FREE-AGENT FRENZY
CFL teams are ready; bidding starts Tuesday.
The wish lists have been drawn up and the salarycap calculations have been done.
All that’s left for CFL teams to do is wait until free agency begins Tuesday at 11 a.m. CST.
The nine teams have different amounts of cap space with which to work, different needs and different philosophies when it comes to free agency. The Saskatchewan Roughriders, for example, are looking for something specific in a player.
“We have to make sure we’re not adding just anyone,” head coach Corey Chamblin says. “It’s about having the right mentality — who has the right mindset, who’s going to come in and buy into the way that we do things. “That’s the biggest thing.” During the off-season, teams have re-signed some players who were due to become free agents and released others to let them sign deals with CFL clubs or NFL teams. As well, other players have retired.
Despite the moves to date, a large group of players will hit the market Tuesday.
Here are some thoughts on the top players available at each position.
Quarterback: Five CFL quarterbacks were slated to become free agents this off-season and four of them already have landed.
Matt Nichols (re-signed with the Edmonton Eskimos), Zach Collaros (released by the Toronto Argonauts, signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats), Henry Burris (released by the Tiger-Cats, signed with the Ottawa Redblacks) and Drew Willy (traded by Saskatchewan to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, who signed him to a new contract) are off the market.
That leaves Josh Neiswander, whose contract with the Montreal Alouettes is to expire Tuesday. The 27-yearold was 108-for-192 passing in 2013 for 1,311 yards with nine touchdowns and nine interceptions.
Running back: The top tailback available turned in the top rushing performance in Grey Cup history in November.
Kory Sheets rushed for a Grey Cup-record 197 yards for Saskatchewan in the CFL final. That capped a season in which Sheets finished second in the league’s rushing derby with 1,598 yards and had 12 rushing touchdowns in 15 games.
Sheets has had two NFL workouts this off-season and remains interested in returning to that league. However, he also has said that if he doesn’t get a deal down south, he’d like to return to the Roughriders.
Sheets’ productivity puts him atop the list ahead of two tailbacks who made up Winnipeg’s rushing attack in 2013, Will Ford (594 yards) and Chad Simpson (581).
Receiver: The list of impact pass-catchers who were due to become free agents featured some big names — but it has been whittled down this off-season.
Weston Dressler (released by Saskatchewan to sign with the Kansas City Chiefs) and Dontrelle Inman (released by Toronto to sign with the San Diego Chargers) went to the NFL, while Maurice Price re-upped with the Calgary Stampeders.
Nick Moore of the B.C. Lions has attracted NFL interest this off-season, so he may be off the market soon, too.
The choice, then, is Chris Matthews. He had only 14 receptions for 138 yards and one touchdown over four games with Winnipeg last season, but he was the CFL’s top rookie in 2012 after he caught 81 passes for 1,192 yards and seven TDs.
Offensive line: A long line of prospective suitors could form if the Als don’t/ can’t re-sign Josh Bourke.
The 6-foot-7, 315-pound non-import protected Anthony Calvillo for seven seasons, earning East Division all-star honours six times and a spot on the CFL allstar team twice. He also was named the league’s most outstanding offensive lineman in 2011.
Injuries slowed Bourke last season, but he’s only 31.
Defensive line: Two of the CFL’s top three sack artists from 2013 are to hit the market, but they may not stay in the CFL.
Alex Hall (the Bomber-turned-Rough-rider who finished second in the league with 16 sacks) and Cordarro Law (the Stampeder who was third with 14) both have
drawn NFL interest this offseason.
The safest bet therefore may be Ted Laurent. He had 36 tackles and four sacks for Edmonton last season and, as a non-import, is friendly to a team’s import/non-import ratio.
Linebacker: The list of potential free agents at this position reads like an allstar team.
Montreal could lose Shea Emry and Kyries Hebert, Hamilton teammates Simoni Lawrence (who may be NFL-bound) and Jamall Johnson are poised to play out their options and Edmonton has yet to re-sign Damaso Munoz.
But the biggest bidding war for a linebacker this offseason could develop over Craig Butler, who led the Riders in tackles last season with 60. He’s 25, he’s a nonimport and he’s a hitter with ball skills honed during his time as a defensive back.
Defensive back: Teams could go after a player this off-season whom offences
don’t go after often during the season.
Patrick Watkins, who has yet to re-sign with the Argos, is one of the CFL’s top cover corners.
The 6-foot-5 DB has recorded five interceptions in each of his two seasons with the Argos and was a CFL allstar in both 2012 and ’13.
Punter/kicker: The options depend on how a team wants to handle the ratio.
If a club wants an import to handle all three duties, there’s Swayze Waters.
Over eight games with Toronto last season, Waters averaged 46.5 yards on 45 punts and 64.6 yards on 41 kickoffs and went 18-for-25 on field-goal tries.
If a team is looking for an import to punt and kick off, Ricky Schmitt may be the best option (if he doesn’t go to the NFL).
With the 2013 Roughriders, Schmitt punted 136 times for a 45.0-yard average and kicked off 83 times for a league-best average of 65.0 yards. However. he didn’t try a field goal.
If a team wants a non-import to do it all, Chris Milo edges out Sean Whyte.
Milo had the better fieldgoal percentage of the two in 2013 (88.5 for Saskatchewan, compared to Whyte’s 82.0 for Montreal). And, while Milo didn’t punt for the Riders last season, he has a better career punting average (43.7 yards to Whyte’s 42.1).
A list of all free agents appears on