No To Henry Burris!

Tigercatatonia keeps seeing articles that Henry Burris will wind up in the Hammer. Please no.

Burris will be 37 by the time the season starts next year and had a mediocre 2010, ending with him being supplanted by Drew Tate who hasn't really done a lot except for be a lot younger than Burris. Frankly I'm not convinced he'll be an upgrade on Quinton Porter.

The worst thing Hamilton could do is actually trade with Burris. If they have to have him, wait until Calgary releases him outright. Still though, I'd rather go into 2012 with Glenn and Porter than pick up Burris on the downslope of his career.

If Hamilton had real balls, they would release Glenn, go with Porter cheaply, use up the salary cap savings to shore up the secondary, but also try and evaluate some quarterbacks (including Boltus) to be the next great Ticat quarterback. The one issue is that the Cats run the risk of a crappy season 5 and 13 type season that would depress the fan base. Ideally the crap season, if there has to be one would be in 2013 when the Cats are on the road. I've no idea what the Cats will do, although if Calgary Stampeder offensive co-ordinator Dave Dickinson gets hired as head coach things could get interesting.

Whither Kevin Glenn in 2012?

With all the kerfuffle about the Cats utilizing two quarterbacks the last few games and what it means for the chances for the team to win now, let's be honest about what it might really be about. Whether to outright release Kevin Glenn during the off-season.

Glenn as the starting quarterback makes the most money on the team and the Ticat brain trust most be wondering whether a 500 record is all Glenn is capable of (last season's gaudy stats notwithstanding). Quinton Porter is obviously younger and if Glenn gets cut during the off-season, Porter wouldn't make as much next year as Glenn this year and Boltus wouldn't make as much as Porter this year. Thus the amount spent on quarterbacks would drop and that difference could be deployed somewhere else (the secondary?). If the Ticats figure Porter can perform just as well as Glenn next year, then he could well get cut.

Of course Porter could get hurt or suck, Boltus plays poorly when called upon and Ticats dream of a 500 record like back in the old 3 and 15 days. The off-season should certainly be interesting. Do the Cats pay big money to a one year older Cobourne for another year? Is Stevie Baggs still good value for the high salary the Cats are paying. In a league with a low salary cap, there's no room for sentimentality.

Four Mostly Meaningless Games

Well after Friday's debacle against the Bombers and Montreal's unsurprising win versus Toronto, the Cats are back to 500 and the last four games are pretty much meaningless. Sure the Cats could lose four and the Riders win four allowing the Riders the cross-over spot, but that pretty unlikely. The Cats could win out and the Bombers and Alouettes could lose all their games too, but that also seems unlikely. So basically the Cats are playing games that mean nothing except preparation for the away playoff games. Beating Montreal this week on the road would at least send a message, but I'm not sure the Ticats have that in them. Hopefully some players will get auditioned for next year and the fans don't realize that there's not a good reason to go to Ivor Wynne besides $8.75 Canadian tall boys.

Maurice Mann being traded for some defensive back I've never heard of (who I refuse to look up) and a draft pick to the Argos is a bit odd, but the secondary is a bit weak with all the injuries lately. Although after all the running the Bombers did on Friday I think the front four is also problematic. My assessment of Mann's Ticat tenure: a solid meh.

At least Quinton Porter played well for once in relief time. Had to happen sooner or later, but he's not going to ever challenge for Glenn's job if he honks it up totally in garbage time. Milk that prevent defence for as many yards as you can!