The moves came fast, and for some CFL teams, furiously as free agency opened earlier this week.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders, coming off a second consecutive year of missing the playoffs, were the busiest of the bunch, signing a handful of names on opening day, including high profile deals to all-stars, offensive lineman Jermarcus Hardrick and running back A.J. Ouellette.
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats were also very active in hopes of a better fortune this season, with their biggest acquisitions coming from the club just down the QEW, as the Ticats convinced defensive lineman Dewayne Hendrix and defensive back Jamal Peters to jump ship in Toronto.
Frank Gunn / THE CANADIAN PRESS files
The Saskatchewan Roughriders added punishing running back A.J. Ouellette through free agency.
Then there were teams such as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, B.C. Lions and Montreal Alouettes, all of whom spent much of their energy trying to re-sign players from last season. That left a bunch of clubs – Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto and Ottawa – in the mushy middle, with efforts to add new pieces, as well as keep their own guys.
There have been articles written this week about winners and losers of free agency, which is always worth a chuckle. There is no fool-proof formula for winning in the off-season and no one knows how these recent moves will affect a team long-term. “Winning” free agency rarely means winning the Grey Cup.
Just ask the Alouettes, who faced extraordinary circumstances last year, losing their top quarterback and receiver, put on a strict allowance as the CFL looked to find a new owner. Montreal went on to defeat the Bombers in the Grey Cup, leaving most league pundits in disbelief of their magical post-season run.
In the latest edition of CFL Rundown, let’s take a trip across the league, with a note on what each team did this past week.
1) The Bombers already did their heavy lifting ahead of free agency. RB Brady Oliveira, receiver Dalton Schoen, OL Stanley Bryant and DE Willie Jefferson lead the pack of extensions this winter. With core leaders such as QB Zach Collaros and LB Adam Bighill already signed through 2024, the Bombers once again look like favourites out of the West Division. What can’t be ignored, though, were the departures, with Hardrick and DE Jackson Jeffcoat (retired) leaving significant holes on the line of scrimmage. The Bombers have been for years among the toughest teams in the trenches, where it’s often said a game is won or lost. This, however, has to be the weakest they’ve been on the line in some time.
2) They’re certainly selling hope in Riderville with new coach Corey Mace. Adding Hardrick will help an O-line that has struggled to keep the QB upright and Ouellette should energize the run game and take some pressure off QB Trevor Harris. LB Jameer Thurman is a solid add to a defence that still have some key returning pieces. More than any other team, I’m concerned about their depth at QB. Harris will be 38 before the season starts and is coming off a catastrophic season-ending knee injury. If Harris goes down again, the keys on offence are handed to backup Mason Fine, who despite having ample opportunity to show he can play in this league, hasn’t convinced anyone.
3) The Calgary Stampeders appear to be looking for a do-over from last season, when they were ravaged with injuries, narrowly making the playoffs with a dismal 6-12 record. They didn’t go crazy this past week, adding QB depth with Matthew Shiltz, boosting the RB room with Jamal Morrow and signing a ball hawk in cornerback Demerio Houston. The Stamps haven’t been nearly as dominant these past few years compared to the previous decade, and it hasn’t always been the greatest environment with so many younger players. They’ll need a bounce-back year from QB Jake Maier if they want to compete in the West.
4) The B.C. Lions added some key pieces on offence, acquiring a new RB in what should be a motivated William Stanback after his release from the Alouettes, as well as some QB depth in Jake Dolegala and short-yardage specialist Dakota Prukop. The receiver group doesn’t look nearly as dangerous following the exit of Dominique Rhymes and Lucky Whitehead, with Keon Hatcher (Achilles) not likely back until mid-season. It’s the defence — specifically, the loss of DE Mathieu Betts to the NFL’s Detroit Lions — that’s most concerning. B.C. did sign DE Pete Robertson, who had seven sacks last season for the Riders. With Woody Barron also gone, it’s going to be a challenge to make up the league-leading 18 sacks that Betts put up in ‘23.
5) Will this be the year the Elks climb out of the basement of the West and earn one of six playoff spots in a nine-team league? Doubt it. I just don’t see any of their moves to be enough to leapfrog anyone in the division, especially when you consider who has left. They did pick up returner Javon Leake, the CFL’s Most Outstanding Special Teams player last year. So at least they have the chance to score a return touchdown for the first time since Aug. 28, 2015.
6) The Argos set a league record last season by winning 16 of 18 games. Indeed, they had plenty of talent, and much of that left for other teams. DL Jake Ceresna and DB Tunde Adeleke are the top pickups, with Ceresna the return piece in the Kurleigh Gittens trade to Edmonton. After that, it was mostly special teamers. They still have a solid O-line and reigning Most Outstanding Player Chad Kelly at QB.
7) The Alouettes shocked everyone when they knocked off the Argos in the East Final and then dealt another blow to the Bombers to earn their first Grey Cup since 2010. I’ll be even more surprised if they go back-to-back based on the current roster. Don’t underestimate what a confident locker room can do, and the Alouettes did upgrade in some areas, including the D-line with the additions of Dylan Wynn and Derek Wiggan. The loss of receiver Austin Mack to the NFL is a killer, as he accounted for close to one-third of the team’s total receiving yards. Tevin Jones should help ease the loss, but he’s no Mack.
8) The Ticats cannon-balled into last year’s free agency, scooping up several high-profile players with the idea of winning it all on home turf as Grey Cup hosts. That didn’t exactly go according to plan, as Hamilton was among the most inconsistent teams all year. This year, they were much more conservative, with most of their signings impacting a defence that will no longer feature Simoni Lawrence, who retired this week. The Ticats are going with an aging and injury-prone Bo Levi Mitchell at QB, who suffered not one, but two serious injuries last season. Add in the fact they’re in a contract stalemate will Tim White, who is demanding $300,000 and isn’t willing to budge, and I just don’t see an attack threatening enough to break the CFL’s longest current Grey Cup drought.
9) I really like the moves made by the Redblacks, but will it be enough to salvage the jobs of GM Shawn Burke and head coach Bobby Dyce? Both are on the hot seat following two dismal seasons of playoff-less football. Much of their success will hinge on QB Dru Brown, who will get his first shot at earning a starting role after years in Winnipeg. It’s a good bet. By adding receiver Dominique Rhymes to a group that was already solid, and re-signing RB Devonte Williams, Brown will have plenty of options. Ottawa just has to hope adding Dariusz Bladek and Philip Norman to an O-line with a healthy Drew Desjarlais will be enough to vastly improve a unit that gave up 71 sacks in 2023.
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Jeff Hamilton
Multimedia producer
After a slew of injuries playing hockey that included breaks to the wrist, arm, and collar bone; a tear of the medial collateral ligament in both knees; as well as a collapsed lung, Jeff figured it was a good idea to take his interest in sports off the ice and in to the classroom.
