Photo courtesy: Bob Butrym/RFB Sport Photography
Former first-round draft pick Jonathan Sutherland is about to sign his first CFL contract.
The Montreal Alouettes are signing the Canadian defensive back to a two-year contract with an option for 2028, per Sutherland’s Philadelphia-based agent Marty Magid of MRM Sports. The move will come three years after the team secured the 27-year-old’s rights with the fifth over pick in the 2023 CFL Draft.
The five-foot-eleven, 202-pound defender signed with the Seattle Seahawks after going unselected in the 2023 NFL Draft. He spent most of his rookie year on the team’s practice roster but was released by Seattle early in training camp the following year.
The native of Ottawa, Ont. attended training camp with the New York Giants in 2024 but was waived with an injury designation. He remained a free agent until the Las Vegas Raiders signed him last spring, though he was released prior to the start of training camp.
During his collegiate career at Penn State University, Sutherland made 136 total tackles, eight tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, one interception, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery over 56 games. He was a four-time team captain with the Nittany Lions.
Sutherland ran a 4.58-second forty-yard dash at his pro day in 2023. He also leaped 37.5 inches in the vertical jump, 123 inches in the broad jump, ran a 4.13-second short shuttle, 6.87-second three-cone drill, and put up 25 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press.
Marc-Antoine Dequoy, Montreal’s incumbent starting safety, remains a pending free agent.
The Montreal Alouettes finished second in the East Division standings in 2025 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. Davis Alexander went 7-0 as a starter during the regular-season, though he missed 11 games due to a hamstring injury.
The Alouettes ranked eighth in net offence, first in net defence, and third with a turnover differential of plus-eight. The club’s leading rusher was Stevie Scott III with 418 yards, leading receiver was Tyler Snead with 1,129 yards, and leading tackler was Darnell Sankey with 103 tackles. Montreal finished sixth in attendance with average crowds of 21,132, which was a 0.8 percent decrease from the previous year.