Free Agent Signings

[Hambone]

Reports are out now that Courtney Stephen has agreed to terms on a new 3 year deal.

[WestCoastJoe]

http://3downnation.com/2016/02/08/8-lan ... ee-agents/

From John Hodge ...

DE Justin Capicciotti — BC Lions

The Lions went off the board early in last May’s CFL draft to select Wilfred Laurier defensive end Ese Mrabure-Ajufo fifth overall. BC’s reasoning for the move, while still misguided, was simple. Having decided to start a Canadian pass rusher as part of their ratio, Mrabure-Ajufo would serve as depth behind starter Jabar Westerman and incumbent rotational player David Menard. This decision flopped when neither Westerman nor Menard were able to make a consistent impact on defence. The addition of Justin Capicciotti would remedy this defensive shortcoming while maintaining a Canadian starting spot at defensive end on BC’s roster. It’s an added bonus that Capicciotti — a Simon Fraser product — has ties out west.

RB Andrew Harris — Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Andrew Harris is from Winnipeg. Andrew Harris has family in Winnipeg. Andrew Harris wants to play in Winnipeg. Barring a shocking turn of events, Andrew Harris is going to sign in Winnipeg. Harris, 28, would give the Bombers the type of threat they haven’t had in the backfield since Fred Reid rattled off 1,396 yards in 2010. Harris’ addition would also have a ripple effect on how the Bombers structure the rest of their roster, as the team hasn’t started a national player at running back since Sean Millington started a handful of games for the club in 1998.

LB Alex Hoffman-Ellis — Edmonton Eskimos

CFL Lions vs Eskimos 20150806

With Dexter McCoil in San Diego and J.C. Sherritt likely Saskatchewan-bound, the Eskimos will be left with two gaping holes in their linebacking core. Enter Alex Hoffman-Ellis, a versatile linebacker who, after two years behind all-stars Solomon Elimimian and Adam Bighill in BC, is ready to become a full-time starter. Capable of playing both middle and weak-side linebacker, Hoffman-Ellis would be reunited with Mike Benevides in green and gold. Benevides, Hoffman-Ellis’ former head coach in BC, was named Edmonton’s defensive coordinator on January 14.

[WestCoastJoe]

http://3downnation.com/2016/02/07/15291/

Stephen re-signs with Ticats: sources

Posted on February 7, 2016 by Justin Dunk // 3 Comments

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats have re-signed Canadian defensive back Courtney Stephen to a three-year contract extension, sources say.

A Brampton native, Stephen has started 45 regular season games in three seasons with Hamilton after being drafted No. 8 overall in the 2012 CFL Draft. He was scheduled to become a free agency on Feb. 9.

The 26-year-old can play both safety and corner and his return helps the Ticats solidify their Canadian content. The team still has a number of key free agents set to hit the open market on Tuesday, including national starters Ted Laurent and Andy Fantuz.

Sources say Stephen’s new deal is reportedly similar to the three-year contract extension signed by another Canadian safety, Jermaine Gabriel of the Toronto Argonauts, which pays him an average of $175,000 a season.

[WestCoastJoe]

http://3downnation.com/2016/02/07/15289/

From Lowell Ullrich ...

It’s not like the Lions don’t have holes, with two defensive starters already gone, nickel back Josh Johnson on the verge of signing with the San Diego Chargers and yes, Harris. Expect less though and the letdown is easier. Here’s a Lions free agency primer.

Offensive line – New year, new issues. B.C. will return to playing three non-imports, Buono said, and have some flexibility to get it done. But the Lions say they need to be assured they’re not taking on an injury risk. Josh Bourke (Montreal) is the free agent front-runner and said to be open to making a trip across the country but the Lions will only go so far.

Biggest hole is at centre. Matt Norman vanished after knee surgery last year and will be making a return elsewhere. (See: Injury risk, above). A better fit to address a need might be Jeff Keeping (Toronto), though 33, or Corey Watman (Saskatchewan)

Returner – Chris Rainey has been offered a more prominent offensive role and a deal reportedly similar to what predecessor Stefan Logan took to stay in Montreal. That might still not be enough. Tim Brown (Calgary) is an option the Lions will consider, said Buono, if Rainey strikes gold elsewhere.

Tailback – While the signing of Mikel Leshoure (Detroit, NFL) holds promise, more stability will be needed with exit of Harris. Jeremiah Johnson (Ottawa), who had his only 100-yard rushing game last season against B.C., gets the most cyberspace love.

Defensive line – With the Lions finally weaning themselves off Khreem Smith, more change is in store, but it isn’t likely to come in the form of SFU product Justin Capicciotti (Ottawa), a natural fit ahead of an assortment of undeveloped Canadian talent already on the roster. Don’t look now though but the Lions have transitioned from one of the oldest position groups to one of the youngest.

Receiver – Arguably this might be among the more stable position groups but there’s no guarantee to the Lions that Austin Collie is returning to fill one of two non-import spots. That could put B.C. in the market at the right price, and with this team, you could say the same about every position on the field.

[TheLionKing]

Capiocciotti would add much needed depth to the defensive line.

[TheLionKing]

Barring injuries to Elimimian and Bighill, Hoffman-Ellis would be a part-time linebacker with BC

[JohnnyMusso]

The BC Lions and running back Chris Rainey have agreed to terms on a two-year deal. Good news.

[JohnnyMusso]

Jerome Messam will be back with the Calgary Stampeders this season.

The Stampeders announced the re-signing the veteran running back Monday night. Messam had been set to hit the open market on Tuesday.

This was expected since Harris is going to the Blue Bombers.

[CardiacKid]

Now the Leo's are going with Internationals at the tailback slot, I think Jeremiah Johnson would be an excellent addition. Bring him and Cappiocotti out west.

Not sure about Johnson as a receiver but he seems to be the antithesis of Andrew in terms of his running style. He can take it up the gut and between the tackles. If the Leo's are committed to going in a different direction in the running game, a runner like Johnson would fit the bill.

[WestCoastJoe]

http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/make ... story.html

From Dan Ralph ...

"I guess for the media and fans it's an exciting time," said Buono, the B.C. Lions head coach/GM. "For us, it's about making hard decisions.

The landscape has changed and I'm not sure today everybody knows what the landscape is going to be. I wish I knew . . . Part of our business is knowing when to take a risk and when not to. It's like Kenny Rogers says (in hit song "The Gambler"), you've got to know when to hold them and when to fold them."

CFL general managers will pay handsomely to either re-sign their top pending free agents or get those on the open market. But once the elite players are gone, the big question remains just how much money will GMs have for remaining free agents?

"What's going to happen is the market isn't going to be able to afford all these free agents and some people are going to have to maybe accept offers that were lower than their expectations," Buono said."But more and more people are willing to go to free agency and take the risk because the gains for them might be greater."

"The landscape has changed and I'm not sure today everybody knows what the landscape is going to be. I wish I knew . . . Part of our business is knowing when to take a risk and when not to. It's like Kenny Rogers says (in hit song "The Gambler"), you've got to know when to hold them and when to fold them."

"I wish I knew," says Wally. That does not sound like a solid plan. I expect some teams know exactly how they will proceed. Which FAs are worth pursuing, which ones fit the team's needs, etc. These FAs have track records in the CFL. Tons of tape.

Not sure how much to pay? That is another thing. Some teams seem to go the FA route, without breaking the budget. Others sit back.

It would be nice, of course, if a team did such a great job drafting and recruiting that they had little or no need for FAs. We are not in that position.
...........

Ted Laurent will sign for big bucks somewhere. I highly doubt it will be here. He is about as valuable as any player in the league, IMO.

Justin Capicciotti would seem to be a great fit here. Will we make a competitive offer? Will we get him?

OL? Wally and Dan might want to stay with the guys we have.

[B.C.FAN]

Wally sounds a lot like John Hufnagel in his approach to free agency. Here's Huf, quoted by Scott Mitchell:

The belts are tight in Calgary and have been for some time.

While Hufnagel is never adverse to throwing his line in the water to see if the big fish are interested, rarely is the bait enticing enough to get them back to the boat.

“During free agency, I’m hoping that we can get a player or two signed that is still available in Day 2 that, once all the smoke clears, they’re still there looking for a job,” Hufnagel said heading into the start of the free-agent frenzy Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. “We’ve been able to do that to some sort of success over the last few years.”

The only starter on the Stampeders roster a year ago who was acquired via free agency was free-safety Josh Bell, who was signed away from the B.C. Lions in 2014.

That says a lot.

The rest of the roster has been put together through trades, the draft, U.S. free-agent camps, and scrap-heap signings turned success stories like Marquay McDaniel.

Despite losing four big-name players to the NFL over the past two years — offensive lineman Brett Jones and edge-rusher Shawn Lemon following the 2014 season, and receiver Eric Rogers and defensive end Freddie Bishop III this winter — Hufnagel says they don’t have as much money to spend as people might think, despite not having to pay the stars who went south.

“There’s a big misconception out there about how much money we do have to spend,” Hufnagel said. “We have to spend our dollars as wisely as we can. Hopefully, we do that and, sometimes, hard decisions have to be made.”

Stampeders take cautious approach to free-agent market; re-sign RB Jerome Messam

The Kenny Rogers poker analogy fits nicely. We'll know soon enough whether they're bluffing.

[B.C.FAN]

Scratch one Canadian DL off the free-agent list:

Murray McCormick ‏@murraylp
DE and special-teams ace Dylan Ainsworth agreed to terms with #riders. Apparently just before #CFLFA deadline. 11 FAs Riders FAs on market

[JohnnyMusso]

I think it does not start till noon, but post free agent news here.

[FA threads are proliferating. Let's post them in this early thread. -- Mod Staff]

[Hambone]

This is a much different year than most. There's a much larger supply of FAs than normal and some teams have obviously created a lot of cap space. One would think that should push prices down but there's some bigger fish than normal in the FA pond which could have a reverse impact. When Wally says he "doesn't know" he's talking about the overall landscape and how that will unfold. He obviously has some priority targets but how things shake out nobody can predict. The last thing I want to see the Lions do is go signing FAs just because they are there and signing them for whatever price it will take. Rumours are Laurent is seeking $300K and a young receiver like Ryan Smith is looking for $150K. I doubt either will get that sort of money but if they do it will have a ripple effect to the rest of the market. Until the first couple of dominos fall Buono will not know if he will be able to execute his plan. It's not unlike the draft. A GM can go in there with a plan only to see it go sideways if the draft unfolds in an unpredictable manner.

[B.C.FAN]

TSN reports QB Trevor Harris has signed with Ottawa.