Threesomes seem to be all the rage in Montreal sports concessions. If the one bringing together the Canadian goalkeepers Samuel Montembeault, Cayden Primeau and Jake Allen seems to want to drag on forever, the one in the Alouettes backfield is about to come to an end.
That’s what Birds general manager Danny Maciocia admitted Tuesday about running backs William Stanback, Walter Fletcher and Jeshrun Antwi.
“Jason (Maas, head coach) and I are going to sit down soon to clarify the situation in the backfield,” Maciocia said by videoconference during the CFL winter meetings currently taking place in Nashville. in Tennessee, at the same time as the American Football Coaches Association Convention.
“Whether it’s Stanback, Fletcher or Antwi, we will have to make difficult decisions. Realistically, we will not be able to keep them all due to salary constraints, he continued. I wouldn’t say we’re taking our time, but we want to analyze the situation and make the best possible decisions for the team.
“In an ideal world, I would like to be able to bring back two of them,” added the 56-year-old Montrealer. I would then like to add depth in training camp, to create a competitive environment at that position, and then see how things go. Kind of like we did last year with our group of pass catchers. »
Maciocia, who attended the American college football championship game Monday evening in Houston due in particular to his affinity with the University of Michigan program, also indicated that he had initiated discussions for a contract extension with Austin Mack representatives. The latter, however, ratified a new pact with the Atlanta Falcons on Monday.
“We wanted to secure his services, and we had the necessary space on our payroll to do so, but the opportunity was just too good for him,” explained the Quebecer about Mack. I approached several other guys too, including (Tyson) Philpot. But we have to be careful in how we invest, and selective with who we want to reward, because we don’t have the luxury of being able to do it with everyone. »
These are the two criteria that remain in his mind when asked who of Stanback, Fletcher and Antwi could be back next year to try to defend the title of CFL champions. Reading between the lines, however, it appears that Antwi has a leg up on the other two.
“We had discussions with Antwi and his agent, because we must not forget that in his case he is Canadian. Do I need to be reminded how important national players are (to respect the CFL’s national/international player ratio)? I don’t know where this is going, but we’re not that far (from an agreement). We’ll see what the next few days bring, but I hope he’s back, like Antwi wants him too,” he summed up.
Maciocia also praised the qualities of Stanback and Fletcher, two very different running backs. If Stanback is the type of player who punishes the opponent with power runs, Fletcher “is capable of hitting the home run” with explosive runs.
“The question is how we can keep two of the three, while adding depth to that position. This is what we will try to determine in the coming days and weeks,” concluded Maciocia.
In short, difficult decisions will await Alouettes management between now and the opening of the CFL free agent market on February 13 at noon.