what is likely going to happen in 2014 for the CFL

CFL Talk
#1

We've all (or most of us) have been around watching the CFL long enough to know what to expect in the upcoming season.

as much as the Eskimo Fans are hoping for a rebound in 2014 from a dismal 4-14 season, the odds of it happening aren't too good.

seeing as Calgary, B.C. and Saskatchewan are all going to be good teams again the Eskimos are going to have a very difficult time breaking out of the Cellar..

Their talent levels are not quite at the same level as the good teams, especially in their Canadian talent.

the East can be hard to predict with so many changes going on..

Nobody can say for sure if Toronto or Montreal will be good. Toronto does have Ricky Ray however they did lose their Defensive Coordinator and a few other Coaches.

Montreal is likely going to be starting 2014 with a new Starting QB for the first time since Tracy Ham Retired.

Hamilton is the most solid team of all 4 in the East, with the fewest changes coming, and unless they totally blow things up during the off season, they can only get better.

now as far as the good teams in West.

what determines who will finish 1st to 3rd will be who suffers the least amount of Damage from Free Agency and the Expansion Draft.

if the Riders can either get back Dressler and/or Sheets they could have very few problems. However, if they have to Replace Sheets then there will be some question marks in the Backfield.

Calgary did lose their most consistent QB to the RedBlacks, but their running game with Cornish will help adjust that.

they have a lot of Depth, but can they keep things going strong?

B.C. has made some changes with coaching and some free agents but Wally will not allow the Lions to suffer too long. i expect them to make a good challenge in the West again.

#2

players strike is going to happen. There wont even be a season.

#3

Clip and save.

#4

The REDBLACKS will have a good team and do well, they will be competitive from day one but will lose some close games because of players not playing together before. They will make a lot of money from their Private Suites and Box Seats and attendance will be good.
Hamilton will do well at the new stadium too and will sell their Private Suites and Box Seats.

We will still be talking about what's going to happen with the Argos next year at this time. Braley will still be looking for a buyer and we will be arguing over the same old stuff next year. Attendance will drop and their fans will still blame the RC as the problem, others will blame management for not marketing.

Montreal will struggle to find a replacement for Cavillo and the fans will begin to drift away. Montreal has to have a winner.
Winnipeg will struggle to but their fans will stick with them because of the new stadium.

The thread "CFL serious about a team in the Atlantic Provinces" will be 1,000 pages long and we will be bringing up the same lame arguments. We will be still talking about it 10 season from now.

#5

Not a chance, my friend. There will absolutely NOT be any kind of strike. The CFLPA is far too weak for that. A new labour deal will be brutally one sided in favour of the eight ownership groups with the CFLPA mumbling something about "the best we could have hoped for".

Expect a 15% TO 20% increase for the salary cap going from $4.4M to something in the range of $5M to $5.3M. Meanwhile the new television deal goes from $1.875M per team to $4.77M per team.

Great deal for the ownership groups - - especially those that own TWO teams. WIll be interesting to see which teams reinvest the additional profit back into the team and which teams choose to stuff the additional profit into their owner`s pocket.

#6

What will happen on the field is definitely hard to tell before FA even comes around, which QB's(Collaros the most likely) move over to Bomberland is not yet decided along with which vets move to Ottawa.
Plus the FA market is still going to thin out a lot in the next month and retirements are still coming the above mentioned likely retirement of AC, the first time in like 20 years the CFL doesn't have AC on a roster.
Also the coaching carousel hasn't ended yet with some spots still open, Bombers DC, Als OC, Argos STC being 3 key positions yet to be filled.

Off the field, a new 4-6 year CBA will be reached, likely in late May/early June with the SMS hitting a ceilling between 4.8-5.2M in '14, it'll be a huge year with 9 teams again and 2 new/rebuilt stadiums. There will be a major stadium announcement for a new(to the CFL at least) CFL stadium in '14(not the new Sask stadium), although if it's the construction of a new stadium and not say the Argos moving to BMO ground breaking probably won't happen until at least '15.

The CFL has never had a lockout, and don't expect that to change now. People simply see that other leagues do so the CFL must also have a lockout/strike, except the CFL/PA actually have a good relationship and will get a deal done.

#7

Well I am sure David Braley will be the one owner in the league that would be trying to stuff his pockets up with the most amount of cash. While the lions/Argos will suffer desperately needing that extra money to be reinvested into there teams. I just can't wait for David Braley to finally leave this league in 2016 and hope to bring in owners that won't be as cheap and selfish as Braley has been through out the years. Then we could officially see this league expand and grow to a brighter future.

#8

this is by far the most idiotic thing that has been said on this forum in a very long time :lol:

#9

I thought there was no 2014 season and it was resuming in 2015

#10

I tend to think there is a high probability of at least a shortened season...could be a strike, could be a lockout....which could really cripple the league. I am hoping that they will just play under the existing conditions of the contract if negotiations are not completed...it has happened before. If the league refuses to budge, why wouldn't there be a strike?

#11

Ottawa and Hamilton will realize almost at once that their stadiums are too small. Edmonton will have somewhat of a resurgence but will still not be up to scratch. Calgary will wish they had not let Kevin Glenn get away but will see flashes of brilliance from Bo Levi Mitchell. Winnipeg will have Zack Collaros at QB and realize that he's not the whole answer to their problems. The AC era will come to an end in Montreal and Troy Smith will take up the slack fairly well. BC will roll along as usual with WB at the helm but not impress or disappoint. Saskatchewan will continue to have the best fans in the league. Toronto will continue to win but no one will notice.

Have I forgotten anyone?

#12

No they don't need bigger stadiums, Hamilton averaged 23,000 over the past few years and that was with 10% freebies. You build to your market. Why build a large stadium and fill it with 23k? Of course there will be a lot of fans in the first couple of years but the novelty will wear off.
They did the right thing in putting in Private Suites and Club seats, if they sell out the premium seats plus the regular seats it's the equivalent of 30k anyway.

#13

As I said earlier, the CFLPA is laughable. The owners realize they've got a bunch of puppets in the CFLPA and that a new deal will be as simple as a nod and a handshake.

The CFLPA leadership gets nice cush jobs with fat salaries and in return they do as their told by the CFL owners. That's why there's ZERO chance of any kind of work stoppage.

#14

I dooubt there will be a work stoopage as well and the cap raise will be modest this time around with the CFLPA not prepared to deal with the owners on this front.
The TV coverage has had a huge affect on team and league sponsor money as well as Ottawa and Hamilton seeing major increse in revenue for games like Winnipeg with the sell out of the suites and club boxes.
Again the CFLPA will not be prepared to bargain with both of these little talked about major boost in income.

Hopefully the CFLPA will get themsevles up to date and be able to negotiate when the next CBA comes about.
Get there figures in order not just for a 2 million dollar increse in TV $$$ but the other.

They should be, but probably won't be, prepared to get the players Grey Cup game bonuses raised to coincide with the major increase in $$$ made from the Grey Cup now.

#15

I dare you to say this personally to CFLPA President Mike Morreale and VP's Marwan Hage and Jay McNeil. :smiley:

#16

I agree 100% about the suites, club box, and VIP lounges. People who are complaining about the lack of seating in the stadiums are not up to date with just how much money is made off of the sail of suites etc.
Hamilton basically goes from non to selling out a bunch.
Ottawa business and well off will also be buying up the suites just like in Winnipeg.
The Riders have quitely made a nice investment of 17Million for Mosaic upgrades that include quality theatre style end zone seats from beaten up old benches. What now one knows is that each of theses scectional seating comes with a suite at the top of each.
Montreal upgraded to 25K seating and although they do not sell out they get 3K extra fans per games.
As for the suites that they added, does anyone know how the sale of the suites have gone? Are they sold out or close to it?

#17
:cowboy: ight the cigars another very great season all around for the CFL. Adding another Grey Cup Champ as team of the year would be a huge bonus
#18

What if the REDBLACKS make the playoffs?

#19

Well that will be because Area_51 and 1991Argo see it as Braley's and Rudges fault, regardless. :wink:

#20

they are not pushovers, they have simply always known there was no getting significantly more money because the league was on the brink of collapse. It is not now.
They could have squeezed more out, and there would have been little interest in ownership. They were simply reasonable, something most unions fall short on.