Durant has moved on with the Alouettes
Rider chapter of his life closed, QB now ready to get the season started
MONTREAL Montreal Alouettes quarterback Darian Durant isn’t looking for closure from Thursday’s CFL game against the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
Durant has already dealt with the emotions and everything else that surfaced on Jan. 13 when he was traded by Saskatchewan to Montreal for two draft picks after talks on a contract extension broke down.
“It’s really just an opportunity to start off the season the right way,’’ Durant said Wednesday after Montreal’s walk-through at Olympic Stadium.
“I’ve pretty much closed my chapter with Saskatchewan. I’m ready to move on and get the season started with the Montreal Alouettes. This is my new team with a new regime and we’re all ready to get this started. I’ve closed that chapter and I’m willing to do whatever we can to start the season 1-and-0.’’
Having said that, Durant isn’t sure what his emotions will be like when he lines up against the only team for which he had played for during his CFL career.
“It may not hit me until (Thursday),’’ Durant said. “I’m looking at it as Saskatchewan is our opponent. All week, I haven’t made any more of it than that. Maybe it will hit me when I see a green No. 4 jersey in the stadium.’’
The fact Durant is facing his former team in the regular-season opener has topped many discussions since the CFL schedule was released in February. The game isn’t such a hot topic for Durant.
“I’ve had my time to sit back and think about it,’’ said the 34-yearold Durant. “It’s not like this just happened and it’s something that was on my mind. It happened months ago. I’ve had months and months to digest the situation, accept it and move on. When you see stuff like this happen all of the time, it doesn’t come as a surprise.’’
Chris Jones, the Riders’ second-year head coach and general manager, pulled the trigger on the trade that stunned Rider Nation. Jones not only traded a player who started the last eight years at quarterback for the Riders, but also dealt someone who led the Green and White to a 45-23 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the 2013 Grey Cup game at Mosaic Stadium.
Regardless, Jones has already moved on from the trade.
“I was asked if I was going to address it to the team and there isn’t any need to,’’ Jones said. “We’re a football team and we’ve been here for three weeks now and we’ve played a couple of pre-season games.… As an organization we appreciate Darian and all that he did when he played here and all of the contributions that he had. It’s our football team and we’re moving forward and doing what we have to do.’’
Durant isn’t the only quarterback playing against a former team on Thursday. The Riders signed Kevin Glenn during the off-season to fill the void created by the Durant trade. Glenn started the 2016 campaign with the Alouettes before being traded to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers late in the season.
The Riders and Alouettes have both undergone several roster changes since the conclusion of the 2016 season, lessening some of the emotional impact for Durant.
“It’s a new team and I’ve only played with a couple of the guys over there,’’ he said. “It’s a part of the game. I’ve been around a long time and you see guys from different teams switch teams all of the time. I’ve been fortunate enough to play with one franchise for a long period of time, but it’s part of the game. All good things come to an end and it was just my time.’’
Montreal slotback Nik Lewis is familiar with what Durant is experiencing in his first season with the Alouettes. Lewis was with the Calgary Stampeders for 11 seasons, but was allowed to depart via free agency after battling injuries in 2014.
Lewis later signed with the Alouettes and is looking forward to his second season in Montreal.
“I will tell you today that he’s good,’’ Lewis said Wednesday. “When he steps into the stadium (Thursday) and sees that green across from him, it will be different. “He’s not downplaying it at all because it really doesn’t have an effect on you until you show up and see that other team across the field from you. That’s when you really start to feel those emotions. Whether it’s negative or positive, that’s when you really start to process it. By the time the game starts you settle down and it’s just football.’’
Brandon LaBatte was Durant’s teammate beginning in 2012, when the veteran guard signed with the Riders as a free agent after four seasons with the Blue Bombers.
“It’ll be a little bit different just to look over there and see him in warmups but, outside of that, he’s just another guy on the other team,’’ LaBatte said. “I don’t think there will be too much else going on, other than the first time you look over and see him.’’
Durant and the Riders attempted to reach an agreement on a new contract during the 2016 season. Those talks broke off after 2½ months of negotiations between Durant’s representative and Jones.
The last straw for Durant was when he was labelled as “moderately successful’’ by Jones during an exclusive interview with the Regina Leader-Post’s Rob Vanstone. That’s when Durant knew that he would not be returning to the Riders.
On the day of the trade, Jones told reporters that the Riders won only five games with Durant as a quarterback and that they were forced to trade him rather than not receive any compensation if he left as a free agent.
Durant, who was critical of Jones at the time of the trade and later during CFL Week in Regina, doesn’t have any regrets for speaking out.
“He spoke what he felt and I said what I felt,’’ Durant said. “It’s obvious that I wasn’t his guy so I don’t think this is anything that we should harp on.’’
Durant prefers to talk about his new life in Montreal and his efforts at learning to speak French.
“Living in downtown, it’s a little easier because there is a lot of English being spoken and I can understand it a lot more,’’ Durant said. “It’s a beautiful city and every time we came here as visitors it was always fun to walk around and enjoy the atmosphere. There are plenty of festivals and different things like that going on.’’
Montreal head coach Jacques Chapdelaine knew what the Riders were getting in Durant after having served as the Riders’ offensive co-ordinator in 2015. That season was cut short for Durant when he suffered a ruptured left Achilles tendon in the first half of the regular-season opener.
Chapdelaine said he’s often reminded of Durant’s situation with Alouettes while riding his bike to Montreal’s offices at Olympic Stadium. Chapdelaine cycles past a statue of baseball legend Jackie Robinson, the first black athlete to play major league baseball. Before making the major leagues, Robinson played second base for the Montreal Royals.
“Warranted or not, I’m reminded that Montreal has been a great place for people to take the opportunity to start fresh somewhere,’’ Chapdelaine said. “Darian is doing that and he’s embracing an opportunity that’s fresh.
“I appreciate what he brings to the table as far as his skill set, and he likes the system. It’s a good match and a good fit.”
I’m looking at it as Saskatchewan is our opponent. All week, I haven’t made any more of it than that.