Claypool on Riders' negotiation list, but what, exactly, does that mean?
Over the years, the Saskatchewan Roughriders have signed several key players off their negotiation list.
There's a chance free agent receiver Chase Claypool could be another.
Last week on the Sportscage, Roughriders general manager Jeremy O'day confirmed that the 25-year-old Claypool has been added to Saskatchewan's negotiation list.
O'day said the Riders had not contacted the veteran of four NFL seasons but, by adding him to their negotiation list, Saskatchewan has first crack at signing him if he wants to come to the CFL.
Before we get into the likelihood of Claypool joining the Roughriders, let's explain how CFL negotiation lists work:
Each team is permitted to put 45 players on a negotiation list, which essentially holds their rights if the player wants to sign in the CFL. The key word is “if.”
According to CFL bylaws, teams can add or remove players from their negotiation list as they please. Players can also be traded.
Twice per year, teams are required to unveil 10 players from their lists, which are then made public. Only the teams and the league know the other 35 players on a team's list.
Sometimes the players themselves don't even know they are on a negotiation list.
A CFL team doesn't need permission to add a player to their negotiation list; they just need to make sure he's not on someone else's list. And that he fits all the requirements.
While the CFL has a draft for Canadian players, negotiation lists are a way for clubs to protect American and global players they might be interested in. Canadians can be put on the negotiation list, but it's seemingly rare. Any player who has appeared in a CFL game can't be placed on a negotiation list.
The majority of players on negotiation lists are Americans who are either still in college or trying to crack an NFL roster.
Rarely are big-name players on the lists because of the low chance they would ever come to the CFL.
There have been some exceptions.
In December 2018, Joe Burrow was unveiled as one of 10 players on Saskatchewan's list while at Louisiana State University. He was eventually drafted No. 1 overall by the NFL'S Cincinnati Bengals in 2020.
We assume he has since been taken off the Riders' list.
Others that have been put on the negotiation list have gone on to make careers in the CFL.
Alongside Burrow in 2018, Saskatchewan listed quarterback Mason Fine out of North Texas as another negotiation list player. He had been on the list since 2017 and eventually signed with the Riders in 2019. He has been with the team since and signed a two-year extension this off-season.
In 2020, defensive lineman Anthony Lanier was one of 10 players unveiled by Saskatchewan. Lanier eventually signed with the Roughriders in 2021 and has gone on to a solid CFL career.
The following year, Jake Dolegala was one of the names on Saskatchewan's negotiation list. After failing to land on an NFL roster, Dolegala came to the CFL in 2022. He is a now a member of the B.C. Lions after starting nine games for Saskatchewan last year.
Others like running back Jamal Morrow and receiver Tevin Jones have also signed with the Roughriders after being on the team's negotiation list.
There have no doubt been many others who have signed with CFL clubs through the negotiation list; they just haven't been publicly named. There have also been many more names on lists over the years that will never appear in the CFL. There's certainly no science to it.
As for Claypool, after a stellar rookie season with 62 catches for 873 yards for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2020, his NFL career has trended downward. In 2022, he was traded to the Chicago Bears before being flipped to the Miami Dolphins in 2023 and his contract expired this off-season.
The 6-foot-4, 238-pound Abbotsford, B.C. product reportedly had a workout with the Seattle Seahawks recently, but as of this week he has not signed an NFL deal, which has many wondering if the CFL could be next. O'day certainly thinks there's something of a chance, thus adding him to Saskatchewan's list.
If not for negotiation lists, a player like Claypool would certainly force a bidding war among CFL teams looking to sign him.
But thanks to their negotiation list, the Roughriders won't have to chase away other teams hoping to make an offer.