John MURPHY'S wish almost came true.Just the other day, the Bombers' director of player personnel -- and, apparently, a self-appointed marketing whiz -- was yakking to SI.com about the wisdom of courting Adam (Pacman) Jones.

"From a marketing standpoint, a business standpoint and a football standpoint," Murphy opined, "I could go to 100 NFL training camps and every pre-season game and more people will hear and know about the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the next two weeks -- from the coverage we'll receive -- than in the last 10 years."

In fact, the Bombers hadn't even signed Jones when Murphy's Law began to manifest itself. To wit, a blogger for the Dallas Morning News inquired, "Is Pacman going to make it snow in Winnipeg?" And USA Today observed: "Pacman Jones goes to Canada. Somebody must have convinced him the North Pole was a strip club."

Even your own humble agent's column, documenting the reaction from local exotic dancers, appeared on the football blog of the august New York Times website. I'm blushing.

So, yeah, a lot more people in the United States know about the existence of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers today. We're not exactly sure how that translates into one penny of revenue, or the sale of one ticket for the Banjo Bowl, but it's publicity all right. And it's free.

Or is it? Because while a lot more folks are aware of the Bombers, we'll bet you dollars to Timbits they couldn't pick out Winnipeg on a map. They won't know a lick about the team's storied 79-year history. They won't know about Kenny Ploen or the Fog Bowl. They'll have no clue about proud Hall of Famers like Joe Poplawski, Chris Walby or James Murphy. They don't know that the West Side sucks.

Personally, I could care less that some American wearing a Brett Favre jersey in Mississippi today is saying, "Did you hear Pacman Jones might sign with some team up in Canada? Do you think he'll be able to cross the border? Ha,ha, ha!!"

It's never good to be a punchline. Unless you can make a living at it, which in itself is pathetic.

Just as disconcerting, frankly, are other quotes Murphy served up to the Sports Illustrated website. Sentences that start with "If I was in the same position in the NFL..." Or, "I'm smart enough to know..." And this beauty: "But for me it's a win-win." Not "us," mind you. Me. Maybe next time Mr. Murphy can be a little more subtle when he pimps himself out for an NFL gig.

Which brings me back to the point: We know that for many players and coaches, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are simply a stepping stone, if they're good, to bigger and better things. It's just another uniform. It's a chance to be seen and get paid. And that's fair enough.

But we live here. This is our team. This is our history and it will continue to be passed from generation to generation long after the vast majority of those just passing through are gone.

So I can't believe there wasn't a constituency of football fans out there that got a little nervous, or even a little outraged, when the team's brain trust considers bringing in an individual -- and this can't be understated -- who cannot find employment, despite his considerable athletic talents, in a league that routinely embraces convicted felons as a matter of doing business.

Even Jones claimed on a live chat Tuesday that there's an escape clause in his yet-to-be-official contract with the Bombers that allows him to sign with an NFL team at any time. "I actually got two calls today, so if they tell me tomorrow that Pacman's back (in the NFL), that would be a bummer for Winnipeg fans," Jones said. "At least I'd like come out and play one game."

Great. Glad we were almost here for you, Pacman.

Meanwhile, the Bombers' reported attempts to sign yet another malcontent, former Detroit Lions receiver Charles Rogers, were thwarted because the former first-round pick is still under "indefinite suspension" by the NFL. Lovely.

Look, we're not saying Jones, like any other troubled player, should be denied a second or fourteenth chance. Fullback Mike Sellers is a poster boy for using his two-year stint with the Bombers as a ticket back to The League. Good for him, too. That was a forced marriage that benefited all parties -- the player, the team and the fans.

It's just that the Blue Bombers don't need another NFL castoff with sordid baggage that has trouble getting through customs. They need another Milt Stegall. They need another Poplawski, another Murphy, another Walby.

Or maybe it's just gotten to the sorry state in Bomberville that character and doing the right things is secondary these days to the short-sightedness of the storied franchise's current caretakers. Like they say, any punt returner in a storm.

One can only imagine the agent of Plaxico Burress thinking, "Hmmmm. Winnipeg, eh?," while looking up the Bombers' website. It's good to be known, isn't it?

randy.turner@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition September 3, 2009 C3