WHAT WILLIAM’S RETURN MEANS FOR GREEN AND WHITE
Former No. 1 draft pick traded from Ticats
REGINA — Shomari Williams is returning to his first CFL home.
The non- import linebacker, who began his career with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2010, rejoined the team on Monday when he was acquired from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
The Roughriders picked up Williams, non-import punter Josh Bartel and the eighth overall pick in the 2014 CFL draft from Hamilton for the ninth and 11th overall picks in the draft.
“Regina is the first place that I played, so it always holds a special place in my heart and in my football life,” Williams, 28, said from Toronto. “It’s good to come home, so to speak.”
Saskatchewan selected Williams with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 draft and he spent three seasons with the Green and White.
He signed with the TigerCats as a free agent last February, but played just six games with Hamilton in 2013 due to injury.
“I definitely would have stayed in Regina last year, but things just didn’t work out on the business side of things,” said Williams, who reportedly left for a deal that paid him around $120,000 last season. “It has worked out now and that’s great.”
Roughriders head coach Corey Chamblin said Williams is “a very good fit” for a team looking to rebuild its non-import depth.
So far this off-season, Saskatchewan has lost Canadians like linebacker Craig Butler to Hamilton as a free agent and defensive tackles Keith Shologan and Zack Evans to the Ottawa Redblacks in the expansion draft.
For Chamblin, Williams’ flexibility is key.
The 6-foot-1, 232-pounder played defensive end, weakside linebacker and middle linebacker during his previous seasons with the Roughriders.
In Chamblin’s mind, Williams’ ability to play all of those positions kept him from settling into one role — and that’s something the coaches plan to address.
“This time around, he could do a couple of things and, so he doesn’t get bored with one thing or think that we’re asking him to do something that he doesn’t feel comfortable with, we’re going to try to make him as comfortable as possible and doing the things that add to his strength,” Chamblin said.
Williams accumulated 88 defensive tackles, 32 specialteams tackles and five sacks during his previous stint in Saskatchewan. His best statistical season was 2012, when he recorded 57 defensive tackles — just three fewer than Butler had to lead the Roughriders in 2013.
While Butler’s departure dropped the Roughriders’ number of starting Canadians from eight to the required seven, that could change if the coaches can find another non-import starter to provide them with flexibility with the ratio.
Williams could be that player, but Chamblin wasn’t ready Monday to pencil him in as a starter.
“Can he start? Yes,” Chamblin said. “But when we look at the overall roster, we’ll figure out whether he’s going to be a starter or not for us.”
Bartel also gives the Roughriders some wiggle room with the ratio.
The 27-year-old product of Wodonga, Australia — a former Australian Rules Football player — is considered a non-import by the CFL because he wasn’t trained in the United States.
Saskatchewan deployed American Ricky Schmitt as its punter last season, so Bartel offers the Roughriders a chance to use an import elsewhere on the 42man game-day roster.
Chamblin said the Roughriders remain interested in Schmitt — he became a free agent Feb. 11 — so there could be a battle brewing at training camp.
“If he signs back, then those guys will go at it and we’ll see how that comes out,” Chamblin said. “It’s about the flexibility and what we could have and that we don’t get pegged into doing one thing all year.”
Bartel was named the East Division’s all-star punter in 2013 after he averaged 43.7 yards on 112 punts.
He was deemed expendable by the Tiger-Cats after they signed Justin Medlock this off-season to handle all three kicking duties.
For Williams, a return to Saskatchewan could give him another chance to silence those who believe he was a draft bust in 2010. Although it’s not a big concern for Williams.
“I don’t really worry too much about what other people say,” Williams said. “You always want to perform the best that you can and you want to be the best that you can be for your own personal reasons.
“I don’t think I have anything to prove to people, but I have a lot to prove to myself. I have a lot I want to still accomplish in my career and a lot I feel I can still accomplish.”