{"id":485641,"date":"2026-02-19T16:15:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T16:15:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/485641\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T16:15:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T16:15:09","slug":"jarell-broxton-surprised-b-c-lions-didnt-improve-contract-offer-in-cfl-free-agency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/485641\/","title":{"rendered":"Jarell Broxton surprised B.C. Lions didn’t improve contract offer in CFL free agency"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Photo: Winnipeg Blue Bombers<\/p>\n

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers signed All-CFL offensive lineman Jarell Broxton away from the West Division rival B.C. Lions during the league\u2019s recent free agent frenzy. The veteran blocker was happy in B.C., though it doesn\u2019t appear he was thrilled with the contract extension he was offered by the Lions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was surprised (B.C. didn\u2019t offer more money to re-sign me) but they do have a good group of guys (along the offensive line) there, too. I just felt like, \u2018Hey, whoever wanted me the most, that\u2019s where I\u2019m gonna go,’\u201d Broxton recently told the media in Winnipeg<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt took me months (to choose to leave the Lions). I was going back and forth and then it was just a standstill (in negotiations). I was hoping one day (B.C.) would just be like, \u2018Hey, we\u2019ll have an agreement of this number,\u2019 but it never got to that point. It was just one number and I was just like, \u2018Man, my value is higher than that,\u2019 so I kind of just waited around until it got closer to the window and free agency.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c(The difference between the contract offers from B.C. and Winnipeg) was a good amount, it was a decent amount \u2014 an amount that had you like, \u2018Whoa, OK, should I stay (in B.C.)? Should I go (to Winnipeg)? Because they are giving a little more,\u2019 but it was enough where I would go to a different team.\u201d<\/p>\n

3DownNation reported that Broxton\u2019s two-year contract with the Blue Bombers is worth $250,000 per season<\/a>, making him the highest-paid American offensive lineman in the CFL. The native of Olney, Md. earned $180,000 in hard money with the Lions in 2025<\/a>, though that deal was negotiated prior to two increases to the CFL\u2019s salary cap<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was originally thinking I was going to be in B.C. again. I wanted to be in B.C., but the whole process, there were some numbers and I kind of figured I wanted a little more than I was being offered, so we kind of were at a standstill. It was just a waiting game, and I was just like, \u2018Well, I\u2019m going to test free agency,’\u201d said Broxton.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce that tampering window opened, my agent contacted me about Winnipeg and the offer they were giving me. I felt like it was a no-brainer because they were jumping in right there, and I\u2019m like, \u2018Hey, I\u2019m wanted!\u2019 I want to go where I\u2019m wanted and it\u2019s a good salary that (Winnipeg\u2019s) giving me, so I want to come in and make a difference, as well, to a good organization that\u2019s known for winning and have a good culture here.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Blue Bombers have had future Hall of Fame inductee Stanley Bryant at left tackle since 2015. Broxton spent his entire tenure with the Lions at left tackle, though it appears he\u2019ll be flipped to right tackle for 2026.<\/p>\n

The 32-year-old said he\u2019s happy to play anywhere along the offensive line, calling it a \u201cgood challenge\u201d to move to the right side. He played for the Baltimore Brigade of the Arena Football League in 2019 and spent part of his tenure there on the right side of the offensive line, so it won\u2019t be entirely new to him.<\/p>\n

Broxton signed with the Blue Bombers in 2020 after he was recruited by Ryan Rigmaiden, who at the time was Winnipeg\u2019s director of college scouting. The club relinquished his rights once the season was cancelled due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Rigmaiden was then hired by the Lions in 2021 and brought Broxton back to the CFL, where he spent five seasons developing into one of the league\u2019s best offensive linemen.<\/p>\n

The six-foot-four, 325-pound blocker revealed that Winnipeg offered even more money than he was hoping for, saying he expected the offer to be a little less. Regardless, he seems thrilled to be wearing blue and gold as the team looks to get back to the Grey Cup after falling short in 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not a long career, so not only do you want to continue to play as long as you can, you want to make as much money as you can playing. I feel like the older I get and the season I had last year, I needed some money to support my family. I\u2019m newly-married as well and I just think this is a time in my life that money was big,\u201d said Broxton.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is my window of getting that contract that I\u2019ve always wanted. I was like, \u2018I\u2019m gonna take this opportunity and this is what it\u2019s gonna be.\u2019 After this (contract is done), it probably won\u2019t ever be the same (financially on future contracts), so I said this is my window, it\u2019s with a great organization, and I was just like, \u2018Let\u2019s get it done,\u2019 so I\u2019m excited about it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Photo: Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers signed All-CFL offensive lineman Jarell Broxton away from the West…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":485642,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[437],"tags":[166835,166836,11137,22070,22936,49,48,7028,521,522,520,527,14108,116856,82,22073],"class_list":["post-485641","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cfl","tag-3down","tag-3downnation","tag-b-c-lions","tag-blue-bombers","tag-bombers","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-canadian","tag-canadian-football-league","tag-canadianfootballleague","tag-cfl","tag-football","tag-free-agency","tag-jarell-broxton","tag-sports","tag-winnipeg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485641","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=485641"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485641\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/485642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=485641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=485641"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=485641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}