‘I will not pay him $300,000’: Eugene Lewis questions lead to Ed Hervey rant

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Edmonton Elks’ general manager Ed Hervey has made his approach with star pending free agent receiver Eugene Lewis clear: let the league’s open market decide his value.

“I don’t know what his price tag is going to be. We’re going to see what the market sets for him. If someone is interested in that ticket, then more power to them. We have other areas on our roster that we have to address,” Hervey said from the CFL’s winter meetings on Tuesday.

“Not looking to [re-sign him] before free agency. I’m sure he’s going to get to the window. We’ll let the market reset itself with the receivers. We have more pressing needs on our roster. I don’t know how else to explain it. I put my resources in other areas. With respect, I think he’s an excellent receiver, but we’re not paying that kind of money for receivers.”

The 31-year-old was the highest-paid player at his position in 2024, earning $320,000. That was $35,000 more than Kenny Lawler and $90,000 more than Dalton Schoen made with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers last year. Those two pass catchers were the second and third-highest-paid receivers in the CFL, respectively.

“Each team does their own thing and where they choose to allocate their resources. There’s no way I even remotely think about allocating that much of our cap to that position. I played it so don’t get me wrong, I do respect and appreciate the position, but there’s no way that, not at least not while I’m in Edmonton, we’re gonna even come close to those numbers,” Hervey said.

“I’m not going to get into discussion where [Lewis’ price] needs to get to. We’re going to see where, that’s what. That’s the beauty of free agents is that the market will dictate where the value of the receivers are. I can tell you as honest as I’ve always tried to be with the media, whether it’s been perceived as negative or positive, there’s no way that I’m investing that kind of money into that position this year.”

Lewis registered 74 receptions for 1,070 yards with a league-leading 10 touchdowns — including at least one for eight straight games — last season. He has played 97 games over seven seasons in the CFL, notching 398 catches for 6,261 yards with 41 touchdowns, including three 1,000-yard seasons.

“I’ll be honest with you and with all of you who keep asking this question: put yourself in the shoes of the player. He has an expectation and there’s that line. Then put yourself in the shoes of the organization or myself. Am I best to insult a player who’s used to making a certain amount of money by putting out what I have allocated for that position? Or am I best served to allow the market to dictate so he can get a sense of what his value is to the rest of the league? Then have the negotiation as far as talking dollars because at least the numbers that I could be speaking with them about are relatively close to the rest of the market — if in fact, the market is something that I want to participate in,” Hervey said.

“Someone who’s making 320 grand and I come in and say: ‘Hey, I want to pay you 220 to 250 — think about the significance of the reduction that the player has to accept and swallow. Then the negotiation starts off on the bad foot that’s coming from experience of playing the position and playing in the league. It is better to maintain a neutral relationship and allow the market itself to show. If the market goes down to 270, to 260, to 250, then we have an opportunity to decide whether or not that is something that we want to engage in conversation or we move forward and go in a different direction.”

“When someone’s making that kind of money at the position, personally, me, when I look at our roster, that is not a number that we’re going to pay. It is better for me, in a world where I’m trying to maintain some kind of working relationship with the player and his agent and discuss terms, to allow the market to dictate where his value is. Rather than me put a number in front of him, then it starts off in a contentious way, and we don’t get anything done. Those usually end in an impasse and things never get done — that’s from experience.”

Hervey indicated he has not yet had discussions with Lewis or his agent about a contract extension. He has been named a CFL all-star three times, including this past year, an East Division all-star three times, and a West Division all-star once.

“I’m trying to paint a picture for you, that I don’t know Eugene Lewis at all. You have to think that those situations that you speak of, a lot of the teams have a relationship, they have a working relationship with their players, they can approach them in that way. Where I’m coming in, I don’t even think I shook his hand on the field post-game or pre-game, I don’t know him at all or his agent,” Hervey said.

“I’m saying the strategy that I prefer to take in this instance is to allow the market to show what is true value. If someone’s willing to pay him 300, great. If it goes down, it’s within a range that makes sense, and Edmonton is a place that he wants to be, then we can have a conversation and try to see what that looks like. I can tell you unequivocally — I’m not paying 300. That’s pretty clear. You can quote it and put it any which way you want. We will not be doing that.”

Justin Dunk
Justin Dunk is a football insider, sports reporter and anchor.