High player turnover rate is a great way to deter your existing/potential fanbase from giving a rats behind about your league :thdn:
That and will produce lower quality play.
High player turnover, you mean like when a team signs a player to a long term deal, then cuts them with several years left? :cowboy:
With how CFL contracts work, why would a player want a long term deal? All it does is remove your ability to capitalize on your value rising, while still allowing the team to capitalize on your value falling. It's a straight up bad proposition.
Teams complaining about it is a total joke, as their ability to cut players in the middle of longer term deals is what created the situation in the first place.
Don’t blame them one bit but its a fact it affects the quality of the game. Football teams need stability to build on their programs.
That’s absolutely true, and it’s an easy fix: guaranteed contracts. Long term deals are a lot more valuable when they’re actually long term deals.
Another example why the league needs to regulate football operation budgets along with player salaries.
While some teams had two or three team delegates in Mobile this week, there were somewhere between 20 and 30 Roughriders scouts checking out the South team practice. The Riders, however, are being tight-lipped about what form their scouting staff will take under new general manager and head coach Chris Jones.The Riders also brought their entire coaching staff to Alabama this week, meaning the Green and White contingent numbered close to 40. All of them apparently got together at a downtown hotel and took part in a three-day scouting seminar in a downtown hotel.
It's impossible to take the league crying poor even remotely seriously with stuff like that going on.
on a 70 cent dollar no less. 40 people in Mobile for a week is 100k US in expenses plus wages.
That’s a CFL starter’s salary right there…
A little less than 12 days before CFL free agency begins; there are still many potential free agents and good/key ones; unless there are many re-signings in the next 12 days or so, there could be more player movements than I had anticipated.-Ref. November 18,2015- I am listing,per team, the key potential free agents and anticipating where they could end up.
BC:
Key potential free agents are: Nat. RB Andrew Harris, Int. LB Alex Hoffman-Ellis and Int. QB Travis Lulay. While I anticipate Harris to sign in Winnipeg, Hoffman-Ellis and Lulay should remain with BC.
Calgary:
Key potential free agents are: Int. WR Jeff Fuller,Nat. RB Jerome Messam and Int. LB/DB Keon Raymond. Except Raymond would could test free agency, Fuller and Messam should remain with Calgary.
Edmonton:
Key potential free agents are: Nat. WR Shamawd Chambers, Int. DB Otha Foster, Int. DB Aaron Grymes, Int KR/SB Kendall Lawrence, Int. LB J.C.Sherritt and Int. WR Kenny Stafford. Except Sherritt, Edmonton could lose all these players. Chambers in Hamilton or Toronto, Foster and Grymes in the NFL or Saskatchewan, Lawrence and Stafford in Saskatchewan.
Hamilton:
Still many good potential free agents; the key ones are: Int. Emanuel Davis,Nat. WR Andy Fantuz, Int DT Bryan Hall, Int. LB Erik Harris, Int. DE Justin Hickman, Nat. DT Ted Laurent, Int. K Justin Medlock and Int. LB Taylor Reed. I expect Davis to try the NFL stay with Hamilton; Fantuz will stay in Hamilton along with Hall and Harris. Hickman won't be re-signed and he should end up in Calgary or Saskatchewan. Hamilton will do the outmost to re-sign Laurent; if they can't I say that he will end up in Saskatchewan. Wedlock and Reed should remain in Hamilton.
Montreal:
Key potential free agents are: Nat. OT Josh Bourke, Nat. WR Samuel Giguère, Int. KR/RB Stefan Logan and Int. LB Winston Venable. Bourke and Giguère will remain in Montreal. Logan is gone. I say he will end up in Calgary. If Venable is not re-signed, I say he will end up in Calgary.
Ottawa:
Key potential free agents are: Nat. DE Justin Capicciotti and Nat. DT Keith Shologan. They are gone. Capacitor in BC or Calgary and Shologan in Saskatchewan.
Saskatchewan:
Key potential free agents are: Nat. SB Chris Getzlaf, Int. WR Ryan Smith and OL Corey Watman. Getzlaf should remain in Saskatchewan. Smith could be gone to Calgary or Winnipeg. If unsigned, Watman will sign with BC or Calgary.
Toronto:
Definitely the team with the most top potential free agents; the key ones are: Int. DT Euclid Cummings, Nat. S Jermaine Gabriel, Nat. LB Corey Greenwood, Int. QB Trevor Harris, Nat. DT Cleyon Laing, Int. DE Tristan Okpalaugo, Int. WR/KR Chad Owens, Int. K Swayze Waters and Int. RB Brandon Whitaker. Toronto will do the outmost to re-sign these players and I think they will,although there could be a few exceptions. One exception is Harris, but where could he go. Ottawa? Saskatchewan? I say he will remain in Toronto. Cummings and Laing could try the NFL. If Saskatchewan can't sign Ted Laurent, they will try to sign Laing.
Winnipeg:
Only key potential free agent is Nick Moore who is gone. Where? Only Calgary comes to mind.
In 12 days from now we begin to have answers to our questions/anticipations.
Richard
It does make a more entertaining off season .
You might be able to fix a team overnight like the Redblacks did last season .
....I expect a lot of player movement on Feb. 9th. and that clubs will improve their overall roster with some key signings..some will suffer a few losses..Obviously the clubs that are flush with cash will be benefitting the most...Money is not always the motivating factor but it would be a wrong headed notion to think that it won't be...It's going to be a very interesting free agency in comparison to other years, some elation on some clubs and angst on others.. Chips will fall where they may.
I am extremely surprised that there still remain,a week before free agency begins, so many key and good potential free agents. All the teams have to work within the max. cap of $5.1 millions in 2016 and I wonder where these key players will end up; yes, some teams may have more flexibility than other, but I don't foresee any one team being able to afford or having the flexibility to sign 2 or 3 key free agents,i.e. 2 or 3 players earning close to $200,000 each. Some teams may prove me wrong and some decisions will have been made at this time next week.
At this time teams that I consider having flexibility are: Saskatchewan with the releases of Weston Dressler and John Chick; let's not forget tough that they have added INT. WR Price and INT. DE Lemon. The reduction of the salary of Darion Durant has added roughly $100,000 in flexibility.. Calgary should have flexibility since retirement of Cornish and release of Simpson. Depending what happen with their own potential free agents, Edmonton, Hamilton and Toronto could have more flexibility. Winnipeg can afford Andrew Harris. Montreal does not have flexibility,unless they can't re-sign Josh Bourke, Samuel Giguère and Winston Venable. Ottawa and BC should be quiet.
I still expect some re-signings before next Tuesday.
Richard
Starting to look like collusion
See Chris Walby on Twitter earlier today, congratulating Winnipeg on signing Andrew Harris? What have you heard, Chris? :?
Edit: He now says his source must have meant Macho Harris. :lol:
absolutely Desjardins...
CFL News ?@CFL_News
Desjardins laments impact flood of free agents has on roster continuity, ability 2 promote players 2 ticket-buying public - @HolderGord #CFL
Collusion in what way? I don't think teams around the league are in cahoots freezing out free agents out of big money deals. We had that massive coaching carousel this offseason and if anything I think there are a few guys that will feel the pull to their former coaches. I think a lot of us are kind of expecting at least a few Esks to follow Jones to the Riders as an example. We've already seen Dressler and Chick drawn to former coaches in LaPo and Austin.
As for the others, I think there are a couple of factors. One is the exchange on the dollar. I'm sure a number of players have gotten the best offer they will get to resign but will wait to see if they can get a bit more on the open market elsewhere. But given some of the names available and when you consider some top tier Nationals could be in line for big deals, I think a lot of players won't get the deals they are hoping for. That said, there are a couple of teams that will have some money to spend and a lot of holes to fill and another team moving into a new facility that may look to make headlines.
The other factor at play here IMO is that it's essentially the first FA period after the CBA allowed 1 yr deals and this a bit of a feeling out period as to how things are going to go moving forward. GMs are looking at that massive list of FAs and are probably holding off on some of their offers to their own FAs and agents are probably telling their clients to pocket any offers and at least explore if there's something better out there considering how many teams are facing massive roster holes. Any time there's a change to the way contracts are done and the salary cap structure there's bound to be a year or two where everyone tries to get a lay of the land.
Most actual potential free agents are players that were signed in 2014 or before,for a few; the 2014 Collective agreement saw the max. cap increasing from $4.4 millions to $5.0 millions,resulting in many players re-signing or signing deals for 2 or 3 years. This is the main reason why there are so many potential free agents this year; yes, amongst the potential free agents are veterans who signed a one-year agreement in 2015 but they are the minority. All rookies signed in 2015 had to sign for a minimum of 2 years.
Richard
Taking into consideration the players that have been released, the ones that have re-signed,the ones that have retired and the ones that have signed with NFL teams, there are still 137 potential free agents,6 days before opening of free agency.
Hamilton and Toronto have the most potential free agents,respectively 31 and 21, whereas Winnipeg and Montreal have the least,respectively 9 and 10.
Richard
If most teams end up significantly underspending versus the cap then an argument can be made for collusion; but hard to make until then unless teams are stupid enough to sign nobody once free agency starts and any offers for a given player are identical (like the MLB idiots did back in the day).
I think everyone expects Andrew Harris to be a Bomber. This will also pave the way for Wally to cut Murray-Lawrence as he no longer needs a NAT backup at at tail. AT QB I’m thinking Jennings is the new guy. If Travis takes a big paycut he stays, if not he’s gone and I’m not sure who takes him, possibly the first team to have an injury in Week 3. Someone could get a nice hidden gem in Courtney Taylor.
Fuller is undervalued. If he was healthy for 18 games he would have shown what a beast he is. I think Messam could go on the market to get a price and bring it back to Huf to match. We’ll see. Interested to see where Freddie Bishop ends up.
Agree with Chambers headed east. Stafford I have a strong hunch to the Riders, perhaps Aaron Grymes as well. How’s John White’s foot? If he’s healthy he’s a Rider. Print that.
No idea where Laurent goes but he will be the first domino next Tuesday. I’ll be surprised if he’s not. Fantuz probably stays, as well as Justin ‘predictive text’ Wedlock. 
I can’t see Bourke nor Giguere moving neither.
Shologan is another where I believe that he will get his price on the market and take it back to Marcel to match. He loves it in Ottawa. Although Chris Jones is on record that he wants a NAT at nose (and he aint talkin’ bout Connop). Jovon and Thompson in the secondary, likely one stays and one goes. Jovon had a rough 2014 but bounced back big time last year. Still he’s quite a bit older than Thompson.
I will be surprised if Jones keeps ANY of these guys regardless if they’re any good or not, unless he hangs onto a NAT for depth since the cupboard is dust bare. I will be absolutely floored if Getzlaf stays. Sask could be a big player for Laurent as Jones wants a NAT at DT and he doesn’t have one. If he doesn’t land Laurent, Shologan could be a plan B. Expect Xavier Fulton to be gone too. Not sure where he would end up but if I were Buono I’d be calling.
Barker will be the big buyer since the Grey Cup in his owner’s park he will be handed a fat checkbook. I expect him to pad his defense. A bit surprised that he didn’t get Chick (because he and Foley work well together). Keon Raymond is my pick to be an Argo, perhaps Jovon Johnson. Weldon Brown or Terrell Maze could end up there before camp too. What about Freddie Bishop?
Perhaps to Ottawa. If they lose one of Capicciotti or Shologan, they could start another NAT receiver and go INT on D-line. Matt Carter retired too so Ottawa’s only NAT receiver is Sinopoli no? And I would think that coming off injury Moore would be a bit cheaper than Shamaud. Just a thought. Demond Washington could also move, but not sure where.