Parker’s roller-coaster season

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This article was published 05/10/2023 (768 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

What has Year 2 in the CFL been like for Winnipeg Blue Bombers defensive back Jamal Parker?

“Very weird,” Parker said earlier this week.

He’s not wrong.

The Kent State product was a nice find by the Bombers last year. As a rookie, he made 37 tackles, a sack and an interception while starting eight regular-season games and both playoff games.

He was a favourite to start again in 2023, but was sidelined for the first 11 weeks with an injury before being demoted to the practice roster. With Greg McCrae failing to fill the shoes of injured star kick returner Janarion Grant, Parker was then asked to take over the last three games.

Parker didn’t fare much better as a returner, but now he finds himself back on defence for Friday night’s road game against the B.C. Lions. The 26-year-old will replace corner back Demerio Houston who went down with a knee injury in last week’s 31-21 win over the Toronto Argonauts.

Houston, who’s been placed on the one-game injured list, leads the league with seven interceptions.

Grant is also back in the lineup this week after missing 10 games.

“For me, to be honest, this year has been a legit roller-coaster. You come in as a starter, then you get set back with an injury… then I come back and I’m out of the lineup and I’m just kinda playing specials or I was a healthy scratch,” said the 26-year Parker.

“It’s been a lot of adversity for me because I was always planning on going into Year 2 to take another leap. So, when I got that opportunity to get back on the field, I just do what I do.”

Desmond Lawrence started the season as a starting corner, got hurt, lost his starting gig, and now sits on the practice roster despite being healthy. Rookie Abu Daramy-Swaray, who was released on Thursday, got some starts at corner earlier in the year for an injured Winston Rose before getting sent down to the practice roster.

The secondary is arguably the most competitive area on the team as several names have seen their roles change throughout the year.

“With our secondary, we got so many talented guys and we got a lot of depth. It’s really next man up. It’s like a blessing and a curse,” said Parker.

“I think what makes us so great is we all want to be great and we all want to play, but everyone’s good. It’s not like you’re like, ‘Ah, I should be playing over him.’ It’s like ‘Dang, he’s a baller too, just like how I’m a baller.’ It’s really just like iron sharpening iron… coaching wise, it’s a great problem. For us, it’s not a problem, but it’s tough.”

Roster cuts

The Bombers trimmed seven names off the practice roster on Thursday.

The most notable name was receiver Carlton Agudosi.

The 6-6 wideout made a splash in his first career start in 2022 when he hauled in a pair of touchdown passes against Calgary before suffering a season-ending injury the following week. He was expected to be a factor early on in 2023 with Kenny Lawler being suspended, but Agudosi was held to nine receptions for 120 yards in four games.

Rookie defensive back Daramy-Swaray is another name that was let go despite making some starts this season. In five games, Daramy-Swaray recorded 23 tackles and a forced fumble.

National fullback Konner Burtenshaw, Global punter Karl Schmitz, receiver Oliver Martin, receiver Ronnie Blackmon and defensive lineman Kuony Deng were also released.

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

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Taylor Allen
Reporter

Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor.

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