Justin Dunk
Ticats.ca
Corey Chamblin has another familiar face to work with in his defensive backfield after Hamilton acquired non-import defensive back Dee Webb in a trade with the Toronto Argonauts on Tuesday evening. Webb played in 11 games with the Argos this season, recording 15 tackles, seven special teams tackles and one interception. Back in 2009, Webb’s rookie year in the CFL, he and Chamblin worked together in Calgary for one season.
“I played under Coach Chamblin in Calgary, so I was excited to come back and play for him, he’s a good coach and he taught me a lot of things in Calgary,” Webb said. “So I’m excited to come here and learn more from him.”
Going to Toronto in the deal for Webb was receiver Maurice Mann who caught 35 balls for 346 yards and two scores in eight games with Hamilton this season.
“The receiver that they asked for specifically was Maurice Mann,” head coach Marcel Bellfeuille said. “It’s never a matter of who’s expendable, it was just a situation that was somebody that they wanted, that they coveted. They wanted an experienced guy who could do the job and we needed a defensive back.”
“It was important for us to fill our needs. And because we had some good receivers here like Bakari Grant and Aaron Kelly who have played this year and understand what we are doing, it was easier for us to make the move.”
When Webb first found out about the deal late Tuesday evening he was surprised.
“It’s a business so I had to go with it and the Ticats are my new home. I will come over here to compete and give all I have,” Webb said. “I’m blessed to be in the situation I am in, I’m glad another organization wanted me and felt like I could come in and help them.”
Bellefeuille was impressed with what he saw from Webb, who wore number 18 at practice on Wednesday, in his first workout with the Tiger-Cats.
“He moved around well, he has some spring in his legs and speed,” he said. “I like how he settled into some of the zone coverages. He understands how long to stay under a vertical and when to push and when not to, so that was positive.”
After seeing what Webb could do while together with the Stampeders, Chamblin was very excited when the opportunity arose to get him back on his defence.
“He’s a guy who I was very high on,” Chamblin said. “When he was with us in Calgary he played the boundary half which is the hardest spot to play. I went back and looked at some film, although that was two years ago, he did an excellent job.”
One aspect Chambin likes about Webb is his age. The former Florida Gator is just 26 years old and still has lots of tread left on his tires.
“Dee is still a young guy. He is still at the age where he can be molded to be a good CFL player,” Chamblin said. “He’s a guy that will be around for a while.”
Any good defensive back is a confident one and Webb certainly doesn’t lack in that area.
“Dee is not short on confidence. He was a highly rated player coming out of college. He did some good things down at Florida – he’ll be ready to compete,” Chamblin said.
Webb will look to help shore up Hamilton’s secondary and said he should be able to pick up the defensive system quickly because of his previous experience with Chamblin.
