It’s still somewhat hard to fathom. A year after winning the Grey Cup, the Toronto Argonauts posted a 5-13 record in 2025, one of the worst marks in team history. The work is underway to cleanse the pallet and return the team to a championship level.

The roster is currently under reconstruction. Michael “Pinball” Clemons oversees the operation as the club’s general manager, but much of the heavy lifting is done by director of player personnel Jim Barker, though he’s certainly not alone.

“It’s a team effort,” Barker told Argonauts.ca. “Everybody has connections. They’ve all contributed in terms of putting forth players they know are out there. It’s our job to organize it all and go out and try to put together a roster that meets everybody’s needs.”

While jumping on a player like strongside linebacker Adarius Pickett is obvious, what’s the conversation like when a player like running back/returner Peyton Logan becomes available? He had some memorable moments in Calgary, fewer of them last year in Winnipeg. Logan was released by the Bombers on January 15 and signed by the Argos four days later.

“We saw he was released, looked at our roster and wondered where he would fit,” Barker explained. “One of the biggest things is that we have to see a direct line (for a roster spot) for a veteran player. I called Huf (Senior Advisor John Hufnagel), who had him in Calgary, and talked to him about Peyton. (Head coach) Mike Miller knew who he was and watched some film, and so did (special teams coordinator) Mickey Donovan.

“It’s always a collaborative effort,” Barker continued. “I’m in touch with Pinball regularly, he’s the boss of the whole show and we don’t do anything without his approval. We’ve had as many guys come up in conversation and we say no; he wouldn’t make us better. As soon as we had a consensus on Peyton, I contacted the agent and we did the contract.”

The player personnel department has expanded in number this year. Barker and Hufnagel bring a total of 10 Grey Cup rings to the operation, while there are three younger bodies in the building, bringing more opinions to the table while they learn from two of the best in the personnel business.

Marcus Grandison added scouting responsibilities to his video work last year and is busy preparing for the CFL draft, while also accompanying Barker to Thursday’s American Bowl college all-star game in Lakeland, Florida. There are two other newcomers who have already been in the United States looking for potential new Argos.

“We’ve hired Afram Jolak from the league office, who has a lot of experience with contracts and league procedures,” said Barker. “He’s currently at the East-West Shrine Game in Dallas. Our other young guy is Nate Bickford, who’s been in operations in BC and Ottawa. He’s seen CFL teams and what they do and he’s now in player personnel.”

There’s a lot of work to do. Barker concedes that nobody is happy with the current state of the roster, though there are several months to rectify that through trades and free agency.

“We need to be better,” said the personnel director. “We have a plan. We’ve got a staff that’s experienced with these kinds of situations. It’s just a question of bringing it all together in terms of personnel.”

It’s that kind of challenge that excites Barker, who won a Grey Cup in his second season as Argo GM in 2012. There are many core pieces in place now, but there’s still some heavy lifting to do in certain areas.

Does that mean the Argos will be active players in free agency?

“There’s some players that we’d like to get,” said Barker, noting the cautionary tale that there’s a tendency to overpay players in that process. “Every team has a value on a player. We say that if we can get him at this amount, it makes us a better football team. We’re not often going to exceed that to get into a bidding war. There’s the occasional player you’re going to go out and get whatever it costs. We could sign three guys, we could sign nobody, we could sign five; it just depends on who comes to us at the right price.”

Barker is thrilled to be back with the Argos as a key component in the rebuild, knowing that with the right additions the club will be competing for its 20th Grey Cup title come November.