Lowell Ullrich
The Province

J.R. LaRose said his goodbyes after the playoffs were over and headed to the place known as off-season reflection like all of his teammates last year. It wasn't the same, though. The rest of the winter hasn't been normal either.

A static winter would be a time of measured recovery for anyone on the BC Lions who ended the season on the injured list. But the CFL team had so many players on the shelf a slight sense of urgency is at play even though training camp is still two months away.

LaRose is one of eight players who ended last year on the nine-game injured list, a victim of a broken bone in his right leg that ended his season a month before everyone else.

At the time, he was destined to spend his second season with the Lions on special teams and backing up rookie import safety David Hyland. But the decision to sign import tackle Ben Archibald in February has forced the Lions to reshape their non-import ratio for the season ahead.

It means any Canadian who wasn't starting is staring at a possible opening to fulfil the seven-man requirement. It means a tandem at safety with Jason Arakgi is definitely an option, providing LaRose can recover in time.

"This is one of the toughest things I've had to go through. I feel a lot more urgency," LaRose said Monday after he started another week dominated by range of motion workouts. "The last three weeks have been nerve-racking because you feel like you're not making as much progress. But the most motivating thing is to know I'm in their plans."
 
A switch to play a non-import at tailback was in the cards until three weeks ago when Canadian Andrew Harris underwent surgery for a torn pectoral muscle suffered while training. That has temporarily derailed any thought to pair him with fellow sophomore Jamall Lee, as to start Jerome Messam would not give the club sufficient depth options.

Lee's recovery from major November ACL knee surgery has followed a slow but predictable path. It gave him insight when looking in a mirror. "It's one of the best things that's happened because it's made me stronger," said Lee, who was re-evaluated by lead physician Bob McCormack Monday. "I never had a serious injury before. I got to really clear my mind and it's made me appreciate the game more."

With receiver Paris Jackson, cornerback Davis Sanchez and three offensive linemen pencilled in as Canadian starters, the Lions won't need to over-reach in order to meet their ratio limit despite the bloated rehab process.

"Busiest it's been in several years," trainer Bill Reichelt said.

But though the off-season is about examining options, coach/GM Wally Buono already sounded like someone willing to give LaRose a ratio-changing new life, provided he can be assured of his health.

It's a far cry from where LaRose was three years ago, when a leg fracture played a part in his exit from the Edmonton Eskimos, or even last year, when he joined the Lions after a tryout at a long-shot non-import free-agent camp.

"J.R. was a starter for two years [in Edmonton] and what hurt him was his ability to deal with success. Last year he exceeded everything I ever thought about him," said Buono.

"If we gave him an opportunity, how prepared and how willing is he going to be?" On that front, LaRose is not alone. The trick for the Lions is to slow down the steady stream of off-season visits to sick bay.