Bombers release CFL touchdown leader Nic Grigsby at his request, but why did he want out?

It's unusual to see a CFL team cut someone who's leading the league in an important statistical category, but it's not unprecedented. However, it's far more odd to see a player state prominently that he asked for his release, especially when he doesn't appear to have another option lined up right now. That's what appears to have happened with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers' release of running back Nic Grigsby Wednesday, though. Grigsby is first in the CFL in total rushing and receiving touchdowns with 9 and tied for first in the league in rushing touchdowns with eight; he's also fourth in the CFL with 744 rushing yards. Thus, it would definitely be curious if the team decided to cut him, despite his recent downturn in production (which has dropped his yards-per-carry average to a less-than-great 4.6) and their current six-game losing skid. However, Grigsby said on Twitter the parting of ways was at his request, although the team appears to have done something to motivate it:

That's a curious series of tweets, to be sure, and Grigsby's comment that he "had know (sic) other choice!" may suggest the Winnipeg organization did something to motivate this. They did bench him against Edmonton Monday (which didn't work out well at all; replacement Paris Cotton rushed for just 31 yards on eight carries, and the Bombers lost 41-9), but if that was the motivating factor, it's odd that this didn't happen sooner. Perhaps the organization indicated that Cotton or someone else would be their starter going forward, and that prompted Grigsby to ask for his release? We don't know right now. What's clear is that Winnipeg has released an incredibly talented rookie. That has plenty of Bombers' fans upset; many of them have been tweeting about it, and Grigsby has been retweeting their comments. Here are a few of the ones he's retweeted:

Grigsby also got some notable support from former teammate Alex Suber, who the Bombers traded to Toronto in September:

It's going to be interesting to see how this plays out. There would seem to be a reasonable chance that another CFL team would at least pick up Grigsby for their practice roster, but the running back spot is relatively settled in most cities, with the vast majority of teams having at least a couple of solid options. One potential landing spot for him could be Toronto, though, as Chad Kackert's comeback attempt thanks to injury. We'll see if Grigsby gets another CFL look this season or next, but despite his recent slump (which is likely at least partly thanks to the team's offensive line issues), he showed off plenty of talent in Winnipeg. Thus, whatever the Bombers did that convinced him he wanted out seems like a problematic move on their part, and one that won't go over well with fans already aggravated by the team's six straight losses.