I like what I've seen so far from the Saskatchewan Roughriders during the free agent season.
The offensive line in front of quarterback Darian Durant was poor last year. With the additions of Dominic Picard and Brendon Labatte, there has been major steps already to clean things up. This is far from fool proof mind you. Durant isn't without his faults and now that Taman has gone to bat for him in a big way to protect him better, Durant must do his part. Running back Brandon West must also show he can be a star in this league.
I see there are some whiners on message boards bemoaning the loss of Stu Foord. Look. Do you want a local team or do you want a winning one? Foord was a bit player on last year's team that went half a season (it felt like it anyway) without scoring an offensive touchdown. Good bye. I appreciate his roots and he had his usefulness. But, he's a disposable piece.
As of tonight, it sounds like Andy Fantuz may return. If his strategy all along was to simply sit back and be quiet to see if Taman put forth an effort to rebuild this mess in a hurry, then I'm okay with it. Who wants to play for a team that isn't committed to winning? Still, it sounds as though Hamilton has a good financial package on the table and if Fantuz takes it, I don't blame him. My concern was an extremely popular player holding the franchise ransom and allowing other free agents to move on while he tries to see if he can score the highest dollar.
Taman has also signed NFL castoff Justin Harper, a wide receiver from Virginia Tech, who played two games in 2009 for the Baltimore Ravens. It's a dart at a dartboard. Let's not go jumping to conclusions that this is the next Matt Dominguez. But, we can always hope!
Rider fans, Rome wasn't built in a day. There are some holes on defense. Specifically at rush end and linebacker. Those could be filled by some of the people we saw late last season; but don't be surprised if there are growing pains.
By November, maybe the Riders win six games or less. But, at least this time around I am seeing an organization that is putting forth an effort. Last year, fans were deprived of that effort. Both on the field and in the front office.
With or without Fantuz, the Riders get an A in free agency from me.
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