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Lawless: Bombers need to sign Ben Heenan

gbill2004

By gbill2004
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gbill2004 Newbie

gbill2004

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Posted

Kyle Walters can try and fix a huge mistake this off-season but it will take money. Lots of it.

The Blue Bombers are still haunted by former GM Joe Mack’s inexplicable decision to let Brendon LaBatte reach free agency and sign with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. But, there’s a path to redemption and its name is Ben Heenan.

LaBatte, as most Bombers fans are painfully aware, is among the best interior linemen in the CFL and was a leading factor in the Riders’ Grey Cup win last season. He should have been a Bomber for life, but Mack let him walk and Riders GM Brendan Taman was waiting with open arms.

Pro sports is kind of like romance. There are no rules when it comes to getting the player a GM wants. Oh, and turnabout is definitely fair play.

Which brings us to Walters and potential free agent and current Riders non-import tackle Heenan. Go get him, Kyle.

Pile up the money. Make him the highest-paid offensive lineman in the CFL. Get Heenan to trade green for blue. Did we mention money? Yeah, give it to him. Lots of it.

Taman will try to get Heenan to sign long before free agency, but as we saw this summer when he signed Weston Dressler coming out of the NFL, the Riders GM must keep balance in his locker-room and making Heenan his highest-priced player after quarterback Darian Durant will be tough to justify.

But Walters can offer Heenan everything and anything but Drew Willy’s salary. And Willy can campaign, too. Don’t think he wouldn’t like to see this battleship standing on his line.

Heenan could make Bombers fans forget LaBatte — maybe even Mack. Okay, the last part is a stretch, but signing Heenan could cure a lot of ills.

The Bombers offensive line is awful. Fixing the line, gaining a running attack and most importantly, protecting Willy, is priority No. 1 for Walters this off-season. A Canadian playing tackle is rare enough in the CFL. One with all-star potential is like the Hope Diamond. They just don’t come along that often.

Every GM in the CFL will want to take a crack at Heenan if he gets to the market. And for a team like the Bombers, he’s a game changer.

Walters needs to take a play out of Taman’s playbook from the winter of 2011-12 when he remade the Riders offensive line with two quick strikes in free agency, a trade and draft. Taman signed LaBatte and Dominic Picard in free agency, traded for Xavier Fulton and drafted Heenan. Voila! The best O-line in the league.

If Walters could snag Heenan and Tyler Holmes out of Toronto, he’d be well on his way to fixing his biggest issue. Easy to say but harder to do. Taman won’t want to let Heenan go and Jim Barker in Toronto will be doing his best to keep Holmes.

This off-season will be the first of the new CBA and rising salary cap. Agents will want their players to test the market. Most of the new money will go to quarterbacks and Canadian offensive lineman. Heenan will be at the top of the class.

“He’s going to hit the mother lode. The highest-paid offensive linemen in the league are older Canadian guys like Josh Bourque in Montreal. If you’re going to ply an old guy $200,000 or so, why wouldn’t you pay a young guy like Heenan, who can really play, even more?” said one CFL GM on Friday.

“The cap is going up and there aren’t many quarterback deals coming up. All the money this winter is going to go to offensive lineman and Heenan is at the top of the list. He should get at least $250,000. Maybe more.”

Riders supporters will immediately point to the fact Heenan was born in Regina, played his CIS football at Saskatchewan and is as homegrown as the wheat sprouting on the back 40. Yup.

All things being equal, Heenan likely isn’t going anywhere. And Taman will be doing everything in his power to get his prized hog locked up long before February and free agency rolls along.

So, Walters needs to tilt the table. And the only way to do this is with cold hard cash. As we know in Canada, there are lots of colours of money and it doesn’t only have to be green. Winnipeg is hosting the Grey Cup next season and there will be lots of cash streaming into the franchise.

Heenan might be a bit of a pipe dream. Holmes, however, has to be looking around the landscape in Toronto and wondering if the grass isn’t greener somewhere else.

A year ago the Bombers didn’t have a chance in free agency. The reputation of the franchise was in tatters and no one knew how the new regime would turn out. Now they have Willy, a coach in Mike O’Shea that players want to play for, the best stadium in the league and Grey Cup money to spend.

So spend it, Mr. Walters.

gary.lawless@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @garylawless

Best of the potential free-agent hogs

Expect Blue Bombers GM Kyle Walters to throw some money at his offensive line

in the off-season. Here are the non-import offensive linemen currently on CFL

rosters due to become free agents in February:

Pascal Baillargeon, Montreal: Two torn ACLs, may retire

Jake Piotrowoski, Montreal: Not a starter to this point.

Joe Eppele, Ottawa: Multiple shoulder surgeries, likely to retire.

Alexander Krausnick, Ottawa: Centre who is likely best suited to be a sixth man. Borderline CFL starter potential.

Tyler Holmes, Toronto: Could potentially be tried as a tackle. Has a chance to be an all-star and is already a solid starter.

Tim O’Neill, Hamilton: Thirty-four-year-old can start and also serve as backup. Limited, but knows how to get by.

Greg Wojt, Hamilton: Shoulder injury cost him this season, has started and been an all star.

Gord Hinse, Winnipeg: Backup, sixth or seventh man.

Dan Clark, Saskatchewan: Best role is likely as sixth man. Got the chance to start and struggled.

Ben Heenan, Saskatchewan: Tackle is best of the bunch, will be a perennial all-star.

Matt O’Donnell, Edmonton: Big body who struggles at times, but you can’t teach size. Borderline CFL starter right now but will likely get a decent contract and the chance to become a regular.

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max power
max power

So first he takes a cheap shot at Mack saying how dumb it was for him to let Labatte go to FA, and then the rest of the article is assuming the Riders do the exact same thing?

johnzo
johnzo

Sweet zombie Jesus this is way beyond stupid.   If someone wants to go to free agency, you can't stop them.  That's why they call it free agency.

Ripper
Ripper

A few comments on your post. First of all, I live in the same community that Brendan is from and from what I've been told, he really liked Winnipeg. Its only a 4 1/2 hr drive from here. Rumours they w

dmillerywg Newbie

dmillerywg

Posted
Posted

Players without a good system won't succeed either just ask Doug Brown he wrote an article about CAL and their systems and schemes...

 

At this point the Bombers are running a very unique system on D and generally it has worked even with some weak spots...

 

However their Offensive System has been letting them down.... Marcel B. needs to scrap whatever playcalling he has ... he stinks at calling a game.

 

Maybe Buck P. could talk over as OC ???

 

On One player will Not turn this around ... it more of a coaching problem IMO...

 

forget Ben Heenan can we trade for Calgary's Coaches or sign them in free agency ?

Tracker Grand Master

Tracker

Posted
Posted

I expect Mr. Heenan to be offered a high paying off-field "job" with a private firm  which will allow the Riders to keep under the cap. It has happened before and will happen again.

Goalie Grand Master

Goalie

Posted
Posted

If Heenan makes it to free agency, gotta try but highly doubt he does. Only other non injured non retired player there would be Holmes who might/is an upgrade at guard. Very rare to fix your oline via free agency, the good ones never make it to free agency, and if they do, it's cuz they are wanting to go closer to home or try the NFL or something like that. Guess i can't say no chance but maybe 1 in a million that heenan makes it to free agency. SO yup, I'm saying theres a chance. 

Goalie Grand Master

Goalie

Posted
Posted

Do some of you think this is like the NHL trade deadline where TSN has 10 hours of coverage or something? Trades are rarely to never made in the CFL at this time of year, only if teams are completely out of it and guess what, for as bad as we are, for as little hope as it seems right now, If bc loses tomorrow, hell even if they win, we still aren't completely out of it. 

 

Just in.. Blue bombers trade their crappy oline to another team who is blind for draft picks? Bullcrap, Who the hell would want some of our guys and the guys you would actually get more than a late round draft pick for, Well, those are guys we shouldn't be moving. 

iso_55 Newbie

iso_55

Posted
Posted

Gee Calgary coaches....I guess DelMonaco maybe wasn't as big a problem that people made him out to be.

Coaches IQ rise with talent. Look at our line. If Albert Einstein was an OL coach he'd be a high school dropout. In Calgary DelMonaco is working on his doctorate. 

Goalie Grand Master

Goalie

Posted
Posted

Ironically, Heenan, he's good yes but he was the guy that got clean beat by Lemon today on the last play of the game in the rider stamps game, Sunseri sacked on that play cuz Heenan completely whiffed on Lemon. 

 

Oh yeah, if heenan makes it to free agency and the bombers manage to sign him, walters should be given a lifetime extension with the team because that would be the biggest i dunno what ever, Sask boy taken 1st overall leaves sask to sign in Winnipeg. 

Goalie Grand Master

Goalie

Posted
Posted

If heenan makes it to free agency, i say our chances are as good as anyone elses, Perhaps if Wylie is here next season, that plays a factor in guys decision to come here.Wylie has a good reputation,  come here to learn under a guy who is very well respected in the football world. Couldn't hurt our chances thats for sure. Holmes too, upgrade on one of the guard positions for sure, Tackle my ass, he's a guard, gotta try for sure. 

Atomic Experienced

Atomic

Posted
Posted

Taman worships OL...  Heenan is not going anywhere

I think the more realistic situation is the Riders dump Picard to afford Heenan. Then we can pick up Picard and Tim O'neill and continue on with a terrible OL. It's the Bomber way.

Ripper Newbie

Ripper

Posted
Posted

 

Taman worships OL...  Heenan is not going anywhere

I think the more realistic situation is the Riders dump Picard to afford Heenan. Then we can pick up Picard and Tim O'neill and continue on with a terrible OL. It's the Bomber way.

 

This theory has merit. With younger and cheaper replacements at center in Clack and Watman, Picard could be a guy that gets moved. As far as Heenan, I'd fall off my chair if he doesn't sign here.

James Newbie

James

Posted
Posted

Theres a strong Draft coming up... I think the best way to fix the O-line is draft the best OL available and just find a couple dominant Americans.

 

If Heenan does hit FA, obviously you throw a truck load of cash at him, But I sincerely doubt that happens, And if he does hit FA, there will be 8 other teams trying to sign him so there's still no guarantee that he comes here anyway.

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