Adam Gagnon/CFL.ca
Tyrell Sutton was sitting on the BC Lions’ bench wearing a bright orange hoodie and you could tell that he felt about as strange as he looked to everyone around him.
It was a few days after the Lions had picked him up from the Montreal Alouettes. He was juggling his new reality with the fact that the life he’d known in the CFL for the last six years was over.
Even with the shell shock of the deal still surrounding him, he knew one thing, even if he couldn’t fully grasp it yet. He’d been given life.
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With the Argos on the cusp of being eliminated from playoff contention, multiple Boatmen could be potential trade targets leading up to the deadline. (Johany Jutras, CFL.ca)
His loyalty to the Alouettes is unquestioned, having signed a new deal in February to stay with the long-struggling team. Those struggles may have slightly dissipated this year, but the Als won’t turn the corner and find the postseason this year. In BC, he’s in the chase. If the playoffs started this week, the 7-7 Lions would be the crossover team. With four games left, they could still climb the West ladder and compete in their own division in November. If the Lions do make it, it’d be Sutton’s first playoff game since 2014.
With the CFL trade deadline now less than 24 hours away (the cutoff for deals is Wednesday at 3:59 p.m. ET), Sutton may have gotten the jump on processing a trade and on getting a new lease on his football-playing life. Will anyone else join him before Wednesday’s deadline? With only Toronto and Montreal on the outside looking in, it’s hard to see any of the other seven teams sacrificing a big name, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some out there.
The list starts with John Bowman.
The veteran defensive end is putting the wraps on his 13th season with the Alouettes. He won Grey Cups with the club in 2009 and 2010 and like Sutton, has opted to stay with the team through its lean years. Bowman is the picture perfect candidate for a veteran player that could help a playoff team. One of the league’s all-time best defensive ends, standing under a confetti rainfall at the end of November at Commonwealth Stadium — like he did in 2010 when the Als beat Saskatchewan — could be the perfect end to a brilliant career. Going into Week 17, Ottawa had 28 sacks this season, lowest among teams still in playoff contention (the REDBLACKS will host a game next month). Maybe a quick move East is the answer for him.
Highly sought as a surprise free-agent this summer, there could be a similar bidding war for Duron Carter’s playoff services. It hasn’t worked out for him in Toronto, where he only caught his first touchdown pass last week, in the Argos’ loss to the BC Lions. By all indications though, that’s not on Carter, who at worst has looked frustrated on the sidelines while he’s been underused in Toronto’s offence. The skill and ability are there with Carter and the need is there even more so for a number of teams. Even with the return of Eric Rogers and the addition of Chris Matthews, Calgary will sorely miss Kamar Jorden, DaVaris Daniels and Reggie Begelton. Carter could fill a void there. He could also add something in Edmonton, where Duke Williams hasn’t gone over 100 yards since Derel Walker went to the six-game injured list.
Sticking with receivers, S.J. Green has surfaced as a player that teams have apparently asked Argos GM Jim Popp about to no avail. Green would be a welcome addition to any receiving corps in the league, but Popp is likely looking to next season and sticking with someone that’s proven himself to him in over a decade working together.
Another Alouette I keep thinking about is T.J. Heath. He signed with the Argos in February and was dealt to Montreal in July. Heath signed a one-year deal with the Argos and I wonder if he’ll want to stay in Montreal next season or go to a team with a Grey Cup closer in its sights. So maybe Kavis Reed makes a move there to either fill a gap in his roster or gain a pick or two to help his team down the road.
One longshot trade that I wonder about is in Saskatchewan. Zach Collaros is clearly the starter for the Riders and Brandon Bridge has faded to the background. When Collaros was injured earlier this season, Chris Jones went freely between Bridge and David Watford. If there were an addition out there that Jones really wanted at the deadline — a high-end player that could provide a boost on offence or add some depth at a spot he saw crucial — offering up Bridge might sweeten the pot enough to get a GM to shake things up.
With the seconds ticking away to the deadline and just over a month before the playoffs start, it may not be the end of the road for a number of CFL vets that would otherwise be on the outside looking in.
