2016 1st overall pick St. John holding out

[OV Argo]

Are people not allowed to make opinions based on their own eyes?

Deslauriers putting up big numbers at Eastern Michigan doesn't count, because it's Eastern Michigan.

I wuz asking a simple question - if he had seen both play college ball and concluded St John was the much better OT = i would have lots of respect for that opinion; drawing a conclusion on a player based only on media reports or the CFL's Scouting Bureau or assumptions based on the college ball program = much more questionable IMO.

NO E. Michigan guys ever made an impact in the CFL or NFL I suppose ?

[KCargosfan]

I wuz asking a simple question - if he had seen both play college ball and concluded St John was the much better OT = i would have lots of respect for that opinion; drawing a conclusion on a player based only on media reports or the CFL's Scouting Bureau or assumptions based on the college ball program = much more questionable IMO.

NO E. Michigan guys ever made an impact in the CFL or NFL I suppose ?

Right on.

I was being sarcastic on the Eastern Michigan comment (hence the smiley face) because it is one of the three worst I-A programs in the country and is thinking of dropping the sport.

[jerrym]

This seems to have become an ego game rather than a negotiation.

[argolio]

This seems to have become an ego game rather than a negotiation.

Better them than us.

[Jayahre]

This seems to have become an ego game rather than a negotiation.

Probably not, it's his agent that is calling all the shots. Players don't negotiate, they pay agents to do that.

[doubleblue]

I think it is very unfortunate for the young man St. John to be caught in the middle of this standoff. He should be in camp somewhere in the League as Canadian players with his size and skill don't grow on trees. This agent is an American I believe and probably doesn't understand the CFL all that well. Players seem to keep signing up with him apparently because he gets them NFL looks (or the promise to) more than others.
Somebody is going to come along one of these years and go to court against the Draft and may win if they get the right Judge. They have chipped away at most of the monopolies in Pro Sports. If they can have free agency after one or two years in the League, why not free agency coming out of College.
The argument would be that the rich teams would get all the best players. But with the current salary cap that would be difficult.

[paulwoods13]

I think it is very unfortunate for the young man St. John to be caught in the middle of this standoff. He should be in camp somewhere in the League as Canadian players with his size and skill don't grow on trees. This agent is an American I believe and probably doesn't understand the CFL all that well.

St. John is an adult capable of making his own decisions. He chose to hire a high-profile agent and he chose to hold out. Presumably he was advised to do so by his agent, but he is not an innocent victim "caught in the middle" of circumstances beyond his control.

His agent's nationality is irrelevant, and I would suggest Hardaway has a deep understanding of the CFL -- he has been representing players in the league for years.

[R.J]

Riders have signed #1 overall pick Josiah St. John!

— Rod Pedersen (@rodpedersen) June 29, 2016

About time.

[doubleblue]

About time.

I guess it will come out sometime down the road, but it appears Hardaway got a maybe 70-30 or 60-40 win if St. John finally agreed to a 3 year contract. Didn't hurt that RG Best is injured though. Everybody apparently made their point. Whatever that is.

[Jayahre]

His agent didn't do a very good job

According to TSN's Gary Lawless, the deal is for three years and less money than St. John was offered on draft night, so it sounds like Saskatchewan got more of what they wanted in the end. If that's true, it's curious to see St. John end his holdout before the team even plays a game (their opener is against the Toronto Argonauts Thursday). If their offensive line depth had been exposed in competition, it might have given him more leverage to get a better deal. Also, St. John's agent, Johnathan Hardaway, has been known for plenty of hardball over the years, from NBA tryouts toreturns to school (not really an option for St. John, though, as he played in the four-year NCAA rather than five-year CIS) to actualholdouts, so it would seem curious that he would cave here. Maybe St. John wanted to get on the field, but doing so for what's likely less money than guys picked after him are making doesn't seem that logical from this standpoint, especially as his leverage might have only risen if the Riders' line and Canadian content struggled without him.

https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/blogs/cf...014032801.html

[AngeloV]

He should have fired Hardaway and started from scratch in negotiations. I think that would have looked good on him with the Riders, and he may have received more.

[Argo57]

He should have fired Hardaway and started from scratch in negotiations. I think that would have looked good on him with the Riders, and he may have received more.

Agreed, what an idiotic scenario.
Wonder if players in the future will stay clear from Hardaway??

[gilthethrill]

Let's see if this young man's CFL career can compare to another former lineman named St John...I am referring to retired former Ticat and Argo Jude.