Stuck in the middle with two

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/09/2015 (3842 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If the defence is the best part of the 2015 Winnipeg Blue Bombers (it is) and non-import middle linebacker Sam Hurl is one of the best parts of that defence (he is), why is the front office in such a hurry to throw tons of money at Henoc Muamba?

Muamba, of course, just happens to also be a non-import middle linebacker. Heck, Muamba even wore the same number as Hurl — 10 — when he played for the Bombers from 2011 through 2013 before departing for the NFL.

So just how many starting non-import middle linebackers wearing No. 10 does one team need? And can Winnipeg afford to pay Muamba the $225,000-plus per season price tag he is expected to fetch when they’ve already committed to pay Hurl — signed as a free agent last winter — almost $140,000 a year with bonuses?

While you’re pondering those questions, ponder this: What message is all this very public talk about Winnipeg’s desire to land Muamba having on Hurl?

Let’s answer the last question first.

“If he ends up here — great. The more quality football players we can have, the better,” Hurl said Wednesday, when asked about the prospect of Muamba returning.

“But I don’t know many details about the whole situation. And all I can worry about is what I’m doing out here on the field. If the staff decides they want to bring him in, good for us… but until he’s here, I can’t worry about it.

“It is what it is. But I really don’t know anything. I don’t talk to (Bombers GM) Kyle (Walters). So all I can do is my job. I’m getting paid to be here and work and do whatever I can to be the best player I can be on the weekend.”

Indeed, all this talk of Muamba returning is highly speculative in any event. For starters, Muamba has made no secret he is entertaining offers from other CFL teams and has in the last week paid visits to Hamilton, B.C. and Edmonton, with another visit reportedly scheduled for Montreal today.

On top of all that, Muamba still has NFL options available. He’s already worked out for two NFL teams since he was cut by Indianapolis a couple of weeks ago, and has made it clear he will accept any other NFL workout offers.

Put all that uncertainty together and Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea says he’s not even thinking about Muamba right now, much less the effect his return might have on the defence, Hurl or the team’s salary cap.

“It’s very hard to plan for speculation,” O’Shea said following practice Wednesday. “When you’re speculating on where a guy’s going to sign, you’re not doing yourself any favours trying to make plans on that.”

Now, having two high-priced, high-impact middle linebackers on one roster isn’t an entirely new concept in the CFL — the B.C. Lions, for instance, have Solomon Elimimian and Adam Bighill playing together (when both are healthy) and make that work very nicely.

The fact Hurl and Muamba are both Canadians — unlike Elimimian and Bighill — would have huge ratio advantages if the Bombers could figure out a way to get them both on the field at once.

Then there’s this: if anyone knows the advantages of being deep with non-import ratio-breakers at middle linebacker, it’s O’Shea, who played 16 seasons in the CFL as a non-import middle linebacker.

But again, all this is moot until Muamba finally decides what his future holds, and with which team.

In the meantime, O’Shea — perhaps sensing the downside to all this covetous talk about Muamba in Bomberland — went out of his way to make clear he’s been delighted with the play of Hurl.

“I’ve always spoken highly of Sam Hurl. He’s certainly turning into that middle linebacker I’ve asked him to be. His leadership has increased. I watch him in the meeting rooms — he knows where everyone is supposed to be and he’s not afraid to tell them.

“He manages the group very well, he manages the defence out on the field very well. And he makes plays.”

paul.wiecek@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @PaulWiecek

meet the new qb / D5