ALOUETTES TURN UP THEIR NOSE AT JESSE PALMER'S ROSE; OR, I WISH I COULD HAVE JESSE'S DAD

Well, here's one more guy with a vested interest in who's going to own Ottawa's next CFL team. Ottawa native Jesse Palmer, the former Bachelor, has been cut loose by the San Francisco 49ers, leaving him at loose ends as far as his football future goes.

What perfect timing. He can come back to Ottawa just as thousands of university chicks are descending on the city to start a new school year, eager to show off those summer tans and new piercings. Matt Leinart, eat your heart out.

The Montréal Alouettes hold Palmer's CFL playing rights, but the news of his availability seems to have had about as much impact on Alouettes GM Jim Popp as a new hardware-store flyer: "If and when he is ready to come up here, I'm sure he will call ... If he wants to come, it has to be under our circumstances."

The twist is that Palmer's father, Bill, is leading one of the two groups that is serious (read: probably the groups Frank D'Angelo isn't involved with) about reviving the CFL in Ottawa.

So it's entirely plausible that if Bill Palmer's group lands Ottawa CFL Team Version 3.0,* Jesse Palmer could have a soft landing in his hometown next season. Even if it the Jeff Hunt-led group that is granted the franchise, they would have to at least consider trying to acquire him.

So it looks like anyone who ever resented Jesse Lumsden for supposedly following in Daddy's footsteps has been hatin' on the wrong Jesse. Neil Lumsden, a former superb CFL running back in his own right and a capable football analyst for Rogers Sportsnet, would likely be the first to admit he's done whatever he can to help his son's football career, but he has never had to resort to trying to buy a team for his son to play on.

By the way, I might be the only person who knows this, but the two Jesses have been on the same football field before. Two years ago, when Jesse Lumsden was having his record-breaking year at McMaster, Palmer, then at the height of his Bachelor fame (such as it was) was on hand to do some sort of promotion at a Mac home game against the Queen's Golden Gaels.

During a TV timeout, Palmer came on the field to throw a pass to a "couple lucky fans." Just to show you the gap between the average Joe Sixpack and a pro athlete, even a clipboard-carrying, backwards baseball cap-wearing depth-chart filler, Palmer flicked the ball about 50 yards as easily as you would toss a wadded-up ball of paper. He didn't even have to take his jacket off.

Very impressive. Of course, wouldn't you know it, some A-hole in the Queen's section had to yell, "That's the first pass he's completed all season!" (Who was that guy? Wink.)

This is off on another tangent, but could Jesse Palmer be a prime example of a false selection process that takes place with QBs? At the grassroots level, tall, good-looking kids get selected to play quarterback, since it's assumed they have the leadership qualities and the skill set needed to play the position. In his case, it didn't hurt that his dad was also his coach throughout most of his youth-football days.

He managed to parlay that into a nearly 10-year stint south of the border, even though he never once managed to win the starting quarterback job outright, even in college with the Florida Gators. That's actually kind of impressive, but his run had to come to an end.

For a quarterback, being a clipboard-carrying, backwards baseball cap-wearing depth-chart filler in the NFL a little like moving in with your parents after graduation and working at Tim Hortons. At 22, it's understandable. At 25, still somewhat tolerable. At Palmer's age, 27, maybe you should start looking for real work.

Oh, and as far as quarterbacks with ties to the CFL goes, it looks like Casey Printers might get cut by the Kansas City Chiefs, although at least one guy says they would be stupid to let him get away. Hey, the B.C. Lions haven't had a quarterback controversy in about 10 months, so why the hell not?

(* "Ottawa CFL Team Version 3.0" would be a good name, since it's a nod to the capital's hi-tech sector. Hey, anything but "Rough Riders.")

Related:
The Bachelor headed to CFL? (Rogers Sportsnet)
Palmer's primary passing option now appears to be Canada (Ottawa Citizen)
Hamilton, Have No Fear, Jesse Will Soon Be Here (Aug. 30)
The Case For The Canuck Quarterback (Aug. 11)

That's all for now. Send your thoughts to neatesager@yahoo.ca.