Rent reduced for Riders, early budget items approved by Regina Council
2h ago
Council retroactively slashed $1.33 million in rent owed by the Roughriders.
That sound you heard (silence) was the CFL trade deadline passing by.
Like all professional sports leagues, the CFL has a deadline for trading players. It comes about 80 per cent of the way through the regular season so it doesn’t uproot players who have settled in for the playoff push.
The deadline is also designed to prevent any hanky-panky that could unfairly help a team heading into the postseason by acquiring a veteran like Kyries Hebert or Nik Lewis a week before the West Division final.
Big trades rarely occur in the nine-team Canadian Football League, so they happen even less on deadline day.
It’s surprising the Montreal Alouettes, already eliminated from playoff contention, didn’t dump some of their old players.
It’s also surprising that high-priced quarterback Zach Collaros, now Hamilton’s backup, wasn’t dealt.
Contending teams in Winnipeg, Saskatchewan and Ottawa evidently decided they don’t need anybody. It will soon be apparent if they’re right or wrong.