Did he actually know that the 1+1 contract was the norm? Some how I don't believe he did. It would be at no advanatage to him to sign a longer ontract because no contracts are guarenteed. If he did sign such a ontract you would assume that the monitary compensation would be more then that of a first year apprentice tradesmen.He got scammed into signing his contract... There is no way he would sign that contract if he knew there was a better option. The Tigercats did not do anything illegal, but they definately took advantge of his lack of knowing. i'd be interested to see of how many other cfl players signed similar contractsto williams. Chances are most of them have been cut and are long gone.... but it would be interesting to see if the Cats signeda few layers that season to such contracts.
[b]Mr. Bungle wrote: Did he actually know that the 1+1 contract was the norm? Some how I don't believe he did[/b]If the Cats did not offer the standard 1+1 the contract would have been voided by the CFLPA, and management (Mitchell I believe) recently commented that they have documentation revealing that the two year deal was formally discussed.
Chris made a mistake and needs to accept responsibility for it.
that being said, he remains my favorite player in the league, and I will still wear my #80 jersey proudly to home games this season regardless if he shows up or sits out.
Why would he agree to that lol. Did he not realize that if he wasn't a star by year two that he would be cut just like the majority of import players that wander the league.Very very few import players come to the CFL without an eye on going back to the NFL... I'm sure that even Dominic Rhodes is delussioal enough to think that he will tear up the cfl and that an NFL team will take a flyer on him. Little does he know, that he won't even make it out of training camp.
[b]Mr. Bungle wrote: Why would he agree to that lol. Did he not realize that if he wasn't a star by year two that he would be cut just like the majority of import players that wander the league[/b]most likely a result of poor representation. From what I gather, Chris is no longer affiliated with the agent who negotiated the regretful original deal, and is currently being repped by Dan Vertlieb of the Core Sports Group.
He should sue his former agent... That misstep may end up costing him millons. his age plays a huge factor in this. He is a kick returner and 30 is considered old. The lost year of 2013 will represent and entire quarter of what he has left in his career and the NFl will probably not even be interested next year because he will be too old. Heaven forbid he gets hurt this year...
Well you are also assuming the NFL is even interested now. At 5-7 in reality and 155, I don’t think so just for kick return duties any more.
I doubt he would be trying to get out of his contract this badly if there had been no interest shown in him.
You may be right, they may have had inquiries about his availability from several NFL teams. Then again, he could be getting advice from an eager agent who thinks he can cash in on his clients CFL success into a nice little NFL payday for himself and the player.
when all is said and done, there is no way williams will ever have much of an NFL career.
Stephan Logan hasn't had much of an NFL career either ....but he's made a couple of million dollars.Logan only had to do one year in the CFL and then got his freedom. He only got four years in the nfl and now it appears that his career is over. To compare that to Wiliams.. ogan had a 5 year career in football, and now he is toast,he is 32 years old btw. williams is now about to enter year three of his career. His career will be over in a couple ,three years (maybe four years if he is lucky) Why is he being forced to waste his time in a league where he has already proven that there is nothing more he can accomplish. He destroyed the league record by it's season's mid point. he probablly was just taking it easy the last half of the season to avoid injury playing on a horrible football team.
You’re saying Williams will be over the hill at 27 - he’s only 25 now.
How many years does the average kick returner/running back last in either the cfl or the nfl? Age has very little to do with it. it is measured more in years of service. Players like Weston Dressler and Tristan Jackson have been removed from their kick returning duties in order to save their bodies so that their bodies can be saved for less punishing duties....Chris Williams future in football is either as a kick returner in the NFL or a reciever in the CFL. If he stays in the cfl, he would be a fool to continue returning kicks... Could you imagine how good the Riders return game would be with both Jackson and dressler recieving kicks?.. I can promise you, that you will see neither one of them doing many returns this season. Maybe in a crutial game with playoff implications, but otherwise you won't. The reality is that there is a very good possibility that Chris Williams will never play another regular season game of football ever again. these guys are chewed up and spit out way more then any other position in any other sport. Did anyone think that kenton keith would barely see the field ever again after his infamous rant in the parking lot?
Not to beat a dead horse… but i will mention their names again…Ezra Landry, Dominic Dorsey… dorsey career ended at 27… Landry was about the same age…
these guys are treated like dog meat and have very little to show for getting jacked up constantly. The cats should let wiliams go, it is the right thing to do… maybe they coud sign a gentlemens agreement on a contract if he ends up coming back next year.
and again, he passed ONE league record by ONE td. He did not DESTROY anything. The rest of his stats were just plain OK
Don’t confuse aspiration and inspiration with realisation.
One more year would not hurt his stock or status all the same. If he has an agent pushing him along with a team of advisors, he can certainly increase his stock and make this final season in the CFL, should he decide it, to be his “launch” season for NFL tryouts.
Even so I don’t see him being used effectively in the NFL given the bigger competition that is every bit or even more skilled and talented as is Chris Williams.
Stefan Logan and others got into the NFL BEFORE the kickoff line was moved back to the 35 yard line such that now the number of kick returns has been lowered drastically.
Also wedge blocking, still allowed in the CFL, is outlawed in the NFL.
These rules changes were game changers for the desirability and teams’ needs for strictly a return man.
Now teams are moving more in the direction of picking up players for the return game who are otherwise more versatile.
For punt returns they are just using more a backup receiver with good hands, for most punts are either touchbacks or fair caught and all the teams want is certain possession versus the risk of a fumble or muff on a return.
For kick returns, they are using the fastest guy who is otherwise reliable with the hands and his head.
The days of the dangerous return man as often just plainly a fast guy and body to keep others off the field are just about given that teams are just not kicking to such players enough to put themselves in a position of risk.
Teams have shifted that roster spot to someone far more versatile for use at his position be it as a backup on offence or defence.
Disagree completely. Look, even with the rule changes on kicking, NFL teams are still looking for that guy who has the speed and agility to occasionally break one. Williams has shown he can do that. Can he contribute as a back up receiver? Yes. Is he too small? No. The bengals are still employing former Als receiver Andrew Hawkins who’s listed at 5’7" and caught 51 passes last year for over 500 yards and 6 TDs. Teams don’t utilize a return specialist anymore? What would you call former CFLer Marcus Thigpen with the Dolphins, well he didn’t in 2012 but may in 2013 without Reggie Bush around. He’s entirely a returner and doesn’t figure much into the RB rotation. If he’s good enough a well coached team will find a way to utilize his talent. The rule changes haven’t made most teams convert to some guy who can just catch a fair ball. Teams have just changed the type of player they are looking for. Williams could very well fit the bill for a number of NFL teams.
Again, disagree. A big year in the CFL would definitely increase his stock. But if he suffers a concussion or injures an ankle or knee that could close his NFL window big time or significantly impact the $ figure on any contract. There’s significant risk/reward.
Its the occasional player like this that I sometimes wonder if the CFL should consider a transfer window like they have in soccer. No window like they had before where NFL teams could poach option year players for nothing, but instead if an NFL team really wanted a particular player they could pay a transfer fee, say 4 or 5 x time guys salary. Considering that CFL players really haven’t gotten much in terms of bonus money in their deals, if you make the transfer payment high enough and limit it to option year players only, it’d be a pretty rare occurrence. Rather than deal with the headache of a disgruntled player, the Ticats could’ve pocketed some cash under such an arrangement, and if the rules under such a transfer agreement were that the players CFL contract was frozen during his NFL tryout, he would then remain Ticats property on his return to the CFL. I know a lot of fans won’t like the idea but its a way to keep some of these whiny players off the CFL news headlines at least.
Yes wolverine, maybe an option window as you explain is something that might do the trick. Interesting idea.
Personally I like it because 1. it takes away the players' agents ability to fill up their client's heads with notions the NFL is waiting and convince them to complain publicly and/or hold out or pull any other public stunts. It's a multibillion dollar industry, so if an NFL team really wanted you they should have no problem paying a small fee to get you. 2. at the same time it a player may prefer to play out his final CFL contract year because having to pay a transfer fee will undoubtedly affect any bonus or salary the NFL team might offer the player in a contract so they may prefer to take the chance of playing out the year in hopes of getting a better deal as an unrestricted FA. No more player complaints, no delusions of grandeur. And I don't think it reflects poorly on the CFL is being supported by big brother anymore, not with the TV ratings and new TV deal, strong attendance figures in most markets, etc. No one criticizes soccer when players are bought and sold between leagues. Just business.
The CFL tried to negotiate something with the NFL for option/transfer of players and the NFL was not interested. There is more to this than just Chris Williams. He won’t get his release…