Sunderland shows he’s not afraid to make moves
Sunderland releases veteran receiver Bowman on heels of trading Willis
Brock Sunderland isn’t here to make friends.
If that were the case, in his first full off-season as Edmonton Eskimos general manager, he wouldn’t have released veteran receiver and longtime fan favourite Adarius Bowman.
And he certainly wouldn’t have done it on the heels of trading away longtime fan favourite Odell Willis.
In the span of three days, Sunderland has severed ties between the fans and their two favourite players not named Mike Reilly.
“I think the world of Adarius Bowman, I had a long conversation with him yesterday. He knows how I feel about him,” Sunderland said on Monday in the Eskimos locker-room. “I know what he’s meant to this community, and to this organization. ...
“It’s the hard part of the business. My role, I’m here to make the right decisions, I believe, not the popular or the easy ones. I know this is a very unpopular one, but I wouldn’t be doing my job if we kept players around for sentimental value or reasons other than what we think is to help this football team.”
After all, his primary job is to find the next Adarius Bowman, not keep paying a player when the signs point otherwise.
“There were two (reasons): The main one was who we have as international wide receivers on the roster right now,” said Sunderland, who on Monday re-signed Vidal Hazelton to a list that includes Derel Walker, Kenny Stafford, Duke Williams and Bryant Mitchell, along with newcomers Shaq Hill and Speedy Noiles.
“We have a plethora of wide receivers that we have a lot of confidence in.
“The other factor, being very candid, was the salary-cap implications.”
While Sunderland wouldn’t get into details, The Canadian Press reported Bowman was due a $140,000 bonus in early February as part of a contract extension he signed after leading the league in 2016 with 1,759 receiving yards. The deal made him the highest paid non-quarterback at the time.
Bowman made $260,000 last year and was scheduled to make $265,000 in 2018, including the off-season bonus.
While a downturn in performance that saw Bowman make just 45 receptions last season for 534 yards and five touchdowns didn’t warrant the big the paycheque this time around, Sunderland made numerous attempts to renegotiate the deal before releasing Bowman.
“Ultimately, I don’t think we could find a solution all parties were good with,” Sunderland said. “It’s the ugly part of the business.
“I’m always going to root for him individually, and once he’s done, he’s an Eskimo for life, along with Odell.”
While Bowman didn’t return calls on Monday, the 32-year-old Oklahoma State product may have seen the writing on the wall as the Eskimos cleared out their lockerroom back in November.
“Remember the B.O.N.E. (Brotherhood Of Nasty Eskimos), we really stand on that,” Bowman said the day after losing the West Division final to the Calgary Stampeders. “This one, you kind of feel it more than ever, because when you’re in it, you don’t really have time to think and process how much fun we truly are having.
“Or how much of a great thing until it’s gone. That is the worst feeling. But at the same time, I think it’s motivating all of us and we have some that will be getting opportunities (elsewhere). They’re brothers to us, so you’re excited for them.”
Eleven weeks after uttering those words, it appears his outlook hasn’t changed, even though he’s one of the players moving on, given how Sunderland said Bowman took the news on Sunday.
“A true pro, classy as can be. Exactly as I thought he would,” Sunderland said. “If younger players could have heard our conversation and the way he handled it, it was the preeminent way to handle it.”
Fans of Bowman and Willis, however, not so much.
And Sunderland understands. “My job is to make the right decisions, not the easy ones,” he said.
“I wish they were all easy, but these were very difficult decisions to make and difficult conversations to have with both players.”