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I used to really like Barrin Simpson when he played for us and was sorry to see him go. From Google News:

Controversy continues for Bombers with Barrin Simpson asking for trade

By Judy Owen (CP) – 18 hours ago

WINNIPEG — The controversy continues for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

Last week, the spotlight was on the Bombers when they almost signed former NFL bad boy Adam (Pacman) Jones. This week, veteran linebacker and ordained minister Barrin Simpson asked the 3-6 Bombers to trade him because his playing role has been reduced.

Instead, they put him on the injured list for Sunday's home game against Saskatchewan and his future is up in the air.

"I felt like if you're telling me I'm doing my job and you're telling me I'm playing great and you want to go with a different (linebacking) combination, then, well, that's not a great explanation to what's going on," Simpson told reporters after he watched Friday's practice from the sidelines.

Simpson, 31, is being replaced by Joe Lobendahn as the starting middle linebacker.

Limited in practice because of painful turf toe, Simpson said he feels he's playing at the top of his game after coming back from surgery last season to repair a torn pectoral muscle.

Simpson is second in the CFL in defensive tackles with 58, five back of Hamilton's Jamall Johnson.

Known for his leadership skills, the defensive captain said he doesn't think he's a selfish player, noting he helped Lobendahn last season before he was also injured and did the same with replacement Zeke Moreno.

Simpson, who signed with the Bombers in 2006 after being unhappy with a diminished role with the B.C. Lions, said he holds no ill feelings about what's happening now.

"It's not anything like, 'Oh, I'm bitter towards the Blue Bomber organization and I'm bitter towards the coaches,' No," Simpson said.

"There's been no fussing, yelling, screaming 'I'll grab you.' There's been none of that."

Simpson acts as his own agent and said he'd need written permission from the Bombers before he would contact other teams, but he hasn't ask for that and he'll wait and see what transpires.

Head coach Mike Kelly said he was surprised "to some degree" that Simpson asked to be traded, but right now he's not interested in doing that.

"He can go ahead and say that and do that, but ultimately he's not going to force our hand in anything," Kelly said, adding he's disappointed when a player puts himself ahead of the team.

Kelly said Simpson told special teams coach Rick Campbell after last week's Saskatchewan game that if his toe swelled badly he was unsure how much he was helping the team.

With that in mind, and the two injections Simpson gets each game, Kelly said they decided to reduce his role so he'd be around for the long haul. They had planned to rotate him in one package Sunday and maybe have him replace Lobendahn if he wasn't playing well.

"I think he has value for us and he's a good football player," Kelly said. "Football players get asked to do a lot of things for the good of the team."

He doesn't think the situation is very different than the one with former Bombers receiver Derick Armstrong. He was released after refusing to be a backup in the season-opening game. He also had a shouting match with Kelly.

Defensive tackle Doug Brown didn't sound hopeful things could be ironed out with Simpson.

"You can't have guys that are unhappy, especially if they're publicly unhappy," Brown said.

"In order to keep things right in the locker-room, you have to make a move."

The Simpson saga is just one more episode in a soap opera season for the Bombers.

"It's just been the nature of the year for us so far, there's just been a number of issues and things that have arisen that have been really high profile in the community and a lot of attention, not necessarily all good," Brown said.

But he and his teammates said they can handle being under the microscope.

"Someone looking into the team would be like, this is crazy, all these things are happening. Every week there's something different," centre Obby Khan said.

"But from the locker-room point of view, I don't think any player would say it's out of the norm. Stuff like this happens all the time, every year in every locker-room I've been in."

And he isn't viewing Simpson in a bad light.

"Ultimately he's still a friend, he's a teammate and he's gone through blood, sweat and tears for all of us," Khan said. "I've known Barrin for four years and I would welcome him back. And as far as I'm concerned, he's not gone anywhere yet so he's still my teammate."

Notes: The Bombers had receiver Dudley Guice Jr. on the field Friday. The Northwestern State product was recently cut by the NFL Tennessee Titans.

Wonder if he'd ever return here? Thoughts?....

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