Hervey hopes CFL will be better than ever
But with players opting out of contracts, the Lions GM knows the league faces an uncertain 2021
If the 2020 CFL season was a movie, it’ would be nearly every genre rolled into one.
The year began with a disaster movie, morphed into a suspense thriller as the season and league teetered on the edge, then transitioned into a tragic film noir once the end finally came.
What will CFL: The Sequel be like in 2021?
“Well, I like action,” laughed B.C. Lions general manager Ed Hervey. “I’d like it to be action and entertaining, and see the league bounce back. On the seat-of-your pants excitement, a few overtime thrillers, some high-scoring games, just all that stuff.
“And when it’s all said and done, we look up and everyone’s happy and everyone is appreciative of the season, regardless who’s crowned champions.
“We can look back and realize that 2021 was the beginning of a new decade for the CFL and 2020 was just a distant memory. I would hope that when the dust settles, we’re able to be as entertaining — if not more — than this league has been in the past.”
But there’s a lot of screen time left before we can kick COVID-19 off the top of Nakatomi Plaza. Uncertainty still weighs heavily in every area, including rosters.
As of Wednesday morning, 86 players had decided to opt out of their CFL contracts to pursue NFL opportunities. The clause, negotiated by the CFL Players’ Association after the season’s cancellation, gave players the option to leave. The original seven-day period leading up to Aug. 31 was extended to Sept. 3, with 3DownNation’s Justin Dunk reporting the extension allowed players to get clarity on their eligibility for the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) and medical benefits.
So far, five B.C. Lions have opted out of their contracts: defensive lineman Ryan
Brown, defensive end Mat Boesen, safety Kenny Ladler, receiver Jevon Cottoy and kicker Sergio Castillo.
The Lions retain the rights to Castillo and Cottoy, as their contracts extended beyond 2020, but the other three were on one-year deals and poised to become free agents. Ladler is the only one with NFL experience, having two separate stints with Washington and one with the New York Giants.
Castillo reportedly has an upcoming tryout with the Pittsburgh Steelers, along with one-time Lion Richie Leone, while the 6-5, 230pound Cottoy has the huge potential NFL teams covet.
“We will get a notice in January, if they don’t get an opportunity, so we’ll have to wait and see when the dust settles in the early part of the year in regards to whether or not the NFL picks those players up,” Hervey said of Castillo and Cottoy.
“They do not have that (NFL) experience, but a kicker being available is always a good thing. And Cottoy has upside that teams would obviously want to look at. He wants to give it a shot to simply see if there is interest out there.”
For the rest, they’re exploring a unique and uncertain job market in the NFL, which has now become a universal constant in pro sports.
While practice rosters have been expanded, there is no pre-season to base personnel decisions on before the Sept. 5 deadline to reduce 80-man training camp rosters to 53. However, game day rosters will be expanded to 55, another change instituted to help teams who may find themselves suddenly shorthanded because of COVID-19 or injuries.
What this means is it’s harder for CFLers to land a job south of the border. Former UBC Thunderbirds offensive lineman Dakoda Shepley and Calgary Stampeders linebacker Wynton McManis, who both opted out, are so far the only CFLers to have secured NFL deals, with San Francisco and New Orleans, respectively.
“I’ve spoke to several teams in the U.S. and it’s difficult for them because without pre-season games, they’re … sticking with the guys who they went into camp with,” said Hervey. “And because of all the other stuff that’s going on, I’m not sure if the opportunities are all there for everyone.
“Again, there’s a few guys that are obviously getting some opportunities, but I’m not certain how open the NFL is going to be for a lot of guys opting out. And for some of those guys, they just opted out to keep themselves available in the event that something happens during the (NFL) season.”
As players navigate the unstable job market in the U.S., Hervey and the rest of the CFL are trying to deal with an off-season that has started far too soon.
“Honestly, it still feels like (we’re in) a little bit of limbo,” he said. “There’s still a lot of questions to be answered heading into next year. We’re still dealing with some of this stuff from this year … and trying to get a grasp of how things are going to progress moving forward.
“What does free agency look like? What is 2021 going to look like? What is the game plan from the league level? It doesn’t seem like an off-season because we’re still trying to figure out internally … what 2021 will look like.
“The pandemic doesn’t allow for us to make very accurate predictions. I think that’s been proven.”