Will Kelly play again?

[Jesse]

Yup, Naylor says that the league added some expectations to Kelly that he would have to adhere to moving forward, but his representatives claim that they are essentially removing his player rights by doing this. All at a stand still.

[TBURGESS]

Not being a union guy (That was my Dad), I had to look it up...

Last chance agreement - a formal, written understanding between an employer and employee, providing a final opportunity for the employee to correct their behavior and retain their job. By outlining specific terms and consequences, this agreement helps to ensure accountability and provides a clear path forward for both parties.

I'm guessing that Kelly doesn't want the league to be able to simply fire him if he doesn't comply with their terms. We don't know what the terms or consequences are in the 'agreement' that wasn't agreed on. Could be it voids his contract, which he certainly wouldn't sign. 

[Jesse]

Not being a union guy (That was my Dad), I had to look it up...

Last chance agreement - a formal, written understanding between an employer and employee, providing a final opportunity for the employee to correct their behavior and retain their job. By outlining specific terms and consequences, this agreement helps to ensure accountability and provides a clear path forward for both parties.

I'm guessing that Kelly doesn't want the league to be able to simply fire him if he doesn't comply with their terms. We don't know what the terms or consequences are in the 'agreement' that wasn't agreed on. Could be it voids his contract, which he certainly wouldn't sign.

Didn't recognize the term, thanks for looking that up.

I guess it would supersede the CBA/CFLPA protections, which is why he doesn't want to agree to it.

[Blue In BC]

The CFL should just cut the string and toss him. It's not good for the league or the Argos.

No organization is going to want a player that will have this hanging over his head. You can't build on that. There is obviously something that concerns the league that required them to not accept his immediate return.

I don't need to know what that is and am good with what they intend to impose. Whether Kelly is willing to accept we'll see.

[The Zipp]

Some more details:

Naylor further expanded on the situation during Friday's edition of OverDrive.
"The meeting between Chad Kelly and the commissioner did in fact happen today. What I believe is the league has tried to impose some further conditions on Chad Kelly. So that, yes, you could be reinstated, but these are the conditions under which you are going to be reinstated. And I don't know that the Argos or Chad Kelly's representatives are on board with that. Specifically one that is known as a "last chance" agreement. Which I believe is sort of a condition that would say 'If we decide that you do anything that runs afoul of our expectations of you, we get rid of you.'"
"Now that, and the pushback is coming saying well that's not the way player discipline works under the collective agreement... basically taking away Chad Kelly's rights as a CFL player under the union if you forced him to accept a last chance agreement. I think there's some back and forth going on this, I think this is going to continue into perhaps the next few hours and days. I think the Argos are scheduled to practice on Sunday. There's some loggerheads on this one. My expectation was there was going to be a path for Chad Kelly to return to the Argonauts coming off their bye. But I think what's always been understood is that there might be some conditions placed on him, and the question is whether those conditions are going to be palatable to Kelly and the Argos and to at least one them, it is not at this time."
The league announced upon suspending Kelly prior to the season that the 2023 Most Outstanding Player must satisfactorily complete mandated counselling sessions and pass an assessment by an independent expert to return following an investigation into a lawsuit filed by the team's former strength and conditioning coach.
The lawsuit alleged that Kelly made repeated unwanted romantic advances that escalated into threatening language. The lawsuit was eventually settled through mediation.
"Mr. Kelly's suspension is the direct result of his behaviour," Ambrosie said at the time. "The addition of mandatory counselling focuses on his need for self-reflection and understanding of his actions. He must take full advantage of this."
Kelly was also suspended a minimum of nine regular-season games and two pre-season games as part of the ban.
A native of Buffalo and the nephew of Pro Football Hall of Fame QB Jim Kelly, the 30-year-old Kelly signed a three-year, $1.865 million extension with the Argos last fall to make him the highest-paid player in the league.
In 2023, the Ole Miss product threw for 4,123 yards on 270-for-394 passing with 23 touchdowns to earn the league's top individual prize.
After a 16-2 regular season, the defending Grey Cup champion Argos fell, 38-17, in the Eastern Final to eventual champions, the Montreal Alouettes.
The Argonauts have gone 5-4 without Kelly this season, with Cameron Dukes and Nick Arbuckle both seeing starts. Toronto will host the Saskatchewan Roughriders next Thursday following their bye.

[TecnoGenius]

I bet this was the plan by Ambrosie all along.  Springing it at the last minute puts pressure on Kelly & Argos to agree just to get him back on the field.  It's a smart move by the league.  Kelly will sign it.

If I'm Argos, I am assigning a babysitter to be with Kelly at all times and I am making sure he is never within 100Y of any female employee, and certainly never alone with one.  If they do that then he cannot do anything untoward, and also can't get hit with a fake accusation.  Just take all the possibilities away and the problem goes away.  Maybe have the babysitter have a go-pro on at all times, too.  Then there can never be any he-said/she-said: it'll all be on film.

I wonder if Kelly is on the spectrum, maybe even rather far along it.  He always seems a bit "off" in interviews and just standing around the sidelines.  Autistic people can have major problems understanding social mores and picking up on cues.  What seems easy for us is very hard for them.  If this is even remotely a possibility they should get official diagnoses as that would go a long way to ameliorating his tarnished rep.  (I say this as someone who has in-laws just like this so I experience it firsthand.)

[Jesse]

I bet this was the plan by Ambrosie all along.  Springing it at the last minute puts pressure on Kelly & Argos to agree just to get him back on the field.  It's a smart move by the league.  Kelly will sign it.

If I'm Argos, I am assigning a babysitter to be with Kelly at all times and I am making sure he is never within 100Y of any female employee, and certainly never alone with one.  If they do that then he cannot do anything untoward, and also can't get hit with a fake accusation.  Just take all the possibilities away and the problem goes away.  Maybe have the babysitter have a go-pro on at all times, too.  Then there can never be any he-said/she-said: it'll all be on film.

I wonder if Kelly is on the spectrum, maybe even rather far along it.  He always seems a bit "off" in interviews and just standing around the sidelines.  Autistic people can have major problems understanding social mores and picking up on cues.  What seems easy for us is very hard for them.  If this is even remotely a possibility they should get official diagnoses as that would go a long way to ameliorating his tarnished rep.  (I say this as someone who has in-laws just like this so I experience it firsthand.)

If I'm a team, and I have to assign a baby-sitter to a player, I'm just cutting them.

[DM83]

Wow! Lots of holier than thou on this board?

[Blueforlife]

Wow! Lots of holier than thou on this board?

Great contribution to the thread.... nothing changes

I can see him coming back but I would not want him on my club

Thanks for the good discussion and info guys

[ModAdmin]

Wow! Lots of holier than thou on this board?

In this day and age players or anyone have no excuse for behaviour like this.  It's not about "holier than thou".  It's about having some respect for women in Kelly's case.  He SHOULD have known better so if he he is removed from the league it would be well deserved. 

[TecnoGenius]

If I'm a team, and I have to assign a baby-sitter to a player, I'm just cutting them.

They won all but 1 meaningful game with Kelly in '23.  They are close to be .500 this season without him.

If the cost of Kelly winning anywhere close to '23 is some minimum wage intern hovering over him with a camera all day, then Pinball pays that cost.

It sounds silly and ridiculous, but Kelly is silly and ridiculous, so it's fitting.  And it would work.

Would you leave Kelly alone in a room with a pretty female staff member??  Or your daughter?

And I'm still not even saying he's guilty or a creep (though probably is a creep): what I'm saying is any perception of impropriety or even fake accusations would be enough to end his career, and the Argos current and subsequent seasons.

TOR really has no choice.

[TecnoGenius]

Man, too many emotional thinkers here, and ones who lack empathy (as in the ability to put themselves in another person or teams' shoes).  Think!  Don't Feel!

Think like a business man and problem solver (Pinball).  You have a clear problem (need a winning QB).  A clear solution (only solution!) (Kelly).  There are costs (optics, bad PR).  Risks (recidivism, lies).  And the only benefit that matters to a CFL GM: WINNING.

So we have these options on the table on this page in the thread:
1. Cut Kelly
2. Babysit Kelly
3. ??

#1 and you keep going ~ .500.  Won't win the EDF.
#2 and you get .600-.900.  Might win the EDF.
#3... I'm open to better options, and I'm sure Pinball is too.

Oh ya, also, 2 words: sunk cost.  Not only the bonus is toast and counts against the SMS, but if you wanted to fire him, should have done it in week 1.  In for 11 weeks, in for a pound.  And SMS woes wouldn't give you enough to trade for any other decent GC-caliber QB.

[Jesse]

They won all but 1 meaningful game with Kelly in '23.  They are close to be .500 this season without him.

If the cost of Kelly winning anywhere close to '23 is some minimum wage intern hovering over him with a camera all day, then Pinball pays that cost.

It sounds silly and ridiculous, but Kelly is silly and ridiculous, so it's fitting.  And it would work.

Would you leave Kelly alone in a room with a pretty female staff member??  Or your daughter?

And I'm still not even saying he's guilty or a creep (though probably is a creep): what I'm saying is any perception of impropriety or even fake accusations would be enough to end his career, and the Argos current and subsequent seasons.

TOR really has no choice.

Again, if I have to ask that question, I cut the player.

[The Zipp]

There should have been enough time to conduct an investigation into the whole thing and if the accusations were false that would have been discovered (much like that punter kid that lost his nfl job cause someone lied about him)

Them being true should be enough for Kelly to be dismissed OR a reasonable "treatment" plan which it sounds like may have not been completed to the degree needed.

Time to move on - no babysitters no isolation from "pretty" girls (what that even means and defined is ridiculous).  There are things in life bigger than wins and losses in a game - this is one of them, Kelly and his sordid past need to not be a part of this incredible institution that is the CFL. Teams lose players to injury all the time and figure it out - this is no different.

[Blue In BC]

Wow! Lots of holier than thou on this board?

Just the opposite I think. The league suspended him for at least 9 games. An out of court settlement happened. He failed his evaluation to show at least some cause to take additional action.

He had a history of misconduct in the NFL.

Do we need more proof that he has issues that cannot be accepted?