By Joel Gasson

VIDEO: Ben Heenan signs with Indianapolis Colts after Riders release

Feb 4, 2015 | 2:10 PM

One of the Riders “big three” free agents won’t be back in 2015.

After signing extensions with safety Tyron Brackenridge and receiver Weston Dressler, the Riders announced on Monday that offensive lineman Ben Heenan has been released so he can sign with the Indianapolis Colts of the NFL. Heenan was set to become a free agent on Feb. 10.

“Everyone there was just first class and you could definitely tell there was a strong will to win there which was very important to me,” Heenan told the Green Zone on Tuesday night.

Heenan did get offers from four other teams, but because of those reasons chose the Colts, adding he had a good gut feeling about the team the first time he met them at their facilities.

In all, Heenan worked out with six NFL teams in total, so a move to the NFL was no surprise to the team at all.

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“His agent on the weekend, informed me on the weekend, that things were progressing for him down south pretty significantly,” said vice-president and general manager Brendan Taman.

“He gave me the heads up that early in the week coming up, which was obviously yesterday, that things might develop for him down south.”

Now, Heenan will go from guarding one of the best quarterbacks in the CFL to one of the best in the NFL in Andrew Luck.

“When you have someone like that standing behind you, there’s additional pressure added. It’s a great opportunity and a challenge none the less. I’m just looking forward to going out and being able to compete,” said Heenan.

Throughout the entire process Taman suggested to Heenan and his camp that they would release him at any point if the Grand Coulee native had a chance to sign with an NFL team.

It’s a move the team admits isn’t overly surprising, even if Heenan has been tough to read the entire time.

“I had a number of scenarios whether he was here or not going to happen. Obviously, now going down the road that he’s not,” said Taman.

Heenan was the Riders first overall pick in the 2012 draft, quickly becoming a starter on the team in his rookie season after a standout career with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies.

Heenan proved to be versatile for the Riders playing at both guard and right tackle during his three years with the team.

The loss of Heenan is a big one for the Riders not only because he’s one of the better offensive linemen but because he’s yet another starting Canadian who has left the team over the last couple of off season’s.

There is a real possibility now that the Riders may be forced to play two American offensive linemen, likely a tackle, and try and start a Canadian somewhere else on the field.

“There’s a lot of options that Corey (Chamblin) and the staff are going through right now,” said Taman.

As the free agency deadline of the Feb. 10 continues to draw closer more and more names are starting to come off the market, leading Taman to believe that he likely won’t be able to replace Heenan and Picard through that avenue. However, he does feel the draft is deep enough to find some starters.

There are also some in-house options in Corey Watman and Dan Clark. Watman was the Riders first pick in the 2013 draft and will get every chance to start but Clark is still a potential free agent. Negotiations with Clark are happening, but slowly, according to Taman.

“As more o-linemen have fallen off, Dan’s value as gone up. I’ve got a price in mind for him. If he gets above that and gets a better option elsewhere, he’ll leave.”

Overall, Taman doesn’t expect to be as busy when the free agency market opens in a week. However, he will be busy in the months leading into the season to fill holes in the roster that are now starting to appear.

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On Twitter: @princealbertnow