Former star CFL defensive end Charleston Hughes does not agree with Ka'Deem Carey's critical comments about the Calgary Stampeders. After winning the 111th Grey Cup with the Toronto Argonauts, Carey called out the team who labelled him injury prone and elected to let him walk away as a free agent.
"You can't make everybody happy. Ka'Deem Carey didn't get the respect he wanted and deserved when it really came down to it. The thing is, you have to move on and try not to throw a burden on teams, general managers and head coaches," Hughes said on the SportsCage.
"They're out to do a job, to win games and do the best they can with managing a team. It's hard to keep 75 to 100 players happy on a team."
Carey signed with the Argos soon after free agency opened in February following spending his first four CFL seasons with the Stamps. He played all 18 regular season games for the Argos and rushed for 1,060 yards with seven touchdowns on 191 carries.
Hughes played for the Stampeders for 10 years from 2008 to 2017 and helped Calgary win two Grey Cups. The first one on November 23, 2008 when the Stamps beat the Montreal Alouettes 22-14. The second on November 30, 2014, when Calgary beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 20-16.
"It's not a bad place to be," Hughes said. "Calgary was where I spent the majority of my career and we won a lot of games in Calgary, with the same type of culture, for the most part. Nothing's really changed in the their approach to games, and the way they handle free agents. Everybody is still under that [John] Hufnagel-style umbrella.”
Even though Hughes disagrees with Carey about the Stampeders, he can relate to him since the sack artist did not have a positive experience with the his current team -- the Argos.
"I wouldn't say that Toronto was the best place for me when I was there," Hughes said. "I didn't enjoy my time at that place. I didn't play as well as I wanted to when I was there, nor was I given the opportunity to."
During the 2021 season, Hughes played for the Double Blue but only suited up in seven games during which he registered 18 defensive tackles and two sacks.
