It has already been an eventful offseason for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, as the team has hired a new head coach, reorganized their front office, and signed safety Stavros Katsantonis and five-time all-star Brandon Revenberg to two-year extensions.
The Ticats still have plenty of work to do to fill out the roster for 2024, however, with over 30 pending free agents slated to hit the open market in February, including mainstays like Dylan Wynn, Ted Laurent and Simoni Lawrence.
Roster changeover was inevitable for a team that failed to live up to their championship aspirations last season but the turnover could be more drastic than anticipated with a revamped front office and coaching staff.
Here are the five players I think the Ticats should try their best to bring back and five they should let walk.
Bring back: Tim White
As one of the league’s most explosive playmakers, inking White to a new pact is a must for the new regime. The 29-year-old led the CFL in receiving yards in 2023 and saw a steep increase in usage once Scott Milanovich took over as play-caller in August. White posted five of his six 100-plus-yard games and scored six of his eight touchdowns over the final 10 games of the season.
While White was not utilized at all in the team’s playoff loss, finishing the game with zero catches on three targets, he should still be viewed as a cornerstone piece for the franchise and a no-brainer to bring back for a fourth season in Black and Gold.
Let walk: Matthew Shiltz
Shiltz had an opportunity to stake his claim as this team’s starting quarterback when he was given the start in the East Semi-Final. He failed to seize that opportunity and his performance was so poor that it is possible he played himself off the roster.
At 31, we know exactly what kind of quarterback Matthew Shiltz is and that is not going to change. The Ticats need to develop their next starter, not rely on a stop-gap such as Shiltz. With Bo Levi Mitchell’s future uncertain, Taylor Powell is due for a promotion — either to the starting job or as the developmental No. 2. Shiltz does not fit into that equation.
Bring back: Simoni Lawrence
This one is more sentimental than practical, but I simply cannot see Simoni Lawrence wearing another CFL team’s uniform. He would not be the first all-time great to leave a team late in his career but letting the man who has epitomized Tiger-Cats football for over a decade playing elsewhere would just feel wrong.
Admittedly, I doubted whether Lawrence could find his top gear again, but his play warrants a return as well. I have been pleasantly surprised by how he still shows the ability to be a game-wrecking player on occasion, making him as valuable a piece on the field as he is in the locker room.
Let walk: Ja’Gared Davis
A late-season push notwithstanding, the Ja’Gared Davis 2.0 experiment in Hamilton was a disaster. He is no longer the quarterback-harassing dynamo he was in his prime and the team’s attempt to deal him to the Stampeders in the summer showed their lack of faith in him.
Even after the trade was rescinded and Davis returned to the lineup, anyone with functioning eyes saw that he was a player on the decline in 2023. The 33-year-old had his worst season as a professional and bringing him back would not make any sense.
Bring back: Dylan Wynn
If this were based on his last two seasons, Wynn would be a candidate for departure due to the amount of time he has missed due to injury. But despite playing in a combined 19 games over that span, he is still the heart and soul of the Tiger-Cats’ front line.
The 30-year-old remains the same game-wrecker who recorded 11 sacks in 2019 and would form a stout interior tandem with Casey Sayles, much in the way he did with Ted Laurent in 2019 and 2021. Wynn just needs to stay healthy and I am willing to bank on him being able to do just that.
Let walk: Tunde Adeleke
There is a segment of the Ticats faithful that believes the team can keep Adeleke despite signing Katsantonis to what is likely a lucrative extension, but that is unlikely. He was the league’s highest-paid defensive back last season and won’t be taking enough of a pay cut to make this worthwhile.
We saw the team try to play both Canadian defensive backs last year and the results were less than ideal. Adeleke simply does not have the skills to play field halfback at a high level and I do not think a move to strong-side linebacker would help either. Enjoy your new starting safety, Ottawa.
Bring back: Jameer Thruman
While the Ticats’ defence struggled throughout the season, Thurman was one of the few bright spots. He set a career-high in tackles and displayed plenty of the playmaking ability that made him such a coveted signing in the winter.
The former Calgary Stampeder notched two interceptions, forced two fumbles, registered five sacks and brought an element to Hamilton’s defence that was missing when Jovan Santos-Knox manned the middle. At just 28 years of age, Thurman still has plenty left in the gas tank and the team would be wise to lock him up before other teams can talk to him.
Let walk: Chris Edwards
The case for letting Edwards go is a simple one and probably does not need an explanation.
He is a loose cannon who simply cannot be rewarded with an extension after twice pulling cowardly stunts in games against the Montreal Alouettes. Edwards’ latest knucklehead behaviour will see him suspended for the first three games of the 2024 season.
His level of play simply does not outpace the embarrassment he brings to the franchise. Let him be someone else’s problem next season.
Bring back: Jamal Davis II
Davis was only with the Tiger-Cats for a short spell but his impact was noticeable nonetheless. You saw a dramatic uptick in the efficacy of the defensive line after he was added.
While he may be kicking himself for requesting his release from the eventual Grey Cup champions, he found a home in Hamilton and unless the NFL comes calling again, that is where he should remain.
Let walk: Kyle Saxelid
Once thought to be the heir apparent to Chris Van Zeyl, Saxelid has spent more time on the trainer’s table than on the field since he arrived in Hamilton via trade ahead of the 2022 season. The 28-year-old has only dressed in 11 of 36 games the past two seasons, including just twice last year.
The Tiger-Cats do not have the best Canadian depth up front thanks to a poor draft record, but Saxelid has been too unreliable to trust. It’s best if Hamilton just cuts bait.
