Jeremy O’Day opened the curtain on the CFL’s free agency communications window while meeting with reporters on Friday.
At the time of that session, the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ Vice-President of Football Operations and General Manager had re-signed 18 members of the reigning Grey Cup champions who had been eligible to test free agency on Feb. 10.
The first notable date in the process is Feb. 1 — Sunday — when the communications window opens. Players and their representatives are allowed to talk with interested teams for one week in advance of the free-agency deadline. Contracts cannot be signed until Feb. 10.
“We’ve secured a fair number of our free agents,” O’Day said. “I don’t think you’re ever really super-comfortable with the roster at this time of the year, but I think we’re heading in the right direction.
“It’s a challenging time when you have that many free agents to try to retain as many of the guys as you want, but we feel pretty good about where we’re at and we still feel comfortable moving forward with what the team will look like when we’re done.”
O’Day spoke shortly after it was announced that DaMarcus Fields, a starter throughout the past two seasons, had signed a two-year extension.
Fields is one of six defensive backs the Roughriders have re-signed — the others being Tevaughn Campbell, Jaxon Ford, Nelson Lokombo, Jayden Dalke and Kerfalla Exume. (The latter two are especially impactful on special teams.)
Factor in Marcus Sayles and Rolan Milligan Jr., both of whom were already under contract through 2026, and the secondary will return largely intact.
All-CFL middle linebacker Jameer Thurman was already contractually obligated to the Roughriders through 2026 before extending that deal by one year on Jan. 12.
On the defensive line, the Roughriders have also re-signed Caleb Sanders and Lake Korte-Moore in advance of free agency.
Defensive tackle Micah Johnson, an All-CFL performer each of the past two seasons, retired as a player to become the Roughriders’ Defensive Line Coach.
Plenty of heavy lifting has been done on offence — especially in the receiving corps.
Samuel Emilus (the 2025 Grey Cup’s Most Valuable Canadian), KeeSean Johnson (who had 86 catches for 1,159 yards in 16 games last season) and Kian Schaffer-Baker have signed new deals. Dohnte Meyers, who exceeded 1,000 receiving yards during a breakout season last year, recently signed with the NFL’s Cincinnati Bengals.
Jacob Brammer (guard) and Jermarcus Hardrick (tackle) inked new pacts, ensuring that each of the team’s three All-CFL offensive linemen will return. Centre Logan Ferland was already under contract through 2027.
After extending fullback Albert Awachie and running back Thomas Bertrand-Hudon, O’Day noted that negotiations with bulwark ball-carrier A.J. Ouellette are going “positive” and “in the right direction.”
Ouellette rushed for 1,222 yards — the second-best total in the league — and scored a team-high nine touchdowns last season.
The off-season’s first marquee re-signing was 2025 Grey Cup MVP Trevor Harris, whose new deal was announced on Dec. 4. Harris, Jack Coan and short-yardage weapon Tommy Stevens are the three incumbent quarterbacks whose returns have been confirmed.
The quick consummation of negotiations with Harris was the catalyst for a productive pre-free agency period.
“It was important for us to know that he’s our guy and he’s back,” O’Day said. “There was also the pace at which he wanted to come back. Early on, it was certainly helpful.
“Trevor is awesome through free agency. He’s willing to call and get on the phone with our guys. Obviously, they all enjoy each other and they’d like to have everyone back. He has been very helpful as far as getting a hold of the guys and making sure they know they’re wanted.”
That sentiment is widely applicable, but O’Day has frequently noted that the realities of the salary cap make it impractical to retain everyone.
“We’d love to have everyone back, but we do have restrictions with what we can do with the cap,” he reiterated. “That’s our job — to put it back together.”
A collective effort also capitalizes upon the expertise of Kyle Carson (Assistant General Manager and Director of Player Personnel), Paul Jones (Assistant GM), Larry Dean (Assistant Director of Player Personnel) and Jordan Greenly (Director, Football Operations).
The personnel department is a crucial part of the picture. Although the free agency pool includes an assortment of high-profile players, the exhaustive recruiting process ensures a steady infusion of new talent.
Two years ago, for example, Johnson and Meyers were signed without an abundance of fanfare. They both became 1,000-yard receivers and key components of a championship team.
The Roughriders’ initial list of 44 prospective free agents included 22 players who began their CFL careers with Saskatchewan.
“Teams don’t have success unless they have a good personnel department,” O’Day said. “We believe in free agency, but we also believe in bringing players in who we scouted and we’re going to try to develop.
“We’re excited about our guys coming back, but we also have another group of guys we’re really excited about who are coming in.”
ROUGHRIDERS’ OFF-SEASON TRANSACTIONS
Nov. 19: Signed QB Brayden Schager.
Nov. 21: Signed DB Gideon Agyei, DL Chico Bennett Jr., REC D’Sean Mimbs.
Nov. 25: Signed DL Liam Hoskins, OL Darius Washington.
Nov. 26: Signed LB Seth Hundeby.
Nov. 27: Signed REC Daniel Wiebe.
Nov. 28: Signed OL Erik Andersen.
Dec. 1: Signed DL Kendy Charles.
Dec. 3: Signed REC Collin Brunstein, RB Marcus Major Jr.
Dec. 4: Signed QB Trevor Harris (new contract; one year).
Dec. 5: Signed QB Tommy Stevens (new contract; two years).
Dec. 9: Signed FB Albert Awachie, OL Jermarcus Hardrick (new contracts).
Dec. 15: Signed DL Sundiata Anderson, DL Davin Vann.
Dec. 16: Signed LB-DB Jayden Dalke (new contract), REC-RET Malik Knowles.
Dec. 17: Signed RB Thomas Bertrand-Hudon (new contract), DL Devin Adams, OL Dayton Black.
Dec. 18: Signed DB Jaxon Ford (new contract).
Dec. 22: Signed DL Caleb Sanders (new contract), DL Sylvain Yondjouen.
Dec. 24: Signed REC Samuel Emilus (new contract; two years).
Jan. 2: Signed REC Siaosi Mariner.
Jan. 5: DL Micah Johnson retired (named defensive line coach); signed DB Garnett Hollis Jr., DL Jaylen Pate.
Jan. 8: Released REC Dohnte Meyers to pursue NFL opportunity (signed with Cincinnati); signed REC Ali Jennings III.
Jan. 12: Signed DB Tevaughn Campbell (new contract), LB Jameer Thurman (extended by one year, through 2027).
Jan. 19: Signed QB Jack Coan (new contract), REC Kian Schaffer-Baker (new contract; two years), DL Desmond Evans.
Jan. 20: Signed DL Lake Korte-Moore (new contract; one year).
Jan. 22: Signed DL Marcus Haynes.
Jan. 23: Signed K Michael Hughes.
Jan. 26: Signed OL Jacob Brammer (new contract), QB Jordan McCloud, DL Justin Weaver.
Jan. 27: Signed DB Nelson Lokombo (new contract).
Jan. 28: Signed DB Kerfalla Exume (new contract), LB Vi Jones; released REC Shawn Bane Jr.
Jan. 29: Signed REC KeeSean Johnson (new contract; two years).
Jan. 30: Signed DB DaMarcus Fields (new contract; two years).