LIONS LIKELY TO SIGN REILLY, REPORTS SAY
Eskimos not giving up hope quarterback will decide to stay, but preparing for worst
Quarterback Mike Reilly may have played his last football game for the Edmonton Eskimos.
A Postmedia report out of Vancouver has the defending three-time CFL passing leader signing with the B.C. Lions once free agency opens Tuesday.
Losing the face of the franchise wouldn’t just leave a crater-sized hole to fill on the Eskimos roster, it would also be a big blow to the business side of the equation.
Reilly’s contract expires next week after six seasons in Edmonton where he earned a Grey Cup, a Most Outstanding Player award, the last three passing titles, and has sent a handful of teammates with matching receiving titles on to NFL opportunities over the years.
The 34-year-old quarterback is the ultimate trifecta when it comes to representing a club both in the community and on a national scale: He’s got the looks to be their face; he’s got the personality and wits to act as their voice; and he backs it all up on the field by being the best player in the Canadian Football League.
On Friday, it was revealed Eskimos general manager Brock Sunderland had given other teams permission to speak with Riley. On Saturday, the Postmedia report out of Vancouver indicated the Lions are set to make a lucrative contract offer in the range of $700,000 per season.
“I don’t really got caught up in what’s speculated,” Lions GM Ed Hervey told Sportsnet 650 radio in Vancouver on Friday. “Whatever Edmonton did, you’d have to contact them. I’m just looking to free agency and getting prepared if Mike Reilly is available.”
Since Reilly rose to the starting ranks after arriving in Edmonton ahead of the 2013 season, no player in the league has accounted for more yards from scrimmage. That much is measurable.
What he’s meant to the club off the field and in a leadership role is much more difficult to quantify, let alone try to replace.
He never says a wrong word. And his harshest criticism is always directed at himself, whether warranted or not.
This type of eminently marketable package doesn’t arrive on your doorstep every day.
“It’s more than a football issue,” said Eskimos president and CEO Len Rhodes. “It’s one as a franchise and as a football club from top to bottom, we all adore Mike Reilly. He’s always been the consummate professional.
“He’s a fantastic face for the organization. You’re right, the man can do no wrong.”
When it comes to the Lions, Reilly and Hervey have a relationship dating back to 2013 when the former Eskimos GM traded for the then-B.C. backup.
Reilly also makes his off-season home in Seattle, Wash., a threehour drive from Vancouver.
“We compete with the other teams but there’s one things there’s a consensus from every single team in this league: How lucky we are to have Mike Reilly,” Rhodes said.
It’s not the first time Rhodes has been in a situation involving the face of the franchise.
When he first took over the reins of the operation from previous Eskimos president Rick LeLacheur, now with the B.C. Lions, the first bit of business to land on his desk were the forms from football operations trading Ricky Ray to the Toronto Argonauts on Dec. 12, 2011.
This time around, there are no mixed emotions. And, unfortunately, the process doesn’t require any sort of signature or approval from Rhodes.
He and general manager Brock Sunderland, the Eskimos vice-president of football ops, are on the same page when it comes to contract offers that have already been presented to Reilly, which they classify as, “very strong to record-breaking.”
“We’re doing everything we can,” Rhodes said. “We do live within a salary-cap environment and you want to make sure that you want to have enough left to be able to support him and surround him with the quality players that he will want to play with, as well.”
Come Tuesday morning, the Lions and every other team in the league will officially have the opportunity to make their own case to Reilly, who will technically be the former Eskimos quarterback at that point.
“There’s no hiding it, we’re not playing poker and pretending we don’t want Mike Reilly. We want Mike Reilly, badly,” Rhodes said. “He knows he’s appreciated. The organization has not hidden the fact that we really value his service.
“But at the same time, we’re respecting his right to become a free agent and to make his choice, because at the end of the day, you want someone that feels like they want to belong with the organization.”
It’s enough to keep someone up at night.
“Now, I’m going to be an optimist on this one and say Mike Reilly is with the Eskimos until the day he is not with the Eskimos,” Rhodes said. “And, today, he’s with the Edmonton Eskimos.”
Reilly’s been a good fit in Edmonton.
“Our sponsors love him, our fans love him, the media for sure. And the Reilly brand goes beyond Mike. It’s his father, his mother, his wife. He’s adored in this market.”