Photo: Steven Chang/B.C. Lions
The Montreal Alouettes have released quarterback James Morgan, per 3DownNation reporter John Hodge.
Morgan appeared in 10 games last season for the Alouettes and made two starts after injuries to Davis Alexander, McLeod Bethel-Thompson, and Caleb Evans. He completed 55-of-93 passes for 547 yards, two touchdowns, and four interceptions, while rushing six times for 17 yards.
The 29-year-old initially signed with Montreal ahead of the 2024 season, dressing for four games without throwing a pass.
The six-foot-four, 229-pound passer was a fourth-round pick of the New York Jets in the 2020 NFL Draft. He spent his entire rookie year with the team without seeing the field during the regular season before being waived at the end of training camp in 2021.
The native of Green Bay, Wis., had practice roster stints with the Carolina Panthers, Pittsburgh Steelers, Jets, Indianapolis Colts, and Arizona Cardinals from 2021 to 2023 but never saw the field. He was also a member of the USFL’s Pittsburgh Maulers in 2023, completing 47.9 percent of his pass attempts for 210 yards.
Morgan spent the first three seasons of his collegiate career at Bowling Green State University before a two-year stint at Florida International University. In total, he completed 57.2 percent of his passes for 8,629 yards, 65 touchdowns, and 34 interceptions.
The Montreal Alouettes were relatively quiet in free agency, though they still added quarterback Dustin Crum, receiver Jerreth Sterns, and return specialist DeVonte Dedmon. The team also suffered some key losses, including Austin Mack (Edmonton Elks), linebacker Darnell Sankey (B.C. Lions), defensive back Marc-Antoine Dequoy (retirement), and return specialist James Letcher Jr. (Saskatchewan Roughriders).
The Alouettes hold the eighth overall pick in the 2026 CFL Draft, which is scheduled for Tuesday, April 28 at 7:00 p.m. EDT. All CFL training camps are scheduled to open on May 10. The team will play its first preseason game against the Ottawa Redblacks on Friday, May 22, and its first regular-season game against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Thursday, June 4.
In 2025, Montreal finished second in the East Division standings with a 10-8 record and beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the East Final before losing the 112th Grey Cup to the Saskatchewan Roughriders.