.....has been released, as per riderville.....
I do believe I'm understating when I say this makes me very happy.
Oh, you are going to miss Thomas, without #53 in the lineup, you wont have him to kick around anymore....LOL
I am somewhat surprised. Charles Thomas actually played quite well last year in my opinion. He always had the toughest blocking assignments and I believe he was near the bottom of the O'line in holding calls last year. He certainly had a better year than both Childress, Greene and even Makowsky, who had an off year. Only O'Day played up to potential.
Next to Quarterback, left Tackle is perhaps the most difficult position on the offense to play especially on the line. Most teams that have an import or two on the line will generally position them on the left hand side. (Some people will try and argue that centre is but again, they probably never played the game).
It is extremely difficult to block the quarterback's blind side especially if the quarterback is right handed. The quarterback can seldom see the rush develop from that side like he can on the right side and step aside. The left tackle also has to "hold" those he is blocking a little longer than from the right side for this reason. And for that extra second or two, anything can happen. The left tackle is often forced to take a holding call to protect the blind side, or if he misses his block, the quarterback is likely to get blind sided, with both circumstances making the left tackle look like a bum. From the right hand side of the line, the rush is more likely to be within the quarterbacks line of vision and he can respond better to a blitz or missed block. A mobile quarterback can make the right side of the line look a lot better than it actually is.
Well if you are gonna get rid of him, now was the time with the other changes that have happened regarding the o line. They could have cut him sooner though, and given him a chance to sign with another team.... Like, its almost camp already.
Heard an unconfirmed rumour that CT would be getting 20 G's for coming to training camp, as part of his contract with Roy. Guess it would save the team some cap space if this true.
There may have been some cap issues with Thomas, but I also suspect the Riders will try to go with one less, or maybe no imports on the line this year.
Another factor is, he is a much better run blocker than a pass blocker....and as we may not run the ball this year....?
But believe it or not, Thomas was actually playing pretty well in the second half of the season last year, and at only 28-29 years old, his best years are ahead of him.
So I was a little surprised when they released him this late in the game...
I agree with Arius. The o'line was certainly more geared towards run blocking than pass blocking the past few years. It is also a lot more fun for linemen to run block than to pass block. It far more enjoyable to do the hitting instead of getting hit, so there was little protest from the o'line.
Thomas was certainly the youngest of all starting linemen last year, and he has proven himself capable. But like Arius, I think Austin is looking at the possibility of having less imports on the o'line this year. What imports a team keeps is dependent upon the Canadians on the roster. Most teams when choosing their roster take the best 20 Canadian players available and then fill in the holes with imports. It sounds simplistic, but that is generally how it works.
Although we don't know for certain, because CFL teams are extremely quiet when it comes to contract details, it is possible that there is a salary cap issue here as well. If not, I would like to have seen Thomas at training camp and if he lost his job to a younger, bigger and faster player, than so be it...
Now be careful where you do cart wheels! Main street at rush hour is very dangerous! 
So, now who are you going to beat around, now that your whipping boy is gone?
I remember Charles Thomas and a couple more riders would come into the casino where i work. They are some funny dudes, know how to have fun (none of them drank).
New management, heads roll.
I was led to believe that he was popular with team mates ... that he was well liked and was seen as an important part of the o'line even though he was on a couple of fans whipping post on occasion.
And I agree, new boss... things change.
We did not loose because of him... we lost because of Congi's crappy punts, Joseph's wonky knee, Barrett's poor decisions in a couple of games and a team that was a little too old to keep up the pace for an entire game...