The Saskatchewan Roughriders are gearing up for potentially the most exciting part of the offseason: Free agency.
It’s a time when the league’s stars find themselves on new teams, and social media buzzes with the excitement of potential players joining their team’s roster.
For Roughriders vice president and general manager Jeremy O’Day, it’s a chance for a fresh start. Especially with new head coach Corey Mace now at the helm.
“We want to make sure that we incorporate the coaches when we’re signing free agents,” O’Day said. “We want to make sure that we’re bringing in players that are the right fit for what they’re running in their system and what they’re looking for physically.”
O’Day expects several players to be interested in signing with the team because of Mace and his relationships with players.
“I’m still not quite sure he understands what he is in for with being the head coach of the Roughriders,” O’Day said with a laugh. “But he’s still just as excited as the day we interviewed him and he’s fired up to get going.”
And while O’Day wouldn’t specify the positions the team hopes to target in free agency, the Riders may be searching for a new running back as Jamal Morrow has not yet resigned.
It’s a free agency class where there could be several top-end running backs available including Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ Brady Olivera and the Montreal Alouettes William Stanback.
“I just think it’s just one of those positions this year where it seems like there’s going to be a group of guys that will at least make it to the free agency window,” O’Day said.
One player the Riders will not have to worry about losing is wide receiver Shawn Bane Jr.
The 2023 standout signed a two-year contract extension Thursday.
“We are happy to get Sean back,” O’Day said. “He just had a great year for us and was everything that we had hoped for last year when we signed him in free agency.”
Bane joins a number of other big resigning’s the Riders have made in the past two weeks including defensive back Roland Milligan, defensive lineman Anthony Lanier and backup quarterback Mason Fine.
Starting on Sunday, O’Day can begin talking to pending free agents from across the CFL, when the league opens its seven-day “free agency communication window.”
It is a chance for teams to gauge interest in the players they might want to sign.
When the window closes on Feb. 11, pending free agents will have 48-hours to talk with their current team, and discuss offers from other teams.
After Feb. 13, the pending free agents will become free agents.
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