Ticats banking on Good Hank

If the Henry Burris of old plays like he can instead of playing like an old Henry Burris, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats have just acquired one of the best quarterbacks in their recent history.

Burris' arrival from Cowtown to Steeltown in a trade will be publicly announced this week, along with the Cats' new head coach. With all the off-season glory in Toronto with a new coach and a new quarterback, the Ticats have done little of consequence to create similar enthusiasm. The trade will certainly do that.

Burris comes to the Ticats in exchange for quarterback Kevin Glenn, centre Mark DeWit and a conditional draft pick.

For whatever reason, Burris' play tailed off badly last year beginning on Labour Day. He was so erratic he was eventually benched for the final three regular season games and the playoffs, giving way to younger backup Drew Tate.

Once the Argos acquired Ricky Ray in a trade from Edmonton, there really was no other place for Burris to play. With the exception of Winnipeg, which has starting quarterback Buck Pierce, backup Alex Brink and third-stringer Joey Elliott all currently unsigned, every team is set at quarterback. Pierce showed his leadership skills in the Grey Cup (the team lost simply because B.C. was that much better); the only concern is his durability. Brink, if he can stay healthy, appeals to me as a youngster who could start for another team in a year or two. If Winnipeg signs both quarterbacks, it will make for an interesting battle in training camp.

While Saskatchewan's Darian Durant slumped last year, he is still young and the Riders clearly weren't ready to give up on him to acquire Burris. Besides, if Burris went back to Saskatchewan, where he is hated for leaving the team to sign with Calgary as a free agent in 2005, it would have been truly amazing.

Exactly why Burris flamed out last year in Calgary is hard to say. He's had some embarrassing incidents off the field in recent years. There was the issue of him wearing a bra at a party and the photo went viral. In addition, some remarks he's made on Twitter haven't gone over well. It's been suggested he wasn't as popular anymore with his teammates, and clearly the fans had had enough of him. He simply had to go elsewhere for his good and the team's.

Perhaps a change of place will rekindle Burris' athleticism. You don't just become terrible in half a season. Then again, he can be Good Hank one play, Bad Hank the next. He should have enough motivation and desire to at least show that the second half of last year wasn't the beginning of the end for him.

Glenn will serve as a useful backup to Tate and will try hard for playing time. Tate shows tremendous ability, but he needs a full season as a starter to see if he had can handle the role. He might be the next Travis Lulay, who stepped up as a full-time starter in B.C.

Glenn had an unsettling season in 2011 and was clearly at odds with head coach Marcel Bellefeuille, who was fired after the season. He goes into Calgary where former quarterback, John Hufnagel, is head coach and another former pivot, Dave Dickenson, is the offensive co-ordinator. He should fit in well there. This is a good acquisition for the Stamps, who aren't desperate for a starter but wanted a proven veteran as the backup. DeWit is a youngster with upside, but if centre Marwan Hage comes back from a knee injury, he is one of the best at his position in the league.

There's a conditional draft choice that could go Calgary's way if Burris lights it up. If he does, it will be well worth the pick.

With new quarterbacks in both Toronto and Hamilton, it is like 1996 when the Argos signed free agent Doug Flutie and Hamilton acquired free agent Matt Dunigan. The rivalry started off strongly, but Dunigan suffered a career-ending injury one third of the way through the season. The Argos won back-to-back Grey Cups, while the Tiger-Cats went in reverse.

But when the Ticats acquired veteran Danny McManus as a free agent in 1998, it changed everything for Hamilton. They made it to the Grey Cup and lost, but won it the next year. They haven't had a future Canadian Football Hall of Fame quarterback, which Burris will one day become, since McManus.

This is not to say that Ray and Burris will instantly create mad dashes for ticket sales in both cities, but at least the southern Ontario rivalry has a new twist to it. Both teams have taken the quarterbacks of arch-rivals in Alberta in recent years. Now they will experience the battle in Ontario. Let the smack talk began.

There were concerns about the quarterbacking situations with both teams. The additions of both instantly improve Toronto and Hamilton at the most important position. That said, Montreal still has Anthony Calvillo, who is still playing amazingly well nearing the age of 40, and has arguably the best receiving corps in the league. The Argos' and Ticats' current receiving groups need significant upgrading, in particular Toronto's.

The only concern about this deal is that for several years the Ticats have traded for, or acquired via free agency, a marquee player and it hasn't worked out. Quarterbacks Jason Maas and Casey Printers bombed in Hamilton. Running back Kenton Keith did nothing for the Ticats after they shelled out big coin to sign him as a free agent.

So, time will tell if this is a good move by the Ticats that can turn into a great move or a good move gone badly again.

Perry Lefko keeps you connected to all the news in the CFL on sportsnet.ca. He is also a regular contributor on other sports, including the UFC.