Dickenson willing to take paycut to keep Murphy

CFL Talk
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[url=http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/sports/story.html?id=84b76929-29b7-41d6-ac29-f7d226ae818b]http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/ ... d226ae818b[/url]

Dave Dickenson knows the value of an all-star lineman who'll protect his back, and is willing to adjust this year's salary downward to get Rob Murphy in uniform again with the B.C. Lions.

The Grey Cup MVP quarterback said Monday he is willing to give the CFL team a portion of his 2007 salary so long as Murphy is the beneficiary.

Murphy and coach Wally Buono had further talks Monday about the option year of a contract the left tackle wants renegotiated, but neither reported progress toward a resolution.

Dickenson's idea is to free up room under the salary cap by deferring an unspecified amount into an extension of his current deal, which ends after this season.

No player on the Lions has more financial freedom than Dickenson, who could make $400,000 this season if he meets incentives.

"I called Rob and told him, 'Don't do anything crazy,' because I want him back bad," Dickenson said Monday.

"I want security with my left tackle. We've been working too hard to find it and now we've got it. Let's get this thing done."

Murphy said the quarterback spoke about the idea in a joking fashion not long after he was named the league's top lineman after last season.

However, he realized Dickenson was serious when word of Murphy's negotiations came to light last week.

"I don't know if it's going to be a reality or not, but I'm honestly flattered," said Murphy, who met with offensive co-ordinator Dan Dorazio in Orlando, Fla., on the weekend.

Buono said if the matter was simply a case of re-allocating money from Dickenson to Murphy, who is looking to roughly double his estimated $70,000 salary last year, the issue would have been resolved. However, the Lions boss sees precedent-setting problems ahead.

"How many people are going to be lined up at the door next year?" he said. "Lots of players have come in over the years asking for just another $5,000. That gets multiplied. What I do today affects me tomorrow. Is this an isolated incident? No way."

Complicating matters is the fact the Lions have yet to respond to an extension offer made two weeks ago by Dickenson's agent, Ken Staninger, which would keep the quarterback with the club through the 2009 season.

"If I'm not in the picture past '07 then why should I bend over backwards?" Dickenson asked. "I can't help unless I get a new deal."

But instead of thinking his quarterback had provided a solution to a pair of issues, Buono said he feels like he's being backed into a corner because of salary management, the CFL's new $4.05-million spending limit.

After insisting all winter he wouldn't be forced to cut veteran players to stay under the cap, he reversed that position for the first time Monday.

"We might have to move one or two," Buono said.

Whether one of them is Murphy remains to be seen.

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at first glance, dickenson seems to be doing an unselfish act…then reading this:

"If I'm not in the picture past '07 then why should I bend over backwards?" Dickenson asked. "I can't help unless I get a new deal."
...then u understand he's doing it as a way to keep himself around longer....hes basiclly attaching himself to rob murphys star, or coattails.

if wally is smart, he’d cut dickenson right now, save $400,000 and he can keep whatever players he wants.

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Although he may not have said it right, what he said does make sense. In order for him to renegotiate his contract to free up money for Murphy, the Lions would have to rip up the current contract and have him sign a new one. And we all know that the minimum CFL contract is a year plus an option, so in effect he would have to get an extension in order to help out. Why then would he take a pay cut this year(that he doesn't have to) if the Lions would just cut him next year?

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The soap opera in Lotus land continues. :roll: :roll:

Good reading in the papers though. Sounds like every one is "bargaining " hard!

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Yep!
If Wally had a brain in that poor old head he would cut the best QB in the league.
I know DD is fragile, but if he can stay healthy this year, he has several good years ahead, and when he is healthy, as I say, he is the best in the league, with the possible exception of Ricky Ray.
So by all means, chop him loose…

But I hear what Wally is saying about the “Dave solution” not being as clear cut as it sounds.
You pay Murphy 150,000 and then the next lineman, making 50,000 looks at that and wonders how much he is worth.
And if suddenly o-lineman are worth 150,000, how much is Geroy Simon worth, or, maybe a middle-linebacker?
It isn’t as simple as it sounds.
However, it does seem to make a deal a possibilty now when a few days ago it seemed dead…

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if DD really just wants to keep murphy, why doesnt he just pay him part of his salary himself. That way, he is sure the money goes to Rob and it doesnt affect future negotiations with Rob or anyone else. Murphy could simply sign on for as long as DD.

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i didnt know wally had Ricky Ray on his roster :cowboy:

when is the last time DD played a whole season?

its a given DD will be injured this season…just as i said it last offseason, and was right!

he missed 12 games in '04…6 games in '05 and missed 5 in '06…how many will he miss in '07?..my guess is 6.

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DD is the best QB in the league.
Didn’t the same thing happen a few years back in Calgary when was it Mark MacLaughlin did the same thing and the team took him up on it to sign another player, the name escapes me. Or, was it Saskatchewan.

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DD is a little overrated. Anyone notice how the last few yrs, no matter who is in the game for BC, they usually look good. If DD is the leagues best, then it dont say much for the present crop of QB's. Where are the fluties, the moons, the dunigans, the austins, the clements, etc. DD is a smart qb, but his physical skills are nothing history will remember. Dont see him making any knowledgable persons top 20 ever list.

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It always fascinates me how often fans believe the grass is greener on the other side of the fence.
The number of Lions fans who fail to recognize just how good DD is amazes.
But I'll run a few thoughts/facts by.
I know that QB efficiency isn't the be all, and end all, but DD, at 111 for his career is a good 15 points ahead of the next best current starter, Ricky Ray, at a paltry 95. The next guy, AC is only 91.
Also, the guy has an MVP and a Grey Cup on his resume.
Of course numbers aren't everything.
Intangibles count. That means winning.
I don't have his winning % handy, but anyone care to wager that it is better than any other starting QB in the league at the moment, and as good or better than most from the past as well?
The only knock on DD has been his durability.
Which brings us to the thread topic.
Get an o-line worth more than a bag of used footballs, and protect the guy rather than constantly pointing out how fragile he is....

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You are right! It happens all the time fans take for granted their star players. Ask the other 7 teams and they would be dleighted to have his skill set. :lol:

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one reason reason DD has a high QB rating, is cuz he'd rather take 6 sacks a game to keep his rating high, where ray doesnt care and will throw the ball away.

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You guys are crazy. I’d be happy to have Dickenson playing for my Als. You can talk about injury and age all you want, but all other things being equal, Dickenson is the best QB in the CFL, and has a 2007 Grey Cup ring to prove it. How everyone is so willing to write him off or suggest he be cut when he led the Lions to a Grey Cup LAST NOVEMBER is beyond me.

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so one grey cup ring ( in which he didnt throw for a single TD ) makes him better than Ray, who has 2 grey cup rings and 3 grey cup apperances in 4 years???

hmmm...

1 grey cup win vs 2 grey cup wins
23 games missed in last 3 seasons vs none from injury.

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The old saying is “What have you done for me lately?”

Don’t get me wrong. I think Ray is a tremendous quarterback. I’d put him at number two in terms of sheer ability. But the fact remains that he struggled last year, and his struggles were part of the reason the Eskimos failed to make the playoffs ((not the whole part, but still). Dickenson answered his critics by winning the big game, which is all that was missing from his resume. Yes, he is fragile and injury-prone, but you get a good O-line in front of him, and he’ll be fine. In any case, B.C. has such good backups that I don’t see why they’d be particularly worried about him getting injured.

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Ray led the league in passing yards…how is that struggling?

lets face it…the eskies failed because of playcalling and the defence collapsing…not because of Ray.

does it not seem curious to anyone, that whoever plays QB for the lions ( since buono’s been there ) has been amazing?..printers, pierce, DD…maybe its not DD, but the play calling…that, and the QB is always supported with great receivers and a really good running back.

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I think it has to be a combination of many things.
If you have no tools in the tool box?
First, you have to have a talented QB, then the sorrounding cast must be in place.
Finally, the OC and coaching staff have to provide the script.
I guess it is no coincedence over the years how Wally has had the best wealth of QB talent around, with the years in Calgary and now with the Lions. Likewise, the recruiting has to be top notch, such as Bob O'Billovich.

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Passing yards aren’t everything. In key situations, Ray would make a bad decision that resulted in either a pick or an incompletion.

lets face it...the eskies failed because of playcalling and the defence collapsing...not because of Ray.
No question the playcalling was weak and the defence suspect. I never disputed that. But Ray isn't blameless here.
does it not seem curious to anyone, that whoever plays QB for the lions ( since buono's been there ) has been amazing?....printers, pierce, DD...maybe its not DD, but the play calling....that, and the QB is always supported with great receivers and a really good running back.
Again, I agree that the Lions have a tremendous system. In fact, maybe this year we'll see what happens now that Chapdelaine is in Edmonton. Maybe you'll be proven right, Ray will excel, and Dickenson will struggle. But my money is still on Dickenson if he's healthy.
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every QB has some incompletions…'cept DD who prefers to take a sack to keep his rating high…

and how can u single out Ray for INT’s, when his numbers are no higher or lower than any other QB?

when the most TDs was 23 and ray had 21…and the least amount of picks was 15 and ray had 18…i dont know how u can single him out as ‘struggling’??? :roll:

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Come on. Let’s not start randomly trashing quarterbacks here. I could easily reply that a sack is better than a INT going back the other way for a touchdown, which is something Ray did in more than one crucial situation this year.

and how can u single out Ray for INT's, when his numbers are no higher or lower than any other QB?

when the most TDs was 23 and ray had 21…and the least amount of picks was 15 and ray had 18…i dont know how u can single him out as ‘struggling’??? :roll:


Um, you were the one who said he was the best quarterback in the league. That’s why I’m singling him out. If I have no right to single him out, then I guess every QB in the league is the same? If we’re going on stats last year, Dickenson wins. If we’re going on record, Dickenson wins. If we’re judging by postseason success, Dickenson’s team won the Grey Cup, while Ray’s team never even made it into the postseason.

All I was saying, at the very beginning, was that I was surprised at the amount of flak Dickenson was getting, considering he won the Grey Cup last season. You’d think bringing home a championship would buy a starting QB some love. But I guess the old adage is true: “The most popular player in town is the backup quarterback.” :slight_smile: