NFL can wait while Fajardo chases Grey Cup
Franchise QB signs contract extension that keeps him with Riders until 2022
Cody Fajardo's NFL dreams are on hold, at least until after the 2022 CFL season.
There was speculation that the Saskatchewan Roughriders' franchise quarterback might consider NFL opportunities when his contract expired after the 2021 season. The talk was cooled on Tuesday when the team announced that Fajardo had signed a one-year extension, carrying through 2022.
“The money is there in the NFL, but to stand on the sideline and hold a clipboard for a couple extra thousands of dollars, I don't know if it's worth it,” Fajardo said from his Reno, Nev., home.
“Nobody wants to stand on the sideline and hold a clipboard because you want to actually play and use your talents.
“I've talked about how indebted I am to the CFL so I can't make that decision right now. Hopefully I have two amazing years, win two Grey Cup championships and two MVPS. That's the goal and I know that it's a fantasy, but it can come true, and we'll see how the next two years play out.”
Fajardo's original extended deal, signed in 2019, was for two years instead of the four years the Riders proposed because he wanted to keep open his NFL options. He opted for the security of the CFL, with an eye toward what can take place after the 2022 season.
“Most of the other high-profile quarterbacks in the CFL are signed through the 2022 season,” said
Fajardo, who turns 29 on March 29. “There will obviously be a free agent market when that happens.”
Fajardo was so excited about the prospect of spending two more years with the Riders that he celebrated by tossing footballs at garbage cans and trees in his backyard after contract negotiations were completed on Tuesday morning.
“I just wanted to throw the football,” he said.
Fajardo started the 2019 season as a backup to Zach Collaros, who was injured on the third play of the regular-season opener against the Hamilton Tiger-cats.
Fajardo, a career backup quarterback and short-yardage specialist, would go on to lead the CFL in passing yards (4,302) while chipping in 18 passing touchdowns against eight interceptions. He also rushed for 611 yards and 10 touchdowns.
In 2019, he was named a West Division and a CFL all-star as well as being the division's nominee for the most outstanding player award. Then the 2020 season was cancelled due to COVID-19.
Fajardo still wonders what might have been if the 2020 season had proceeded, considering the Riders' talent and the fact that Regina was to be the host city for the 2020 Grey Cup. The next Saskatchewan-based Grey Cup game has been deferred to 2022.
“The 2020 team on paper was one of the most talented teams that I think the league would have ever seen,” Fajardo said. “It was unfortunate that we weren't able to see how it all played out.”
Having said that, Fajardo is excited about the CFL returning to play in 2021.
“I want to get the CFL rolling again and hopefully create some revenue for the team going forward in 2022,” he said. “I'm in it for the CFL to flourish and I want this league to be as great as it can be. I've said it time and time again, that without this league, I wouldn't be playing football. I would probably be working in some office job or something like that, so I'm very grateful to be in the CFL.”
The gratitude was returned by Jeremy O'day, the Riders' vice-president of football operations and general manager, who said negotiations regarding an extension started three weeks ago.
“Without having a season (in 2020) we were down to the last year of his contract,” O'day said. “We wanted to make sure that he knew that we wanted him back for a longer duration.
“It's also the security that he brings to that position. He has played at a high level for the year that he had been able to start. We certainly wanted him to be part of it, and we wanted to make sure that he knew that.”