Peter Power/CFL.ca
When news broke this week of McLeod Bethel-Thompson signing with the Edmonton Elks, the snap take within me was disappointment for Canadian Tre Ford.
But with the separation that comes between reaction and reflection, it is easy to see why this could, and should, in fact be best for all parties involved.
Don’t get me wrong, I’d pay money to watch Tre Ford play quarterback on a CFL field any day of the week for any team willing to embrace him, but a brief history of Canadian football quarterbacking excellence shows that watching, learning, and embracing a backup role from an established eye can not only raise a quarterbacks level of play, but extend their career.
McLeod will make Tre a better player. The Elks will be a better team for having both.
RELATED
» McLeod Bethel-Thompson signs deal with Edmonton
» Elks release wide receiver Steven Dunbar Jr.
» Elks release veteran DB Aaron Grymes
» CFL reveals list of 2024 pending free agents
» CFL.ca’s top 30 pending free agents
The CFL will owe a debt of gratitude to Bethel-Thompson for his mature leadership helping craft the next great Canadian quarterback, not if but when Ford gets his next full-time shot.
Many veterans come in with an eye for their own success and little else, but McLeod is far from a straight-line, lazy, egotistical thinker. While he clearly believes he’s the man to return Edmonton to Grey Cup greatness, Bethel-Thompson also understands the bigger picture as evidenced by his enthusiasm for working with Ford.
“(I’m) very excited to work with Tre,” Bethel-Thompson told the media earlier this week. “I want to give him everything I possibly can. You can see the magic of his off script abilities, I want to help him build the script at a high level. He hasn’t had a veteran yet to show him the ropes but he’s already made a name for himself so you know the talent is there and I just want to show him the way.
“It’s about being a leader, mentor, and building a culture that can extend beyond you. When you see a young player who has that magic you just want to get in there and make a positive impact on him and this league. How can I help this kid be a better player?”
The answer can clearly be seen from the professionalism and work ethic McLeod helped to instil upon 2023 CFL Most Outstanding Player Chad Kelly, the now established leader of the Toronto Argonauts who Bethel-Thompson relented are “in a different place now” alluding to a turning of the page towards Chad until further notice.
A few years ago in self reflection I stumbled upon a great quote we could all take to heart whether you’re in the broadcast booth, cheap seats or in pads as the starting quarterback.
“Life is too short to learn all we need from our own mistakes, which is why we must learn from others’ mistakes to maximize our potential.”
The inability or disinterest in doing so caused by ego or inflated self belief leaves us short of becoming the best version of ourselves. All of this clearly messaged by McLeod when discussing Tre this week while being introduced to the Edmonton media.
“I’ve made 1,000 mistakes so hopefully he (Ford) doesn’t have to make half that many with my help,” Bethel-Thompson said.
Playing football is the fastest way to learn, but the ability to learn without playing consistently is what will set Ford up for the greatest amount of success moving forward assuming he remains in Edmonton.
McLeod Bethel-Thompson clearly has a bright future in anything he chooses to challenge himself with, but Monday it was clear a coaching career would be a seamless fit and he spoke about Ford almost as a player-coach who believes handling his business on the field will be the best way to amplify Ford’s development.
If that holds true in an offence featuring Kevin Brown, Eugene Lewis, Dillon Mitchell and more, Edmonton could be back in a big way but paper rosters don’t win games or Grey Cups. Thankfully the player voice leading their locker room understands that better than arguably anybody in the CFL.
For a man who summarizes his overall approach to decision making as “football and family,” the Elks just accelerated their rise in the standings after multiple difficult seasons and could have unlocked much more should Ford and MBT form a partnership built on growth and mutual belief.
