Stampeders release linebacker Simmons after Twitter rant
As the Jasper Simmons saga came to an end Tuesday, his former teammates made their feelings abundantly clear.
“Jasper’s a very good player and, unfortunately, sometimes his head gets in his way, I guess,” Calgary Stampeders quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell said after the team released the linebacker, who, along with his agent, blasted the club on social media on the weekend over his lack of playing time.
"He’s a guy who should be on a field, he’s a good enough player, but right now he wasn’t going to crack this lineup. If you don’t want to play for the best organization because of that, then you have to go somewhere else.
“I understand if those guys are out there getting toasted, if those guys are missing tackles, but they’ve been playing great. ( Juwan) Simpson’s the No. 1 leader on this football team and ( Deron) Mayo’s been playing outstanding.”
Simmons had been acquired in a trade with Ottawa before the start of this season.
“Jasper came in a couple of weeks ago and chatted with me,” said Stamps head coach/ GM John Hufnagel, “and I said ‘ give me a couple of weeks.’ And during that time, I tried to make a trade but there were no takers. With what occurred over the weekend, it was best just to move on.
“It really doesn’t matter if I was disappointed or not. I know Maleki Harris is very excited because he’s the next man up.”
It was just prior to the kickoff of the Calgary- Ottawa game on Saturday that Simmons’ agent took to Twitter and roasted the Stamps. Simmons, who turns 26 today, added fuel to the growing fire. He cited his family as a reason for wanting more playing time.
“I’m not really on Twitter so I don’t know what all happened this weekend,” said Simpson after Tuesday’s practice. “I think he’s a great player. He can help somebody and I wish him the best of luck.
“You have to come in and understand what this game is all about. It’s definitely a business. But, you know, hey, family is everything and you can’t knock a man for feeling
People make bad choices, people say things they shouldn’t say and you have to handle the repercussions.
how he feels about his family.”
“People make bad choices, people say things they shouldn’t say and you have to handle the repercussions,” said Mitchell, who also waded into the social media firestorm.
“Honestly, it wasn’t against him,” he continued. "I don’t care if you play for my team or not, you’re not going to bash my teammates, you’re not going to bash my organization, the team I play for. I’m going to step up for the team I play for, especially an organization that I know is top in the league.
“Any other team looking at that says, OK, if we pick you up and you don’t start, you’re just going to say the same thing. It’ll be interesting to see what team takes him now.”
Potential suitors for Simmons include Saskatchewan, Winnipeg and B. C.
One wonders how it would have played out in the locker- room had Simmons stuck around.
“I don’t think that would have been a problem, truthfully,” said Hufnagel. “During the two weeks, he practised hard and did everything he could to help his teammates win. It was a soap opera on the weekend, it’s unfortunate, but I wish Jasper good wishes. He’s a good football player.”
Interestingly, Stamps slotback Marquay McDaniel was embroiled in a heated Twitter conversation of his own with Ottawa receiver Maurice Price, the guy Calgary traded for Simmons.
“I held back,” McDaniel said with a smile. “I had some ammo. But that’s not me. I said what I had to say. He took a shot, I’m going to take a shot and leave it at that. It was all in fun for me.
“I had no problem with Mo. I just think my situation when I left Hamilton, I had nothing bad to say about Hamilton. Saw some quotes from him in the paper both games ... when you’re a ‘ you’ guy, I don’t like that type of person. Why say anything bad about the organization? I just think when you leave, just leave. Just go.”