Farhan: Lions on verge of acquiring Vernon Adams

[CrazyCanuck89]

It would also be a slap in the face to the other quarterbacks on the Lions’ roster, especially to Michael O’Connor, who was demoted from No. 2 to No. 3 on the depth chart in Calgary last year, just when it looked like he was going to get his first opportunity to play.

I'm not convinced O'Connor was demoted from 2 to 3 in Calgary. Maier came in as a fresh raw rookie joining a team entering a season where there would be a shorter than normal training camp with no preseason games. I think O'Connor was really just the placeholder for #2 until Maier got a few more weeks of development by practicing and watching games and tape. Then BLM had his leg injury and the process was sped up.

I think O'Connor is just not a QB who does well in practice.

[Belize City Lion]

I don’t think Vernon Adams is an insurance policy in case Rourke goes to the NFL next season, mainly because I think any opportunity to head south in 2023 ended with his injury. Adams could be insurance in case Rourke is not ready to play in 2023. More importantly, Adams gives the Lions the best chance at winning now.

This coming off-season is going to be terrible for teams looking to upgrade at QB. Likely the only veterans on the market come February will be either BLM or Jake Maier, and maybe Cody Fajardo. The CFL QB talent pool is as shallow as it’s been in a long time. It’s a great opportunity for Vernon Adams if he plays well in the second half of the season.

[maxlion]

Adams has decent but not outstanding career stats: 62% completion rate, 43 tds to 26 interceptions, good runner. Recent injuries might have an effect.

With the lack of depth at qb in the CFL these days, this could be a bit of a tryout for next year if Rourke goes NFL, but I think this move is all about winning this year.

At the very least, this strengthens the team’s weakest area and provides some excitement heading into the second half of the season.

[Lion Guy]

A move that had to be made. I was in next year territory after watching the 2 QBs last game. This moves gives us a chance to pull something off in the playoffs.

[tedbear]

Well I feel rejuvenated about our team after hearing of this trade. Kudos for ownership giving the ok for going out and making a deal to give our team the best possible chance of winning a Grey Cup. Too many teams stand pat with what they have hoping that those players will get the job done when in reality that is not possible or realistic.

While many want to see O'Connor get more of a chance. The coaching staff IMO have a pretty good idea on where O'Connor progress is at, and how far he will be able to take them this year.

I think Pipkin was brought in as insurance due to Thomson's injury and is not someone that the Lions would put their faith in to lead the team for a long period of time. If Rourke was never injured, I am sure that Pipkin would have been released once Thomson came back from injury.

Of course there are positives and negatives on any trade and time will tell but no one can say that the Lions are not trying.

Negatives:
Giving up the first round draft pick.
Has shown periods of inconsistency in the past.
Has been injury prone on occasions.

Positives:
A veteran Quarterback who has played in playoff games and many big games in college.
A leader on the field.
A player who should fit in well with the chemistry as his teammates all speak highly of him.
A Player with a chip on his shoulder that should be highly motivated.
A quarterback that is capable of getting hot and winning a couple of playoff/Grey Cup game(s)
This move should Inject some fire and life into the team and show the players that management is all in.

If Adams does not play well we still have O'Connor and Thomson to fall back on and no one could ever accuse the Lions of sitting back and doing nothing.

If Adams plays well and Rourke leaves we will have a starting Quarterback for next year.

If Adams plays well and Rourke returns I am sure that we could recover our first round pick by trading Adams. Their are lots of teams not to happy with their quarterback situations and most of those teams will have a higher first round pick than we had. So we may get a player for half a year and flip him for a better pick.

Looking forward to the rest of the season!

[OV:54-40]

I've seen enough of O'Connor to know you aren't going anywhere with him, and in any event this type of move seems to indicate that the groin issue is pretty serious. It should also tell you Rourke is done for the year.

Pipkin is good enough for you to finish fourth with. No shame in that in a regular year.

However this isn't a regular year and clearly the club brain trust thinks it can win now with the pieces it has and when you consider the O Line, D Line, secondary and receiving corps they aren't wrong.

Give up the 1st for Adams now and worry about the future later.

You can't give up on O'Connor after only a quarter and half. Could you imagine the Lion's giving up on Rourke after the first quarter of his first start?

You also have to remember it took Vernon Adams 6 years to become a starter. 2018 was good, but then he got injured in 2019 and hasn't been the same.

I suspected O'Connor was going to have an ultra short leash with Campbell & co. - goes with the passport & QB background. Less than a full half, but he was under 50% passing - maybe a conclusion was made then? Very interesting there has been zero mention (that I've seen) of O'Connor's "injury" - what was it?; was he incapable of playing the rest of that game, or , going forward? Nothing in terms of any sort of vote of some confidence from Campbell or the OC? Have a feeling he is done in terms of any more starts here.

Always liked Adams as a QB talent, but IMO he regressed as he went further with playing time in Montreal, and that should not be happening. Good deal to only give up a single pick - even if it is a 1st rounder - a team in need of veteran QB help should be paying way more IMO.

[zeppo]

Very interesting there has been zero mention (that I've seen) of O'Connor's "injury" - what was it?; was he incapable of playing the rest of that game, or , going forward? Nothing in terms of any sort of vote of some confidence from Campbell or the OC? Have a feeling he is done in terms of any more starts here.

It is being called a "groin injury" by the Lions and the media. To the best of my knowledge, Campbell has said nothing
about its severity or how long O'Connor is expected to be out.

[Hambone]

Very interesting there has been zero mention (that I've seen) of O'Connor's "injury" - what was it?; was he incapable of playing the rest of that game, or , going forward? Nothing in terms of any sort of vote of some confidence from Campbell or the OC? Have a feeling he is done in terms of any more starts here.

It is being called a "groin injury" by the Lions and the media. To the best of my knowledge, Campbell has said nothing
about its severity or how long O'Connor is expected to be out.

I doubt they will say anything this week given players are in the midst of their bye week time off. Probably just wait until next week to see how it is responding to treatment before offering comment.

[TheLionKing]

[SammyGreene]

I think the Lions signed O'Connor knowing they would be taking of advantage of Rourke's national status and he could step in mid-game and not disrupt their ratio. We saw what the implications of that was after O'Connor got hurt Friday. I don't think they saw O'Connor as a long term starter with the scenario they find themselves in now trying to hold onto 2nd place.

Now with Adams they are going to have to make a permanent adjustment to their ratio. It will be interesting to see which route they go for their 7 nationals.

[OV:54-40]

I think the Lions signed O'Connor knowing they would be taking of advantage of Rourke's national status and he could step in mid-game and not disrupt their ratio. We saw what the implications of that was after O'Connor got hurt Friday. I don't think they saw O'Connor as a long term starter with the scenario they find themselves in now trying to hold onto 2nd place.

Now with Adams they are going to have to make a permanent adjustment to their ratio. It will be interesting to see which route they go for their 7 nationals.

Rolling with 4 Canadians on D seems so obvious: 2 LBs (or 3 in some packages) between Williams, Lokombo & Hladik (plus Lokombo can go to safety for a different look); and then 2 on the field in the D-Line mix at all times - between Betts, Menard (can play both DE & DT), Cherry and one of Pickett or Archibald.

[DanoT]

O'Conners groin injury could be the good in a few days kind or maybe recovery takes weeks or months and do the docs even know how long the recovery will be.

Adams is for sure an upgrade over Pipkin and giving up a 1st round draft pick when the team is already deep in Canadian talent, is a no-brainer.

[Belize City Lion]

Re: Giving up the first round pick.
Sure you love to have a first round pick, but chances are the Lions will pick 7th or 8th in the first round. So with how the draft works, they would pick second or third in the second round. The net difference is not huge in terms of what players would be available to them.

Re: What to do with Adams if Rourke is ready to return next season?
Unless Rourke makes a miraculous return before 2022 ends, the Lions probably need to keep Adams around. At least until just prior to training camp. So that means they may have to eat a roster bonus (if he’s due one) and then most likely release Adams before camp begins. Unless Adams goes lights out it’s going to be hard to trade him considering his contract for next season will still be worth somewhere north of $400,000.

The Lions got Adams relatively cheap and prorated, thanks to $190K of his salary being paid up front by Montreal. I doubt any team will trade for Adams contract at full rate.

Re: Adams press conference today
I was impressed. He said all the right things. Says he here to hold over until #12 is ready to return. Refused to get baited into taking shots at Macochia. Just said that everyone in the room loved Khari and let that speak for itself. He knows how to keep his ego in check. Should be a great fit with the personalities already in the Lions den.

[Hambone]

Re: Giving up the first round pick.
Sure you love to have a first round pick, but chances are the Lions will pick 7th or 8th in the first round. So with how the draft works, they would pick second or third in the second round. The net difference is not huge in terms of what players would be available to them.

Re: What to do with Adams if Rourke is ready to return next season?
Unless Rourke makes a miraculous return before 2022 ends, the Lions probably need to keep Adams around. At least until just prior to training camp. So that means they may have to eat a roster bonus (if he’s due one) and then most likely release Adams before camp begins. Unless Adams goes lights out it’s going to be hard to trade him considering his contract for next season will still be worth somewhere north of $400,000.

The Lions got Adams relatively cheap and prorated, thanks to $190K of his salary being paid up front by Montreal. I doubt any team will trade for Adams contract at full rate.

Re: Adams press conference today
I was impressed. He said all the right things. Says he here to hold over until #12 is ready to return. Refused to get baited into taking shots at Macochia. Just said that everyone in the room loved Khari and let that speak for itself. He knows how to keep his ego in check. Should be a great fit with the personalities already in the Lions den.

Puzzled with the comment about the 2nd round. If they pick 7th or 8th in the first round they will pick 7th or 8th in every round. If they pick 8th it will mean they made it to the Grey Cup (good) but lost (not good). I believe you're thinking of the 2021 draft which was done in snake fashion because there were no 2020 standings to set the order. Otherwise it's GC winner 9th, Grey Cup loser 8th and the rest of the teams in reverse order of standings.

I think they would keep Adams around until Rourke's situation is clear. Because he will not be a FA NFL overtures would be clear by February 7th as he would have to sign down there before CFL free agency. If the 3 to 5 month recovery from lipsfranc sprain surgery is accurate they should know by about the same time if his recovery is on schedule. In theory he should be recovered by then or be fully aware if there are any concerns about being totally ready to go by camp. If everything points to Rourke staying in BC and under full health then they can look at trading Adams' rights. There will be a market for him. There will be too many QB question marks exiting this season for there not to be. Question is will it be a hot market or very tepid given his contract. Hard to guess if BC can leverage him being fairly local (Tacoma) into a significant salary reduction to be Rourke's backup. I'm thinking he wants to be a starter too badly to consider that unless it's a last resort.

[David]

I doubt they will say anything this week given players are in the midst of their bye week time off. Probably just wait until next week to see how it is responding to treatment before offering comment.

Quite certain the club is going to be very cagey in the week leading up to the September 9 game against the Als as to whom will get the start. Likely want to keep Montreal’s coordinators guessing and prepare for Adams or O’Connor?/Pipkin.

Can’t wait to see true Leos in person. A group of us going.


DH