It’s the end of an era for the Edmonton Eskimos and receiver Adarius Bowman as the team released the seven-year member of the green and gold, who was due a roster bonus Monday.
The fan favourite is a CFL All-Star and was honoured with the 2017 Tom Pate Memorial Award, given to a player who has made a “significant contribution to his team, his community and association.”
“We have the absolute utmost respect for Adarius Bowman,” team officials stressed at the start of the media availability on Monday afternoon.
The Edmonton Eskimos vice-president of football operations and general manager, Brock Sunderland, said Bowman was “a true pro” and “classy” when the team told him the news.
“I’m always going to root for him,” Sunderland said. “I think the world of Adarius Bowman.”
The VP explained decision wasn’t an easy one, but was made because of the options the Eskimos have at wide receiver, adding the money played a role.
“We have a plethora of international wide receivers… There’s salary cap implications.”
READ MORE: Edmonton Eskimos receiver Adarius Bowman nominated for Tom Pate Award
Bowman was due a $140,000 roster bonus in February. The six-foot-three, 215-pound slotback is a three-time CFL All-Star but is coming off a sub-par 2017 season.
Bowman, 32, has cracked the 1,000-yard plateau three times over his six CFL campaigns with Edmonton. Last season, Bowman was limited to 12 games because of a hamstring injury, he recorded 534 yards and scored five touchdowns, he added 97 more yards and two touchdowns in the playoffs.
Prior to last season, Bowman had registered three straight 1,000-yard seasons, recording 325 catches for 4,521 yards and 22 TDs over that span. He also appeared in 17 regular-season contests each year.
Watch: “It was never the intention to be impersonal with Adarius Bowman or Odell Willis.” Allan Watt, vice president of marketing and communications for the Edmonton Eskimos, apologized on Monday.
Bowman, who’ll become a father for the first time this spring, also finished the year strong, registering 20 catches for 338 yards and five TDs in the Eskimos final five games (three regular season, two playoff).
Bowman reportedly earned $260,000 last season and was scheduled to make $265,000 this year, including the bonus. He now becomes a free agent.
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Bowman signed with the Eskimos in 2011 and enjoyed a tremendous amount of success. In 2012, he suffered a severe knee injury which kept him out of action until midway through the 2013 season.
Bowman led the CFL in receiving yards for three straight seasons from 2014 to 2016 and is a three-time Western Division and CFL All-Star.
Bowman helped the Eskimos to a Grey Cup championship in 2015. In 2016, he and Derel Walker combined for the most receiving yards by a duo in CFL history recording 3,310 combined yards.
Overall, during his seven-year career as a member of the Eskimos, Bowman recorded 7,056 yards and 36 touchdowns.
READ MORE: Edmonton Eskimos faced with major decision on Adarius Bowman contract
The Eskimos also announced Monday they had re-signed wide receiver Vidal Hazelton through the 2018 season on a one-year contract extension.
Hazelton appeared in 11 games this past season for the Eskimos, catching 55 passes for 709 yards and four touchdowns.
Hazelton will be entering his third season with the team.
Last January, Bowman launched his non-profit group Adarius 4 Autism, which raises awareness for children with autism spectrum disorder. The program helps children with job placement with the goal of opening a facility where more research and programming can take place.
Bowman won the 2017 David Boone Award handed out annually to one member of the Eskimos “who displays exceptional work in the community and represents the football club in an upstanding and professional manner.”
READ MORE: Edmonton Eskimos trade veteran defensive end Odell Willis
On Friday, the team parted ways with another veteran player, trading defensive end Odell Willis.
The way the team confirmed the release of Bowman was being criticized by some fans on Twitter Monday.
Later on Monday, Bowman retweeted two CFL tweets asking where he might play next.
— With files from Dan Ralph, The Canadian Press and Emily Mertz, Global News