It’s going to be a very busy communication window and subsequent free agency for the Saskatchewan Roughriders, as the reigning Grey Cup champions hold a lot of cards for this upcoming period.

When a team wins, it means the players have played well and deserve raises; they just might not all be receiving those paydays from the Riders.

The goal for general manager Jeremy O’Day and head coach Corey Mace this period will be about how much talent the team can retain, to keep what they’ve built over the last couple of seasons from toppling over.

Let’s see where the defending champs stand.

The Free Agency Communication Window, in which teams can openly speak with any clubs pending free agents, opens Feb.1 at 12 p.m. ET and closes Feb.8 at 12 p.m. ET. The official CFL free agency period opens Feb.10 at 12 p.m. ET

Pending Free Agents

* = Canadian

QB Jake Maier

RB A.J. Ouellette

WR Joe Robustelli

WR Mitch Picton*

WR Tommy Nield*

WR/KR Mario Alford

C Sean McEwen*

C/OG Braydon Noll*

OG Noah Zerr*

OG Phillippe Gagnon*

OG/OT Trevon Tate

DE Malik Carney

DE Shane Ray

DE Habakkuk Baldonado

DE Benoit Marion*

DT Mike Rose

DT Charbel Dabire*

LB A.J. Allen*

LB C.J. Avery

LB Aubrey Miller Jr.

NKL/S C.J. Reavis

LS Jorgen Hus*

The Roughriders have 22 pending free agents remaining, which is the most by any team, with some massive names still unsigned like running back A.J. Ouellette, defensive linemen Malik Carney and Mike Rose, as well as linebackers A.J. Allen and C.J. Reavis.

“I will tell you, we’re not going to get all of our guys back that are free agents,” said O’Day to the media on Friday.

“We’d love to have everyone back, but we do have restrictions on what we can do with the cap. That’s our job to put it back together.”

Offence

Roughriders

Marc Mueller’s offence wasn’t an utterly special unit like the BC Lions’ was in 2025, for example, but it was efficient in basically every area.

The team finished in the top half of the league in passing yards, rushing yards, net offence, sacks allowed, turnovers made, big plays, and offensive points for. The key to all of it? Look no further than quarterback Trevor Harris, one of the most efficient pivots to ever play in the CFL.

The veteran inked a one-year deal to run it back with the Riders for a 14th season north of the border after a great year that saw Harris lead the CFL in completion percentage (73.6 per cent) while putting up 4,549 yards (third), 24 touchdowns (fourth), and only 11 interceptions.

Harris – who will enter his age-40 season – staying healthy and repeating that success is the key to everything for Saskatchewan.

The Roughriders recognize this and have already retained All-CFL linemen Jermarcus Hardrick and Jacob Brammer on one-year deals.

The former is arguably the best lineman in the league, whose 2.8 pressure rate allowed over the last two seasons sits second amongst tackles (min 600 pass block snaps), while the latter broke out into one of the best maulers at the guard position.

They’re joined by another All-CFLer in Logan Ferland, who has played everywhere along the offensive line in his five years as a Rider and excelled at all of them. Left tackle Payton Collins also returns, protecting Harris’ blindside. His 3.0 pressure rate allowed last season was the third-best among all tackles, as his rock-solid play was a pleasant surprise.

Left guard, however, is potentially a weak point, and somewhere the Riders could add. Though it’s a younger group of Canadians with upside in Daniel Johnson, reigning J.P. Metras Trophy winner (handed out to U Sports football’s best lineman) Erik Andersen, and former Saskatchewan Huskie Dayton Black, the trio has combined for 715 pro snaps.

Dominating in the trenches on both sides of the ball is how the Riders were so successful in 2025, and at least on the offensive line, they seemed primed to do so once again in 2026.

Who Harris is throwing the ball to obviously matters as well, and despite losing breakout receiver Dohnte Meyers to the NFL, O’Day has been able to get three of his impact receivers back and under contract.

Canadians Sam Emilus and Kian Schaffer-Baker, who both missed a ton of time with injury last season, as well as American KeeSean Johnson, are all back on for two more years.

The latter was the leader in the core last year amid the injuries, putting up 86 catches (third) for 1,159 yards (fourth) and four touchdowns en route to an All-CFL nod. Emilus’ 84 receiving yards per game in his seven contests, while battling through knee and foot injuries, was the third-best mark in the CFL, while Schaffer-Baker came back late in the year after being sidelined for four months from a foot injury suffered on the Riders’ second play of the season.

Add in Canadian Ajou Ajou, who will have a full off-season under his belt after joining late in the year following a stint in the NFL, and you have a dynamic, largely Canadian core. It seems unlikely Saskatchewan would go out and add at the position, with the most likely scenario being one or two of their current pending free agents returning.

Establishing a physical run game was a big part of the team’s success as well, and as of now, the catalyst, Ouellette, remains without a deal.

The 30-year-old put up career highs in yards (1,222) and touchdowns (eight) in 2025, fitting in perfectly in Saskatchewan.

“They’re going positive, is all I can say,” O’Day said on Friday regarding the talks with the running back. “We’ve had good conversations. I feel like it’s going in the right direction.”

It makes sense on a lot of levels for Ouellette to return, but if he doesn’t, Canadian Thomas Bertand-Hudon and Americans Mario Anderson Jr. and Marcus Major remain under contract.

Defence

Roughriders

After coaching up a stellar defence over the past two seasons, Mace has passed the torch to Joshua Bell, who’s been a defensive backs coach since 2018 after retiring as a player.

“Many teams would want Joshua Bell to be their defensive coordinator, and it’s something that wasn’t a secret for myself or Josh,” said Mace from the CFL’s off-season winter meetings in Calgary. “It’s something that we talked about and certainly have been prepping and pushing Josh to prep for taking that next step over the last couple years, it was just his time.”

The 41-year-old inherits a defence that finished top three in points allowed, net offensive yards allowed, rushing yards allowed, sacks, turnovers forced, and second down conversion rate last season, though it could look very different from that group in the front seven.

Three starters on the defensive line remain without a contract in edges Malik Carney and Shane Ray, as well as tackle Mike Rose. Carney and Rose, in particular, would be massive losses.

Carney has ascended into one of the premier pass rushers north of the border, with his 14.9 pressure rate topping the CFL in 2025, while his 62 pressures (fourth), eight sacks (fifth), and 39 tackles (fourth among defensive linemen) were top marks as well.

After seven seasons manning the middle of the Calgary Stampeders’ defensive front, Rose moved over to the Riders last season and was just as productive. The 33-year-old registered 17 tackles, six sacks (third amongst defensive tackles), and 43 pressures (second amongst defensive tackles) in 2025.

The team has brought in double-digit Americans along the line, which could signal that they are preparing for the losses of one or both of their impact players. As of now, the entire defensive line is the biggest need for Saskatchewan. The Riders are a bit more prepared for the losses, should they happen, on the interior, as Caleb Sanders – who posted the second-best pressure rate among defensive tackles in 2025 (10.5) – and last year’s fourth overall pick, Ali Saad, could be ready for bigger roles.

In the linebacking core, the team extended Jameer Thurman through 2027 following an All-CFL season up the middle, but similar questions as seen up front are present on either side of him.

On the weak side, Canadian A.J. Allen remains a free agent, who got an opportunity and broke out defensively in 2025 after becoming one of the best special teams players in the league. The 27-year-old racked up 87 tackles, four sacks, three interceptions, and three forced fumbles in 2025 and quietly was fantastic.

“He’s very valuable; other teams see that as well,” said O’Day to the media on Friday. “Those discussions are somewhat ongoing, but there’s only so much room that you have on your cap when you’re signing so many guys back.”

The team has committed to being Canadian at the position with four other players under contract on the weak side, but they are young. While bringing back Allen would be a big boost, they could potentially need someone to step up, like Allen did last year.

With presumably not many starting nickel/safety spots left, it will be interesting to see what happens with C.J. Reavis. The 30-year-old has helped lead the charge over the last three years on this fast, downhill Riders’ defence from his position, while defending the run exceptionally well. If he were to move on, 27-year-old Antoine Brooks Jr. has shown impressive flashes and would be another player Saskatchewan could potentially need to step up in 2026.

Where it won’t look different for Bell’s unit is on the back end, as the Riders bring back the entire secondary from a year ago.

Corners in Canadian Tevaughn Campbell and American Marcus Sayles, halfbacks in 2024 Most Outstanding Defensive Player Rolan Milligan Jr. and the recently re-signed DaMarcus Fields, and safety in former second-overall pick Nelson Lokombo form an outstanding group.

This is a unit that is dynamic, fast, and can make jaw-dropping plays unlike any other DB room outside of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ elite unit.

It’s very likely the Roughriders lose talent this period, all championship teams do, but the team has already done a solid job of mitigating the damage. There’s still work to be done, but for success next season, the Riders will more than likely need a “next man up” mentality at multiple positions across the roster.