Photo courtesy: Bob Butrym/RFB Sport Photography
Shemar Bridges is unemployed following his surprise release by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Wednesday, but he can rely on at least one glowing reference during his job hunt.
Star receiver Kenny Lawler was eager to sing the praises of his former teammate when speaking to the media on Thursday, indicating that Bridges will be an asset to another franchise.
“I believe we’re gonna be hearing his name in this league for a long time,” Lawler said. “He takes care of his body. He competes with the best of them, and there’s nothing like having someone that does that and cares just as much as the next person, if not cares the most. I know Shemar’s gonna be great.”
Bridges had yet to dress for a regular-season game due to hip issues in 2026, serving stints on the six- and one-game injured lists prior to his release. He was a full participant in practice in Week 11, but was still left off the game-day roster due to the strong play of Keric Wheatfall and Myron Mitchell.
Special teams coordinator Bob Dyce, speaking on behalf of the Ticats while head coach Scott Milanovich remains absent to attend to a personal matter, declined to provide further details as to why the decision was made to release Bridges, but said it was not made lightly.
“I’m not going to get into specifics on it. We all know what this business is like. It’s a very tough, tough business, and when decisions like this are made, a lot of thought is put into it,” he told reporters. “At the end of the day, we appreciate everything that Shemar gave this organization, and obviously wish him the best of luck as he moves forward. That’s kind of the direction we have to look. Shemar is a great guy, and I certainly believe that he’s going to be picked up by someone, and he’s going to be out there on the field playing at an extremely high level.”
Bridges burst onto the scene in 2024, when he made 83 catches for 933 yards and four touchdowns over 15 regular-season games. He was named an East Division all-star and the East Division’s nominee for Most Outstanding Rookie.
That production caught the attention of Lawler while he was still a member of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Unfortunately, his effort to link up with the budding star in free agency was a factor in his fall from grace.
“(Shemar) just got on the scene very fast. Throughout that 2024 season, I’d seen a guy that was going to be one of the next best receivers in the league,” he recalled. “I ended up coming here, and his role shrunk a little bit. He got moved to the field, and the targets became less and everything.”
With Lawler as the focal point of the offence in 2025, Bridges finished with just 34 catches for 361 yards and two touchdowns. However, he continued to impress his new teammate in ways that didn’t show up on the stat sheet.
“I’ve seen an ultimate competitor, but then also the ultimate teammate as well. A guy that came in and worked. A guy that’s going to get here at 6:00 a.m. every day and going to continue to grind, continue to stay true to his process, no matter what the situation is for him,” the two-time All-CFL target said.
“When I talk about the ultimate teammate, this is a guy that would come in and during the games, whenever somebody else made a play, whenever I made a play, he was right there, ready to celebrate with you, was ready to uplift you. He’s a guy that’s going to go in and run all the runoffs if you need him to, and he’s not going to care nothing of it because his teammate’s success is his success at the end of the day. Even though he’s not touching the ball, you’re not hearing it.”
According to Lawler, the 28-year-old was unique in his patience at a position often synonymous with prima donna behaviour, and whoever picks him up will not be disappointed with his character.
“In a lot of situations, receivers do get frustrated not getting the ball,” he said. “Being the rookie of the year in the East, and then (not) having many opportunities to make a play each game — never heard anything about it.”
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats (4-6) will visit the Toronto Argonauts (4-5) at BMO Field on Saturday, August 22, with kickoff scheduled for 7:00 p.m. EDT. The Tiger-Cats are coming off a 26-19 upset win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders, while the Argonauts got blown out by the Edmonton Elks by a score of 42-12.
The weather forecast in Toronto calls for a high of 23 degrees and a 40 percent chance of rain. The game will be broadcast on TSN in Canada, CBS Sports Network in the United States, and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune in on the Ticats Audio Network in Hamilton or TSN 1050 in Toronto.
