Calgary cut now in Blue and Gold

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 24/06/2015 (4106 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

ONE team’s cut can be another’s treasure.

The Bombers are hoping it can turn out that way, having added veteran defensive back Lin-J Shell, 33, to the roster on Monday.

Shell, dropped by the Calgary Stampeders at Saturday’s roster deadline, was on the field in Winnipeg Tuesday, confidence and positive outlook in tow.

“I’m a utility guy,” Shell said. “Wherever coach needs me. I’ll make sure I know the entire defence. I try to bring that confidence and that leadership to the younger guys so that we can grow as a unit.

“At the end of the day, you’re only as good as your weakest link. I try to make sure everybody is as strong as they could possibly be.”

Shell has played six CFL seasons, including in Montreal and Toronto when O’Shea was an assistant there.

“It’s more than a pleasure to come out here to try to knock some heads in Blue and Gold,” Shell said. “I was given a couple of options. I played for Osh before. He’s one of those guys, a natural-born leader. Any time you want to get out here and play for somebody, you want to give them your heart and Osh is one of those guys that if he asked me to do it, I’d do it.

“Brick wall and everything, I’m running through it.”

O’Shea was also confident he knew what he and the Bombers are getting.

“He’s a vet,” the coach said. “He’s a pro. He has a lot of experience in a lot of difference defences. So I think he picks things up easily. He’s already communicating first day out here. He’s communicating with the guys around him out on the field.

“He demands a lot of himself and of his teammates. He’ll never lower the bar. He loves to play special teams as well. You can plug him in anywhere.”

Based on Tuesday’s practice, the Bombers may be contemplating sending Shell into Saturday’s season opener in Saskatchewan.

Even though Shell was brought into the practice roster, the Bombers do have defensive back Maurice Leggett on the one-game injured list for this week.

“That’s a ways away,” O’Shea said, deflecting the question. “We still have to figure that out.”

Shell vowed to be ready if asked to play this week.

“I’m not even looking that deep into it,” he said. “At the end of the day, if coach says you’re up, then I’m up. Until then, I’m in the books, studying.

“If they need me to play safety, it’s safety. Boundary corner, half (back), wherever it is, if they need me to play nose tackle, I’ll play it.

“It’s football. I love the game and I love these coaches, and it’s one of those things where if they need it, I’ve got it.”

tim.campbell@freepress.mb.ca