Offensive lineman Dyakowski released
Key member of team and community for 10 years signs with the Argos: ‘People were great to me, the city was great to me’
His 10-year career with the Ticats made him the team’s longest-serving member
The phone rings once, twice, three times ... “Peter Dyakowski, Toronto Argonauts.” Even on what must have been a difficult day, Peter Dyakowski’s sense of humour — quirky as it is — remained intact.
Until his release on Thursday, Dyakowski had been the Hamilton Tiger-Cats’ longestserving member, having spent his entire 10-year career with the Ticats after being selected by the club in the second round of the 2006 CFL draft.
He is not just a recognizable face in this community but its ambassador across the country. He was crowned Canada’s Smartest Person after a 2012 contest on CBC television and appeared as a contestant on “Jeopardy!” in 2014. For a league in desperate need of well-spoken, likable personalties, Dyakowski managed it from the generally anonymous left guard spot.
But his tenure in Hamilton came to an end in a rather sudden and ignominious manner, released via a seven-line news release that featured two sentences from vice-president of football operations Kent Austin. It was a tough ending and Dyakowski — like many Ticats before him — likely deserved better in some alternate universe where football isn’t a harsh and unfair business.
“I don’t really want to get into the nitty-gritty. A lot of guys leave a team and they get hung up on how they left it. I look back and I’ve got phenomenal memories,” Dyakowski said before firing a shot in Austin’s general direction. “The team is bigger than a couple of people who make decisions at any one time.”
Sentiment aside, from a football and salary cap perspective, this move makes sense for the Ticats.
Dyakowski will be 33 in April and while he enjoyed a remarkable renaissance two seasons ago after coming all the way back from a torn patella suffered in the 2013 Grey Cup game, his mobility and flexibility have clearly begun to wane. He still has plenty of veteran savvy — though he’s always been prone to the occasional mental lapse — but the physical skills are starting to diminish.
All this doesn’t mean he can’t help the Toronto Argonauts, who signed him to a two-year contract in excess of $100,000 per season.
Dyakowski acknowledged it will be a little strange pulling on the Double Blue, but he seemed excited at the prospect of continuing his CFL career while not having to uproot his young family — he and wife Rachel had their first child last summer — from their home in Hamilton.
“I’m jumping headfirst in with the Argos. I’m all in,” he said. “I’m turning onto a new page of my career and I’m looking forward to making new memories.”
And his Hamilton love is heartfelt. “I was fortunate to have the time I had in Hamilton. I had a terrific run and the support of phenomenal fans. People were great to me, the city was great to me,” he said. “I value the 10 years.”