Owens, Argos far apart in contract talks

[ArgofanIan]

I was afraid some team in the east would pick up Chad if we didn't lock him up. kind of feels like a kick in the head....I know the sun is going to shine on the Argo's....but loosing CO2.... to the tigercats.... man .... that's tough to take.... Go ARRGOS!!!!

[argotom]

I was afraid some team in the east would pick up Chad if we didn't lock him up. kind of feels like a kick in the head....I know the sun is going to shine on the Argo's....but loosing CO2.... to the tigercats.... man .... that's tough to take.... Go ARRGOS!!!!

Agree with you.
First losing top notch Zach to the Cats and now Chad.
Then there is Harris earlier in the week, what is going on with Barker.
I know we are all wannabe GM's here and do a lot of Monday morning type reviews, but I am starting to wonder about these curious decisions.

[1argoholic]

Neely when you mention that it does suck really. What don't those bastards have their hands into. I don't cheer as hard as I used to. haha. They do suck bad but I do cheer, for them to lose right now so we get a shot at Austin Matthews.

[larz-7]

had a feeling we would lose him because of money.In the back of my head i thought they would keep him for marketing reasons alone.i was wrong.I truly hope the best for him.He has his family to worry about,I just hate that it is Hamilton

[Stevoman]

Yes, this one hurts. One of my all time favourite Argos. I absolutely love his heart, determination, and grit, not to mention that he is a devoted family man and an excellent role model. However, for those of you questioning Barker, I think he is making decisions with his head rather than his heart. Stockpiling good Canadian talent is vital for success in the CFL and while I would love to see Owens finish his career as an Argo, receivers are a strength on this team and he became expendable.
Where this hurts the most is what he brings to the locker room and advertising. The team could sure use his name recognition and celebrity to help this year. I'm a die hard fan and I'm having a hard time, aside from Durie, Ray and Foley, to think of any player that an average sports fan will recognize. I was hoping they could keep him for around 125,000 though. If that's all the Ti-Cats paid, I'll be upset rather than just disappointed.
So many great Owens moments and I can still remember hearing his interview before his first game in Calgary and then that punt return TD that was all heart. He's been my favourite from that moment on. I remember that in 2010, I had that feeling of "well this is a brand new Argos team of which I wonder if there's anyone to really get behind". I now kind of feel the same way. Here's hoping someone else steps up to help fill the void.
Chad Owens, I don't know if you will ever read this, but thanks so much for all that you've given the Argonauts and the CFL. You have been inspiring to watch and I am not changing my avatar until someone as worthy comes along! I also know that you chose the TiCats out of loyalty to your family and made the decision based on what was best for them and I completely respect that.

[KCargosfan]

It really only makes sense that it is Hamilton. Owens moved his family to the area permanently last year or two years ago. Going to Hamilton means he doesn't have to uproot them again.

[ArgoFan1]

This is one of my saddest moments as an Argo fan. Right up there with letting Dunigan go. At least we didn't have to suffer the pain of the team letting Pinball get away. Chad has been the star player for several years and one of the recognizable faces of the team, so I figured that was worth something as they try to rebuild the franchise. Either Barker knows something we don't about Chad's health or he truly is heartless. I go to most of the Ticat games as well, so now I have even more reason to cheer when I am there.

[paulwoods13]

Either Barker knows something we don't about Chad's health or he truly is heartless.

As Stevoman said, we need our GM to make decisions with his head, not his heart. Being heartless would have involved signing and then trading Owens far away. Instead he declined to make an offer that would insult a player of Owens' stature, in full knowledge he might end up signing with our bitter rivals so he wouldn't have to uproot his family. None of that is heartless, and it all makes sense from the standpoint of meeting the team's needs.

[Will]

This is one of my saddest moments as an Argo fan. Right up there with letting Dunigan go. At least we didn't have to suffer the pain of the team letting Pinball get away. Chad has been the star player for several years and one of the recognizable faces of the team, so I figured that was worth something as they try to rebuild the franchise. Either Barker knows something we don't about Chad's health or he truly is heartless. I go to most of the Ticat games as well, so now I have even more reason to cheer when I am there.

Barker isn't being paid to think with his heart.

[Ron]

The most successful GM's in CFL history (Campbell, Buono, Popp, etc) all agree that the biggest mistake a GM can make is to keep a guy too long.

Frankly, Owens was very expensive for a 4th receiver. Plus all the love he's getting today was pretty absent all season when he was fumbling games away.

[1argoholic]

Hopefully he can give back to Toronto by fumbling the ball to us. Hope his lungs can handle Stinktown. The Hamilton dentist might finally have a client. A guy with more then one tooth.

[timlb01]

Hopefully he can give back to Toronto by fumbling the ball to us. Hope his lungs can handle Stinktown. The Hamilton dentist might finally have a client. A guy with more then one tooth.

I love it!!!! The fumble thing is so true. Definitely his weakness.

[Tau Ceti]

I just wanted to add my own note of sadness. I started following the team the year after his all purpose record and at the time he was the only player I could name. Owens and Ray really made me a fan. I think Owens' marketability was invaluable to the team and while the dollars and depth argument makes sense there are intangibles here that they should've considered further.

[R.J]

http://www.torontosun.com/2016/02/11...o-rival-ticats

Three issues sent Owens packing for Steeltown.

Money. The Argonauts were scratching at the salary cap ceiling.

Injuries & Father Time. Owens will be 34 prior to next season and has been sidelined each of the past three seasons.

New faces. Even without Owens, the team has a complement of talented young receivers in Kevin Elliott, Vidal Hazelton and Tori Gurley. Anthony Coombs is a year more experienced. Andre Durie is hoping to make another comeback from injury, plus Dionte Spencer was outstanding last year in Owens’ spot.

“When you get into free agency you weigh your roster. I signed and spent our money on Canadians. We couldn’t afford Chad’s salary,” said Barker. “It would’ve been difficult for us.”

“A lot of things come into it. One of the hardest things in this business is to lose or let a player go who has bled and won for you,” said Barker. “But it’s always better to do it a year early than to do it a year late. Our job is not to pay on what a guy has done in the past ... but for what he can do in the future.”

“He had some injury issues the past few years,” said Barker, “and, we felt we’ve got some young receivers coming on. Dionte Spencer played great for us last year. There always comes a time when you have to change your guard. My job is to predict the future.”

[Double Dare]

[Will]

I just wanted to add my own note of sadness. I started following the team the year after his all purpose record and at the time he was the only player I could name. Owens and Ray really made me a fan. I think Owens' marketability was invaluable to the team and while the dollars and depth argument makes sense there are intangibles here that they should've considered further.

I'm sure there were plenty of internal discussions in the months leading up to free agency about Owens' future and that it was a decision that the Argos didn't take overnight. I agree that you need marketable stars, but an unfortunate discrepancy in sports is that you cannot let that influence your decisions. In absolutely no way am I trying to imply that Owens was a problem in the locker room but I'll provide an example from Argo history, Cory Boyd was a marketable player for the Argos from 2010-2012, but it was clear that there was something rotten in the locker room with him and thus the decision was made to cut him and voila the Argos won the Grey Cup. With Owens, the Argos believe they have a young player like Diontae Spencer who can be a dynamic player like Owens was, and right now he is a cheaper and younger option. The decision here was that they weren't going to disrupt his development by keeping Owens.

[Neely2005]

http://www.torontosun.com/2016/02/11...o-rival-ticats

That article explains it well. It sucks but it makes sense.

[argolio]

My eyes are burning!

[Argo]

It really only makes sense that it is Hamilton. Owens moved his family to the area permanently last year or two years ago. Going to Hamilton means he doesn't have to uproot them again.

Yes, it does, however I wonder if teams the like of Hamilton and Sask actually adhere to anything resembling the salary cap...

[Argo]

Owens was a solid Argonaut, however all things considered I am happy to see him playing elsewhere this season.