NFL's practice squads work the way ours do too. IOW, a Matthews type reciever gets hurt ANYWHERE, a team can claim him, whereby the Seahawks would have to activate him or lose him.... And he probably gets a chance to crack an NFL roster again during next years training camps. Like Dressler. IIRC, based on what I heard on todays broadcast, he's signed for the balance of the year. Is he going to take another crack at the NFL or does he want to settle down, up here?
I'd think the NFL is off his radar. If it isn't it should be given he turns 30 before the 2015 CFL season starts. Sorry but it just ain't gonna happen.
I was a bit surprised by the 1 year deal. It may be just as simple as a bridging thing to allow the Riders time to readjust their payroll so the can put together a better long term deal in the offseason. Part of me though wonders if Dressler didn't want to give himself options when it comes to the next deal. He's at the top of his CFL earnings potential. This next deal he signs should wind up being the biggest of his career. He owes it to himself and his family to put himself into a position to get the best deal he can. The money Ottawa was reportedly offering had to catch his attention. As CFL-lucrative as the money the expansion situation Ottawa was offering may not have been to his liking but had the same offer come from some of the other teams he might've taken it. Mid-season is not an ideal time for a premiere FA to come shopping his services back to the CFL. Teams that otherwise would be interested in someone like Dressler under normal offseason free agency may not have been in a position to make a serious offer last week. Come February though? Having said all that I'd be shocked if he is playing for anybody other than the Riders next season and wouldn't be surprised if he signs a new extension before Feb. 15th. But it's not the worst thing to be able to negotiate that deal with looming free agency in his back pocket.
You're as old as you've ever been and as young as you're ever going to be.
Being on the SB champion's PR is probably a good location for Williams...ultimately I believe he is better off show casing his talents on the CDN field (for a salary north of $170,000 per year, but its his choice.
As for the Lions, other than through injuries, we don't need help with more players...this whole season the problem has never been the talent or depth here, which is the best in the CFL. Now, if any coaches were put on waivers, the Lions might want to call them.
"Condemnation Without Investigation is the height of ignorance."
MexicoLionFan wrote:Being on the SB champion's PR is probably a good location for Williams...ultimately I believe he is better off show casing his talents on the CDN field (for a salary north of $170,000 per year, but its his choice.
As for the Lions, other than through injuries, we don't need help with more players...this whole season the problem has never been the talent or depth here, which is the best in the CFL. Now, if any coaches were put on waivers, the Lions might want to call them.
Lions have improved their talent and depth in the off season but I'm not sure that they are best in the CFL as I think that distinction still belongs to the Stamps. However the rookie OC and DC have been out coached in several games.
Washington has been the biggest disappointment and does have the most talent on the D side of the ball for the Lions. The promised aggressive style did has been completely MIA. Linebackers used too much in the pass D and not positioned to support the run stop. Close to worst in the league in QB sacks and terrible in forcing turnovers.
On O, Khari Jones when he was a QB liked to go long, but not so much as a OC. O line injury problems and too complicated blocking schemes (zone read) have not helped, so move the pocket or roll out the QB for heavens sake! Glenn is not a great runner but he can move around and he should. Lions need to get the wideouts more touches and they only seem to win games when the RBs get a combined 20 plus touches, so make it happen in the game plan.
After 9 games there are no longer any rookies on the field or on the sidelines. So it is time to start calling games like a vet.
<The Lions also brought in two new players on Sunday: offensive tackle Cory Brandon and long snapper Mike Benson. Brandon, who played at Oklahoma and was cut by the Seahawks last week, took first-team reps at left tackle and figures to start against Ottawa for non-import rookie Hunter Steward. who’s out with a broken foot. Brandon had been at the top of the Lions’ off-season recruiting list. “We have to take a look at the left tackle position,” said Benevides. “Unfortunately, it will be the fourth different body in 10 games.” Benson, who’s seen time with Toronto and Edmonton, will suit up for Jordan Matechuk, who underwent surgery on his hand on Sunday.>
Left tackle seems to be a cursed position..... I hope this one works out for longer than a few games, or Travis will be running to avoid getting banged up instead of running to create uncertainty in the defenses.....
Interesting that Brandon is expected to start at left tackle so soon. Begs the question is Ramsay not healthy enough to start or is Brandon that impressive in workouts.
Dusty wrote:
Left tackle seems to be a cursed position..... I hope this one works out for longer than a few games, or Travis will be running to avoid getting banged up instead of running to create uncertainty in the defenses.....
Seems like Murphy's law didn't leave LT afterall...
The one good thing about LT is that you can get a guy to play on the island without much practice time, especially if the LG is comfortable in his spot.
TheLionKing wrote:Interesting that Brandon is expected to start at left tackle so soon. Begs the question is Ramsay not healthy enough to start or is Brandon that impressive in workouts.
He had a full camp with Seattle and the gamebooks for the 3 Seahawk ex-games he dressed for before being cut show that he played in all of them. Depending on how many exhibition game reps he saw he could be more game ready than anybody else. Gotta like his size though. 6'7" 324# is protypical OT.
You're as old as you've ever been and as young as you're ever going to be.
Not sure if his placement on Mtl's negotiation list is fresh news but it's where Michael Sam finds himself re:CFL rights and Jim Popp seems keen to bring him in according to this Yahoo! article. But he will surely exhaust every last NFL opportunity before entertaining the CFL and even then might place more priority on his off-field career potential:
Sports can be a peculiar thing. When partaking in fiction, like a book or movie, we adopt a "Willing Suspension of Disbelief" for enjoyment's sake. There's a similar force at work in sports: "Willing Suspension of Rationality". If you doubt this, listen to any conversation between rival team fans. You even see it among fans of the same team. Fans argue over who's the better QB or goalie, and selectively cite stats that support their views while ignoring those that don't.
That's interesting sj-roc. It surprised most NFL-watchers that Michael Sam didn't make the Rams' practice squad--and he was passed over for the remaining 31 PRs as well. Still, the thinking is that he has a good chance of getting onto someone's PR as the season progresses and injuries begin to accumulate. The thinking seems to be that he will ultimately find a place in the NFL. It also seems that the question of his sexual orientation has meant more to the media than to his teammates (to whom it appears to have been irrelevant), as evidenced by the mildly-disgusting ESPN piece on his showering habits. He was really in tough with the Rams, given their depth and quality on the D-line.
The comparison to Cam Wake seems more than a little optimistic to me, though. Wake is much faster (4.65 vs. 4.91 in the 40) and quicker/more agile (4.13 vs. 4.7 in the 20-yard shuttle). And, of course, there's Wake's truly freakish vertical leap (45.5") compared with Sam's 25.5. Still, I think Sam could be successful in the CFL. This will be interesting to follow.
Ran across this story about Sam by Mike Freeman on Bleacher Report:
Sports can be a peculiar thing. When partaking in fiction, like a book or movie, we adopt a "Willing Suspension of Disbelief" for enjoyment's sake. There's a similar force at work in sports: "Willing Suspension of Rationality". If you doubt this, listen to any conversation between rival team fans. You even see it among fans of the same team. Fans argue over who's the better QB or goalie, and selectively cite stats that support their views while ignoring those that don't.
Not surprised that the Cowboys would take Sam. Their D has been atrocious the last couple of years, and they lost DeMarcus Ware--their pass-rushing ace--to free agency to the Broncos. I think Sam could actually make the 53-man roster in Big D. This would be a good move for Sam.
TheLionKing wrote:Can NFL teams delete a player and add another player in it's place ?
Yes; the situation is very fluid--especially right now before the regular season begins. The Seahawks just did this, first putting WR Phil Bates on the 10-player practice squad and, then, a day later, dropping him for two new signings and putting WR Bryan Walters, who'd been cut the day before (and not put on the PR), onto the 53-man active roster.
South Pender wrote:Not surprised that the Cowboys would take Sam. Their D has been atrocious the last couple of years, and they lost DeMarcus Ware--their pass-rushing ace--to free agency to the Broncos. I think Sam could actually make the 53-man roster in Big D. This would be a good move for Sam.
Sam is, in my mind, a classic NFL tweener who would be an outstanding CFL prospect and player. He reminds me a great deal of Brendan Ayanbadejo in NFL terms, I'm sure someone can come up with a better CFL equivalent.
That said, he was legitimately beaten out by a guy who player just a hair better and had more versatility on Special Teams. He and the guy who beat him out had the most and second most snaps for the Rams in pre-season.
Short of Montreal, Dallas is a great landing spot for him. The Cowboys defense is terrible, so he should get opportunities. From a marketing standpoint, Sam sold the second most jerseys post draft, that's marketing potential, and revenue, that will translate to the Cowboys, who get a larger share of revenue from jersey sales than other teams.
And, in true Jerry Jones fashion, we have:
Cowboys schedule news conference to announce Sam signing
Posted by Michael David Smith on September 3, 2014, 11:14 AM EDT
Michael Sam will be introduced as a Cowboy this morning.
The Cowboys have scheduled a news conference to make it official that Sam, the NFL’s first openly gay player, has been added to the practice squad. The news broke yesterday that the Cowboys would sign Sam assuming he passed his physical.
Sam was drafted by the Rams and played well in the preseason, recording three sacks. But he did not play well enough to stay in St. Louis.
In Dallas, he may have a better chance of earning a spot on the 53-man roster if he proves himself on the practice squad. The Cowboys are desperate for help on defense, and Sam may be able to have an impact as a situational pass rusher.
Some will say that it doesn’t make sense to schedule a news conference just to announce that a player has been signed to the practice squad, but Sam is a significant figure in the NFL, in the history of American sports and in the gay rights movement. And Jerry Jones’s team never misses an opportunity to make news.
__________________________________________________________________
And this, from Cowboys' HC Jason Garrett:
Jason Garrett on Michael Sam: “This is about football”
Posted by Michael David Smith on September 3, 2014, 11:56 AM EDT
Cowboys coach Jason Garrett says the team’s decision to sign Michael Sam to the practice squad has nothing to do with giving a chance to the NFL’s first openly gay player and everything to do with adding a defensive end who can help the team win.
“This is about football. We evaluated him as a football player and felt like he could help us as a football player. We want to see what he can do. Our attention and focus is on football. It’s on getting ready for the 49ers. That’s the culture that we have around here, that’s the culture that we continue to have,” Garrett said.
Garrett noted that bolstering the defensive line is a high priority for the Cowboys, and he stressed that Sam is going to have to prove himself on the practice squad. Garrett noted that reporters were asking him about Sam when the Cowboys have also recently added defensive lineman Lavar Edwards in a trade with the Titans. That move is more important to the Cowboys than the Sam move because Edwards is expected to be active on Sunday against the 49ers.
“We’ve got to be careful about spending too much time on a practice roster player. We traded for a defensive end who’s going to be on our active roster, from Tennessee. We picked up a defensive lineman who we think is going to be on our active roster. So we tried to address the situation,” Garrett said.
Eventually, if Sam succeeds on his merits as a football player, Garrett will get his wish to talk about him solely as a football player. Today, the Cowboys’ press conference was dominated by the historical nature of having the NFL’s first openly gay player.
__________________________________________________________________
And another good reason (perhaps the best!) for the Cowboys to sign Michael Sam:
Cowboy$ will $ell Michael $am practice $quad jer$ey$
Posted by Darin Gantt on September 3, 2014, 4:15 PM EDT
Earlier today, Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said with a straight face that the addition of Michael Sam to the practice squad was only “about football.”
Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.
The Cowboys are already tapping into the marketing potential of the first ever openly gay player to be drafted into the NFL.
According to Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the Cowboys will sell Sam jerseys at the team’s pro shop.
They don’t ordinarily sell jerseys of practice squad players since, you know, those guys never play in games.
But Sam presents a unique sales opportunity for a team that loves the “glitz and glamour,” and they’ll probably sell enough of them to make up the $6,300 a week he’ll make on the practice squad.
And then if he ever makes the 53-man roster, they can sell another one when he has to change numbers.
Doesn't look as though the Ti-Cats will get Marcus Thigpen back any time soon. He was cut last week by the Dolphins, but was just added to the Patriots' practice squad.
