Poblah a no-show at rookie gathering

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This article was published 02/06/2011 (5602 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

THE one noticeable absence at Winnipeg Blue Bombers rookie camp: Wide receiver Kito Poblah.

Poblah, a 6-foot-2, 213-pound Canadian playmaker, was selected by the Bombers with the first pick in Monday’s supplemental draft. He was still at his home in Mount Pleasant, Mich., Wednesday as his agent and the club were unable to work out a contract before camp.

When asked about how negotiations were going, Bombers assistant GM Ross Hodgkinson was blunt: “He’s not here yet.”

Mark LeMire, Poblah’s agent, shed more light on the situation.

“We’re going back and forth on some numbers,” he said. “Kito’s ready to be in camp, we just need to make sure we come up with a fair and equitable agreement.”

The impasse reads like this: Had Poblah been ruled eligible for the regular college draft, there would have been a good chance that he would have been the first overall pick. And if the Bombers were willing to forfeit their No. 1 pick in the 2012 draft for the player they wanted now, then they should pay the player accordingly.

Factoring into the Poblah negotiation is the fact the Bombers aren’t thrilled with the idea of having to dole out so much of their salary cap space to yet another high draft pick. Opening the chequebook for three high-level prospects who may or may not be ready for prime time isn’t a desirable situation cap-wise, but it’s one the team might have to live with moving forward.

“The fact the team has already signed two first-round picks shouldn’t be Kito’s problem,” LeMire said.

Remember him?

One player who Bomber fans will want to track the progress of this season is Steven Jyles. The former Bomber pivot, traded to Toronto for the fourth overall pick in the college draft, did not participate in the Argos’ camp Wednesday due to tenderness in his throwing shoulder. Jyles, who started 11 games for the Bombers in 2010, tore ligaments in his shoulder last October.

Odds and ends

All four quarterbacks were at rookie camp Wednesday, including Buck Pierce. The veteran looked very sharp … Also having good workouts were first overall pick LB Henoc Muamba and import DE Jason Vega, a free agent signed out of Northwestern.

— Wazny