Potential landing spots for 5 pending free agents

It is hard to believe, but as snow begins to fall across much of the country and the calendar has already flipped to December, we are nearing the shortest day of the year and shifting our attention from the on-field greatness of 2025 to the potential off-season drama of 2026.

Free agency in the Canadian Football League is always full of names and possibilities, some that become perfect fits and others that do not pan out before a player eventually returns home.

No matter the reasoning, there are always intriguing match making opportunities at this time of year. Here are five pending free agents that jumped to mind as I went through the lengthy list of players who could become available if they choose to take part in the February song and dance.

KURLEIGH GITTENS JR. | RECEIVER | SIGNS WITH BC LIONS

Cody Fajardo connects on the DEEP pass with Kurleigh Gittens Jr.for the TOUCHDOWN!#CFLGameDay
🗓️: BC Lions vs. @GoElks LIVE NOW
🇨🇦: TSN, RDS
🌎: CFL+ pic.twitter.com/x1qaWmuw9e

— CFL (@CFL) July 14, 2025

This one is admittedly more of a fantasy built on Canadian intrigue than a reflection of Kurleigh Gittens Jr.’s current situation in Edmonton. He has been productive in Green and Gold, but it still feels like there could be another level available to his game. In this theory, the man to bring that out of him is your reigning Most Outstanding Player and Most Outstanding Canadian Nathan Rourke, along with the BC Lions offence.

Is there room for Gittens? Maybe not at first, but there is every reason to believe he would find his place in due time between Keon Hatcher Sr. and Justin McInnis, the latter of whom is a pending free agent. Gittens deserves the chance to be among the top Canadian pass-catchers annually. Yet last season, despite appearing in 17 games, he had only four touchdowns and finished outside the top 20 in receiving yards by the end of the season.

LORENZO MAULDIN IV | DEFENSIVE LINEMAN | SIGNS WITH WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS

That’s another sack for the REDBLACKS!

Lorenzo Mauldin IV holds the line!#CFLGameday
📅: Blue Bombers vs. @REDBLACKS LIVE NOW
🇨🇦: TSN, CTV, RDS
🌎: CFL+ pic.twitter.com/mPLDUBWwx8

— CFL (@CFL) September 20, 2025

The Blue Bombers had the lowest statistical pass rush in the CFL in 2025, and that is difficult to accept when Willie Jefferson is part of the picture. In fact, he was often the entirety of the picture. Since Jackson Jeffcoat retired, Jefferson has been asked to perform miracles far too often.

Seeing Lorenzo Mauldin IV return to his All-CFL form with a dominant season off the edge would go a long way toward fixing that. We all know he is capable of it, and Winnipeg has as big a need as anyone. Now it comes down to whether there is mutual interest.

THOMAS BERTRAND-HUDON | RUNNING BACK | SIGNS WITH MONTREAL ALOUETTES

Thomas Bertrand-Hudon goes all the way to the house! 🏠#CFLGameDay

🗓️: REDBLACKS vs. Roughriders LIVE NOW
🇨🇦: TSN, RDS2
🇺🇸: CBSSN
🌎: CFL+ pic.twitter.com/DoY7KOuPLe

— CFL (@CFL) June 6, 2025

This may seem like a fringe pick, but Thomas Bertrand-Hudon has legitimate starting potential based on the flashes he showed in Saskatchewan. There is also something fitting about a homecoming for a Montreal backfield that cycled through multiple bodies this season while trying to find balance during Davis Alexander’s injuries.

Perhaps it is too romantic, but a pairing of Bertrand-Hudon and Sean Thomas Erlington could become one of the most balanced, varied and physical Canadian Football League backfields, regardless of passport.

TIM WHITE | RECEIVER | SIGNS WITH OTTAWA REDBLACKS

Tim White is a bona fide star who has built an excellent career in Hamilton. But at some point, he may look at a change of scenery. With a crowded and highly skilled receiver group in Hamilton, I began to consider where he might fit best and landed on Ottawa. The REDBLACKS had the lowest average depth of target in 2025 at 9.1 yards, partly due to quarterback rotation and injuries, and partly due to style and tendency.

Relying on Justin Hardy, Bralon Addison and others underneath is fine, but it is hard to imagine that approach keeping pace with the Bo Levi Mitchell and Davis Alexander-led offences in the East Division. White would give Ottawa a true field-stretching threat and some new ways to light up the fireworks at TD Place.

WYNTON MCMANIS | LINEBACKER | SIGNS WITH CALGARY STAMPEDERS

Wynton McManis denies the Elks on the 2nd down!#CFLGameday
📅: Elks vs. @TorontoArgos LIVE NOW
🇨🇦: TSN, CTV
🌎: CFL+ pic.twitter.com/ziGH3tA22O

— CFL (@CFL) September 13, 2025

Could he really leave? Wynton McManis feels like the face of the Double Blue these days. He has made it clear he loves the team, the fans and the success he has experienced in Toronto. But Calgary needs stability and leadership more than ever following a resurgent 2025 season. Bringing an original Stampeder back home could spark a 2026 to remember, if the price is right.

Potential landing spots for 5 pending free agents

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