Wayne and Kabongo show
Esks swap picks with Ottawa
By GERRY PRINCE -- Edmonton Sun
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Clinton Wayne lost his starting job in Ottawa and will fill in for injured Eskimo Steve Charbonneau. (Sun Media/Jeff Bassett) |
A couple of draft picks meant Clinton Wayne and Patrick Kabongo were gone with the wind in a rare Canadian Football League trade yesterday.
In dire need of a non-import defensive tackle, the Edmonton Eskimos acquired Wayne and the 315-pound Kabongo from the Ottawa Renegades.
The Gades get Edmonton's first- and second-round picks in the 2005 Canadian college draft. Ottawa also acquired the CFL rights to defensive back Korey Banks in the deal.
Banks was on Edmonton's negotiation list and is currently in the Miami Dolphins camp but could wind up a late cut.
"If we weren't going to be happy, we wouldn't have done the deal," said Esks head coach Tom Higgins.
"We had to give up something to get these players, but we were very willing to do it because we think this is a very, very good move for the Edmonton Eskimos."
With non-import tackle Steve Charbonneau sidelined by a torn anterior cruciate ligament, the Esks had to juggle their lineup to offset his loss the last two games.
In Sunday's 57-16 rout of Ottawa, the Green and Gold waded into the game with two defensive ends and utilized CFL rookie Jabari Issa at both the tackle and end positions.
TIME TO TRIGGER A DEAL
When non-import Randy Spencer, now starting in Charbonneau's spot, had to be helped to his feet during that game, Higgins knew it was time to pull the trigger on a deal.
The Esks were already down a starter when D-lineman Randy Chevrier played out his option and signed with the New York Jets in February.
Although Chevrier was cut by the Jets on the weekend, he still has a 10-day window in which he can sign on with any other NFL team.
"It'll be tough when the Canadian draft comes along because we won't get to talk until late in the draft and a lot of people will be gone," Higgins admitted.
"This is not something we traditionally do. But in this situation, this really worked for us. We've only got four picks left (in the '05 lottery) and we haven't collected any."
Ottawa is also pleased with the deal, which is its second with Edmonton in the franchise's three-year history.
Wayne was shopped to every Western Division club but Saskatchewan, which still must play the Gades twice this season.
"This is the best deal that was out there," said Ottawa general manager Eric Tillman. "Everybody knew (Wayne) was going to be traded."
Wayne, 27, started all 18 games last season and finished the year with a personal-best 30 defensive tackles but apparently cleaned out his stall in the Gades' locker-room last week. Word out of Ottawa is the six-foot-two, 290-pounder wasn't a good fit for Gary Etcheverry's defensive scheme this season.
"Overall he just wanted to play more," said Gades head coach Joe Paopao. "He's been unhappy most of the year.
"We just felt, for the situation, this was best for the team. He'd been a starter for a year and a half. When you get relegated to the No. 2 spot, you've still got to go out there and contribute."
FOUR-YEAR CFL VET
Wayne, a four-year CFL vet, was in transit and unavailable for comment yesterday. Barring any unforeseen glitches, the one-time Calgary Stampeder will play in Monday's Labour Day Classic.
The 25-year-old Kabongo, meanwhile, went undrafted both north and south of the border following his career at Nebraska. Kabongo, who stands six-foot-six, signed with the NFL Detroit Lions in April as a defensive end.
Following his release by the Lions, Ottawa worked out the Zaire-born, Montreal-raised Kabongo as an offensive lineman.
Kabongo landed on the Gades' practice roster when he arrived in Ottawa in late July but was recently transferred to Ottawa's negotiation list.
"He's a possible ratio changer," Higgins said of Kabongo, a teammate of Esks' linebacker DeMoine Adams at Nebraska. "He's a big man and he plays with an explosiveness. He played at a very good program. Too good to pass up as well."
LATE HITS: Alberta's provincial centennial patch that will be stitched on the Esks and Stamps jerseys for the Labour Day Classic will be unveiled at a press conference this morning ... A revamped edition of the defunct CFL Magazine is slated for relaunch today. Esks' play-by-play man Bryan Hall and TSN analyst Glen Suitor are among the magazine's contributors.
