Kerry Joseph Not Marching with the Saints

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WestCoastJoe
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Joseph won't be joining Saints

Rob Vanstone, Leader-Post

Published: Thursday, February 14, 2008

Kerry Joseph will not be signing with the New Orleans Saints.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback -- the CFL's most outstanding player in 2007 -- worked out for the NFL team on Wednesday, but a contract offer did not ensue. Joseph hails from New Iberia, La., which is near New Orleans.

"Late afternoon (on Wednesday), a friend on the New Orleans staff informed me they would not be extending an offer to Kerry,'' Roughriders general manager Eric Tillman said. "To be honest, I almost found myself with a sense of mixed emotions. Sure, he's our MVP quarterback, but Kerry's such a wonderful human being, and playing at home for the Saints would have been such a special opportunity for him.''

Tillman added lightheartedly: "Of course, it's a lot easier to be a humanitarian when you are blessed with remarkable depth at quarterback like we have in Marcus (Crandell), Darian (Durant), Drew (Tate) and Steven (Jyles), right?''

Joseph, like other CFL players who are entering their option year, has until Friday to sign with an NFL team.

With New Orleans out of the equation, one impediment is removed as far as Joseph returning to the Roughriders. The 34-year-old Joseph would like a raise in pay after quarterbacking Saskatchewan to a Grey Cup title in 2007.

Prior to the 2007 season, Joseph accepted a $125,000 pay cut. His 2008 salary was also pared by that amount. Under the terms of Joseph's existing contract, he is to make $250,000 during the coming season.

Joseph has stated that he would like his salary to be comparable to that of many of the CFL's other starting quarterbacks, who are typically paid well in excess of $300,000. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats' Casey Printers, for example, is to earn between $400,000 and $450,000 in each of the next two seasons.

"In terms of the contractual situation, we'll wait and see what happens in the next week or two in free-agency,'' Tillman said. "In late February, we'll certainly have a lot more clarity regarding our available cap space, and have a better feel for the flexibility we have to accommodate Kerry.

"We understand where Kerry and Mike (agent Mike McCartney) are coming from, especially given the Casey Printers contract. But, in fairness, they were offered free agency as an option last year -- given a chance to go on the open market -- and they opted to sign a new deal. In that regard, since Kerry's under contract, we could simply dig in but, in my view, if we did so, we wouldn't be respectful to a good man who sacrificed for the good of the team.''

Last season, Joseph completed 267 of 459 passes -- a 58.2-per-cent accuracy rate -- for 4,002 yards, with 24 interceptions and eight interceptions. His quarterback efficiency rating was a career-best 97.1. Joseph also rushed for 13 touchdowns -- the second-highest single-season total for a quarterback in league history. He could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.

"So, where do we go from here? What's fair to both parties?'' Tillman concluded. "As the old saying goes, the devil is always in the details.''
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WestCoastJoe
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It seemed like a long shot that KJ would get an offer from the Saints. Age being the key factor.

Joseph, Crandall, Durant, Tate, Jyles. That is a lot of QBs for the Riders. Not all will be kept.

Joseph is under contract for $250,000 this year. That is underpaid for his status as a top QB in the CFL. Tillman will probably work something out to get his pay more in line with the reality, especially after KJ agreed to a pay cut previously to help the team.

KJ had a heckuva year last year. When he is on his game, there is no more dangerous QB in the CFL.
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Tighthead
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Age is a factor, but I also think he lacks the accuracy that the NFL tends to require. Like Printers, he is just better suited for the CFL game, and I would say moreso. I tend to think of Joseph as having kind of a slow release, and not the greatest touch.

I suspect his tryout was some sort of favour to him to help him leverage his situation with the Riders.
MacNews
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I don't know why NO offered Joseph a try-out, maybe they wanted to warm up their coaches for training camp.
Dan Russell
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Tillman added lightheartedly: "Of course, it's a lot easier to be a humanitarian when you are blessed with remarkable depth at quarterback like we have in Marcus (Crandell), Darian (Durant), Drew (Tate) and Steven (Jyles), right?

Depth? Just because you have 4 other QB's doesn't mean you have depth if they are no good.
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Lions4ever
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Dan Russell wrote:Tillman added lightheartedly: "Of course, it's a lot easier to be a humanitarian when you are blessed with remarkable depth at quarterback like we have in Marcus (Crandell), Darian (Durant), Drew (Tate) and Steven (Jyles), right?

Depth? Just because you have 4 other QB's doesn't mean you have depth if they are no good.
Hot air from Rusty. Isn't Tate that stiff from Iowa or somewhere??
ziggy
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I think Crandall is toast.
iso_55

It is rumoured that the Bombers are interested in Crandell. As far as Joseph not being offered a contract, how can anyone truly be surprised?
Dan Russell
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iso_55 wrote:It is rumoured that the Bombers are interested in Crandell. As far as Joseph not being offered a contract, how can anyone truly be surprised?

Dinwiddie or Crandell? Gotta go with Dinwiddie as he is younger and has potential promise. Crandell was only decent last year during mop up time.
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