VERO BEACH, Fla. -- The great Canadian quarterback debate is nothing new, but it's back in the news this year thanks to the strong combine performance and the talents of Manitoba Bisons pivot Jordan Yantz.

There are some football fans who bleed nothing but red and white when it comes to their quarterbacks. They want homegrown pivots to be given the chance over American backups -- even if they're not as good. How are they going to get better otherwise?

Then there are those who would love to see young Canadian quarterbacks get a chance, but there would have to be benefits elsewhere. Count Toronto Argonauts general manager Jim Barker as a member of that group.

Barker always tells it like it is, and he had both good and bad things to say for those wanting to see more Canadian pivots get a chance in the CFL.

First, the bad, which has plenty to do with the fact a quarterback doesn't count as one of the 21 Canucks each CFL team has to dress for a game.

"Some day they're gonna be on the same playing field, but at this point they're not," Barker said recently. "We have to look at it and say: Is (Yantz) better than Mitchell Gale or Logan Kilgore or Trevor Harris, and we don't think he is. If he was one of 21, he doesn't necessarily have to be better. He needs to be in the ball park. He's in the ball park."

Barker believes the solution is simple if Canadian quarterbacks are going to be developed at the professional level -- make him count towards the Canadian quota.

The idea has been discussed, and teams would want to be able to put another designated import on their roster if they develop a Canuck gunslinger. The belief is teams would abuse the system by signing a Canadian quarterback just so they could get another DI, and not develop the quarterback.

"Personally, I want to see Canadian quarterbacks get the same advantage as every other Canadian," Barker said. "I want that kid who's 12 years old to be able to go to an Argo game, and maybe it's just the pre-game, but see a guy who's what he is: a Canadian quarterback on the field.

"Maybe he's taking warmups. Maybe he's the short yardage guy on third-and-one. It doesn't matter. He's on a professional football roster, just like linebackers can do now and offensive linemen can do now and wide receivers."

If that rule had been in place years ago, Barker believes there would be Canadian quarterbacks on rosters today.

"I've said to people: If the rule was what I wish it was, there's a chance Danny Brannagan's still on our Toronto Argonauts," he said. "It makes it so tough for that guy when he's not competing the way every other Canadian in the organization is. It's totally a different situation for him, and it's not fair. But it's the way the rules are."

For what it's worth, Barker was more impressed with Yantz at the combine than he thought he'd be.

"He's accurate. He throws a great deep ball. He's got a good release. He runs better than I thought he does. He's a solid player," Barker said.

LEGAL WOES

TSN's Rick Westhead reported Friday the CFL Players' Association has parted ways with its long-time lawyer, Ed Molstad, amid concerns about how much he was billing the organization for his services.

The CFLPA, according to Westhead, filed a complaint with the Law Society of Alberta last fall raising concerns about whether Molstad had been overcharging the league's players, but it was dismissed in March.

Westhead added the CFLPA checked with other lawyers and found the annual rate Molstad was charging was more than what was normal for an organization the size of its union.

EVERYBODY HURTS

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats went over the salary cap in 2014, and they blamed it on the number of injuries the team suffered.

The Ticats indeed had a league-worst 351 man-games lost due to injury, which was 51 more than the next most-banged up team, Edmonton, who lost 300 contests. Winnipeg was the third most injured squad at 272.

The least injured team in 2014 was the B.C. Lions, who had only 156 man-games lost due to injury.

All injury numbers in the CFL have to be taken with a grain of salt, however, because teams often hide healthy players on the long-term injured list so their salaries don't count against the cap.

THE NEXT ONES

The Bombers and Eskimos both held free-agent camps Saturday in advance of their mini-camps that begin Sunday morning on opposite sides of Florida.

The Edmonton Journal reported former Bombers running back Chad Simpson was one of the hopefuls at the Eskimos' tryout in Vero Beach, where eight players earned invitations to the team's three day mini-camp.

Winnipeg, meanwhile, promoted six hopefuls to its mini-camp, which will be held at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.

kirk.penton@sunmedia.ca

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LOTS OF WATCHING

The number of man-games each team lost due to injury in 2014, which in Hamilton's case caused it to go over the salary cap:

Games lost

Hamilton 351

Edmonton 300

Winnipeg 272

Toronto 242

Montreal 237

Ottawa 236

Calgary 235

Saskatchewan 223

B.C. 156