January gives Blue some relief

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This article was published 16/02/2012 (5307 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It wasn’t all doom and gloom for Winnipeg Wednesday, as the Bombers retained another of their free-agent offensive lineman.

Import Glenn January put his signature on a contract extension with the club, roughly five minutes after free agency started. The signing comes as no surprise, as both sides were close for a while, but it’s nice to finally have his name on a deal, the 28-year-old told reporters.

“Free agency is a stressful process for everybody,” he said. “Figuring out where you’re going to be, and the structure of contracts — there’s a lot of different aspects you have to look at.”

January appeared in all 18 regular-season games and both playoff games in 2011, returning to his starting spot on the O-line after missing the 2010 season with a torn pectoral muscle. The 6-foot-5, 310-pound tackle was named an East Division all-star last year.

“My mentality has always been: If you work hard, good things will happen,” he added.

“Coming off a serious injury to being named a divisional all-star is something to be proud of and we’re very happy we were able to keep another member of our offensive line intact,” Bombers GM Joe Mack said in a statement.

With the loss of Brendon LaBatte (his representation has told the Bombers he will not be coming back to Winnipeg), the club was in the market for an O-lineman or two — even after re-signing non-import guard Steve Morley Tuesday.

January was one of them. Cross his name off the list.

The other is former Bomber Dominic Picard (2006-08), who spent the last three years with the Toronto Argonauts.

Both the Bombers and Saskatchewan Roughriders are interested in Picard’s services, and despite reports the 29-year-old non-import had signed with the Green and White, he was still on the market at press time Wednesday.

— Adam Wazny