TORONTO — The Canadian Football League has levied fines against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Winnipeg Blue Bombers and BC Lions for exceeding the league’s Salary Expenditure Cap in 2023.
Two years in a row for Winnipeg, though $25k in my book somewhat acceptable as all teams should spend to their Cap, injuries & bonuses can mess with the numbers.
Hamilton’s $2,600 is just lunch money.
Yup , $2,600 , it’s just enough to cover the tab for an O-Lineman luncheon .
I agree that all of the teams should be spending to the cap. Going over be $100,000 really has no consequences except a little less in the bank. If you can afford it, spend it. So Winnipeg has to pay the league $25K. On a $5.7 M profit, that is peanuts. It doesn’t start to affect teams until they start to lose draft picks. This is also a way to get a very small amount more to the players.
Personally, the cap is way to low, in my opinion. It should be at least $20,000 per player higher based on the league minimums.
$100,000 thousand over is one top notch starter. That is a competitive edge. Rules are rules
As long as you don’t exceed the $100K where you start losing draft picks. Part of it is that the Bombers HAVE to pay players a lot more. Hervey & McAvoy as much as admitted on 3DNN that Oliveira had told them he wanted to stay in Wpg so why not offer him 250K +? That meant the Bombers weren’t getting him for peanuts & had to make a very competitive offer. Ultimately whether they took less in Wpg is moot.
Investing 30% of the CAP in 2 QB’s, a RB & a trio of receivers is a big chunk. Add in Jefferson, Bighill & Bryant & that’s 2.235MM or 40 % of the CAP leaving 3.35MM of CAP space for 47 players - or $71K/player. League minimum is 70K so, yeah, you probably have to go over the CAP &/or rotate high money players in & out of the 6 game IR. Had Lawler not been out for 6 games last year another 2/3 of his salary would have counted vs the CAP. That’s how tight it is. Get injured &, even if you’re ready to go after 2 games & you’re high priced, you sit for 6 because it doesn’t count then. Ask Eugene Lewis - he as much as said that.
I don’t disagree with you but the league has a long term deal in which the CAP increases a lot less than that over the next few years. This means you have to get innovative doing it. It’s interesting that Collaros is the one QB in the league in the midst of an existing contract that, apparently, has not offered to renegotiate. Adams, Maier, Harris, Bo, Fajardo & Kelly have all restructured theirs in order to provide some relief. 
Agreed. Nothing to see here again this year, although I will wait for the pearl clutchers to appear and comment.
This is a nothing burger. The cap was soft before and it’s irrelevant now that teams are allowed to give players unlimited amounts of money through “Promo”.
Where is the story about the players association joining the Canadian Labour Congress? That might shake things up a little
IMO it’s a dicey situation. There’ll be big pushes for salary increases & I’ve already heard from some sources I trust that it could, in the worst case scenario, see a reduction of teams in the league. We’re a ways away from the current agreement expiring but it would not surprise me if it doesn’t go smoothly. Fingers crossed.
I’m expecting worst case scenario. Full season lockout.
Not news since Winnipeg exceeds it every year.