THROWIN’ ELBOWS WITH BRENDAN MCGUIRE

1. WHAT TO DO WITH CHARLESTON HUGHES: Willie Jefferson is set to earn $205,000 in guaranteed cash if the CFL plays this year and that’s about the same as how much Edmonton Football Team star defensive end Kwaku Boateng is supposed to make in 2021, too. These are the highest paid defensive players in the CFL. So how much would you pay Charleston Hughes? Given the fact Boateng is only 25 years old and Jefferson is about to turn 30, Hughes is not and should not command quite the same dollar. At age 37 and more than a year removed from playing his last down, Hughes is a known, but also risky commodity. I would suggest something in the neighborhood of a base salary for $100,000 and a whole bunch of performance bonuses to push that number up to as high as say $220,000. Hughes deserves to be paid like the others but let’s not forget that pro football is hardly ever about fairness.   

2. WARREN WOODS: I didn’t even know Woodsy all THAT well and yet his death hit me like a ton of bricks. And that, right there, is the magic of Warren Woods. He made everyone feel like they knew him really well. Most of us who have ever worked in the sports media world eventually give up our dream job to grind out a few extra bucks. I guess in some ways, you could even say we choose money over passion. That was never going to happen with Woodsy. Every ounce of him was a broadcaster to his bones. And there’s something pretty great about that.

3. MILANOVICH EXITS EE FOOTBALL TEAM:  Impossible to determine what his impact would have been had he ever coached a game with the Green and Gold. This is a good day for the CFL. His move to the Indianapolis Colts to become their quarterback coach under offensive coordinator and fellow ex-CFL quarterback Marcus Brady is another step toward promoting Canadian football coaches for future NFL employment. But more importantly, let’s not forget Milanovich still had a job with the Jacksonville Jaguars when he chose to leave for Canada. He waited for the right situation to arise before returning back to the NFL. Someone that league wants CHOSE THE CANADIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE. These American football coaches need the CFL a lot more than the CFL needs them. Don’t ever forget that.  

4. CHRIS JONES MIGHT RETURN TO EDMONTON: An amusing and cheeky tweet from Chris Jones on Monday left the twitter-sphere buzzing all afternoon and evening. Jones has expressed interest in returning to the city he left eight days after winning the 2015 Grey Cup. It remains to be seen if the two sides will work out a deal but no one should blame Edmonton GM Brock Sunderland if he decides he doesn’t want a head coach breathing down his neck to replace him. Nor should anyone blame the organization if it decides to bring Jones back, despite Jones dumping them so early in their previous brief but successful marriage. This much is certain: By leaving Saskatchewan where he had a lucrative reported to be north of $600,000-a-year salary and the keys to do almost anything he wanted in exchange for a two-year low profile stay in Cleveland has backfired spectacularly for a head coach likely to earn much less when he returns to the CFL than he did when he left. Chris Jones leaving Saskatchewan didn’t help Chris Jones one bit.

5. OPEN LETTER TO MO EGGER: Dear Mo, ESPN Cincinnati radio host: Since you clearly read this site regularly, I would like to invite you up to Regina to see a Regina Pats game (I’ll buy your ticket but you’ve got to travel up here on your own dime) so you can learn that the WHL is not the World Hockey League as you referred to it recently when you tried to poke fun at Rod and the CFL. As someone who lives in the WHA city that hosted the Cincinnati Stingers and their future hall of famers Mark Messier and Mike Gartner early in their pro careers, I would suggest that you do your homework on the great game of hockey if you expect to make it anywhere in the broadcast world. ESPN is developing a reputation for cheaping out on its talent and just because you work there doesn’t mean you’ve “made it” as a broadcaster or add any meaningful discussion to your listeners. Y’er welcome!    

6. WHL DRAFT CHANGE: Many in the WHL have privately admitted their draft system is a joke due to the fact they draft kids when they are still as young as 14-years-old. That is far too young for any player to be drafted and far too early for any organization to make a choice about any prospect. The excuse for not bumping this up at least a year is because the Western Hockey League (as Mo Egger will be thrilled to learn it is called) would need to skip a draft in order to make that change happen. Hmm, I wonder when a good year might be to make that happen? I dunno, maybe a season where nobody played anyways and therefore nobody would be missing out on any high draft picks? I wonder when that might happen.

7. HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA: Loved the full doubleheader Saturday night and put my cellphone down long enough to see both the Montreal-Vancouver and Ottawa-Winnipeg games in their entirety and enjoyed it all very much. The Senators throwback to their original uniforms is very sharp (Remember! Uniforms do matter). Another thing that struck me is how Hockey Night keeps increasing David Amber’s role and it has become apparent that he is being groomed to become the next Ron MacLean. He would be a good choice as Amber is a great story-teller and actually knows the sport in ways George Stromboulopoulos never did. But even today, MacLean hasn’t lost his touch. You’ve never had a rough interview until you’ve tried to make a visit with a young hockey player sound interesting. I gave up trying years ago but there was MacLean Saturday night turning his chat with Pierre-Luc Dubois into a compelling bit of television. With or without Don Cherry, Ron MacLean is still the best in the business.  

8. 2021 SUMMER OLYMPICS: Just move it back one more time to 2022, already. What’s the delay, here? The International Olympic Committee really is filled with some of the dumbest people on earth.

9. SUPER BOWL 55: I’m over-the-moon about Tom Brady getting back to the Super Bowl with his new team at age 43. It’s inspiring to all of us as we age for a reminder that we don’t quit playing because we get old. Rather, we get old because we quit playing. Disappointed the Bills won’t get their shot to avenge WIDE RIGHT from their last Super Bowl trip to Tampa some thirty years ago nor will they get the chance to punish Tom Brady for tormenting their fans for all those years in the same division. But as one commentator put it, “This matchup is like Jordan vs LeBron”. Tom Brady is Michael Jordan and Patrick Mahommes is LeBron James. It’s hard to be mad about that.  

10. YOUTUBE VIDEO OF THE WEEK: In honor of Larry King, who recently passed away, I direct you to BROOKLYN DODGERS-THE GHOSTS OF FLATBUSH. Provides a fascinating look into where the LA Dodgers originated from. Also touches on the Montreal Royals farm team, Jackie Robinson and legendary Montreal Expo broadcaster Duke Snider’s baseball career. A must-see for anyone fascinated with baseball’s history.

(Follow Brendan on Twitter at @brendanhowardmc)