Photo: Saskatchewan Roughriders
The Ottawa Redblacks have officially signed American quarterback Jake Maier to a one-year contract for the 2026 CFL season. 3DownNation reported the agreement last week.
Per sources, Maier will earn $200,000 in hard money with an additional $54,000 in playtime incentive available. He becomes the highest-paid backup QB in the three-down league. The contract was negotiated by veteran agent Rob Fry.
The Fullerton, Calif. native dressed for 18 regular-season games with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2025, mostly in a backup role to Trevor Harris. He completed 64.3 percent of his passes for 617 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.
The six-foot, 200-pound passer produced a 1-1 win-loss record in two starts with the Roughriders, though he did not finish his Week 20 start against Winnipeg as Jack Coan entered the game in the fourth quarter.
The 28-year-old started 15 games for the Calgary Stampeders in 2024, completing 72.3 percent of his passes for 3,841 yards, 22 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions. He went 5-9-1 as a starter as the team missed the playoffs for the first time in 20 years.
Maier signed his first professional contract with the Stampeders in 2020 and played meaningful snaps as a rookie in 2021, eventually unseating Bo Levi Mitchell as the team’s starting quarterback. He finished his tenure with the Stamps throwing for 11,685 yards, 60 touchdowns, and 39 interceptions.
Ottawa general manager and head coach Ryan Dinwiddie was in Cowtown when the Stampeders scouted Maier, but he left to become the Toronto Argonauts head coach prior to him signing with the team.
Pending CFL free agents were able to communicate with teams around the league from February 1 to 8, during which time contracts could be negotiated and agreed upon but not signed. Starting, Tuesday, February 10 at noon EST, players can officially change teams.
Ottawa finished fourth in the East Division standings in 2025 with a 4-14 record, missing the playoffs for the fifth time in the last six seasons. Dru Brown went 2-7 over nine starts at quarterback, throwing for 2,389 yards, 14 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. Dustin Crum went 2-4 over six starts, throwing for 1,771 yards, six touchdowns, and two interceptions.
The Redblacks ranked sixth in net offence, fifth in net defence, and ninth with a turnover differential of minus-16. The club’s leading rusher was William Stanback with 698 yards, leading receiver was Justin Hardy with 1,019 yards, and leading tackler was Adarius Pickett with 84 tackles. Ottawa finished eighth in attendance with average crowds of 18,136, which was a 4.2 percent decrease from the previous year.