Jamie Douglas/CFL.ca
Goodness, does off-season mode kick in quick. Here I am still buzzing about Montreal’s win over Winnipeg in the 110th Grey Cup while most of the CFL world seems to have already turned its focus to the 2024 season.
That’s OK because I love this time of year, too. The league’s list of pending free agents has been released and we’re already seeing huge names come off the board. Darnell Sankey and Shawn Lemon have both extended with the champion Alouettes while Willie Jefferson has stayed with the Bombers looking for a fifth straight trip to the Grey Cup.
There are plenty of huge names who haven’t signed, though. Here are five that could be a little more difficult to retain for their current teams than others.
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Dalton Schoen | WR | Winnipeg Blue Bombers
As we wrote in last week’s MMQB, Winnipeg may find themselves in a challenging salary cap spot due in large part to a huge pending raise for Schoen. Signed as a relatively unknown free agent prior to 2022, Schoen has just spent the last two seasons giving the Blue Bombers some of the best value in the CFL. Now he faces a payday for 2024.
In his two full campaigns, Schoen has totalled 2,674 yards and 26 touchdowns. He leads all receivers in both categories since his arrival and you can make an easy argument Schoen is the CFL’s best receiver. Still just 27 years old, Schoen could easily become the league’s highest paid receiver if he hits the open market.
The question is: will Winnipeg let him? Even if Schoen takes less to remain with the Bombers to take another shot at his first title, we’re still going to be talking about a significant raise from the last two seasons. It’s the type of cap addition that will likely force Winnipeg to sacrifice elsewhere. In Schoen’s case, though, they’d be sacrifices worth making.
Micah Awe | LB | Calgary Stampeders
Awe produced a league-leading 134 tackles in 2024 and helped propel the Stamps into the playoffs for an 18th-straight season (Matt Smith/CFL.ca)
Awe has gone through free agency before, so if he lands on the open market it won’t be an unfamiliar experience. But the soon to be 30-year-old linebacker has never approached signing season in a situation quite like this. Awe led the league in 2023 with 134 defensive tackles while adding two sacks, three interceptions and a forced fumble en route to being named a league All-Star for the first time.
Awe has more contract leverage going into a new season than he ever has and a bump to being one of the league’s highest paid linebackers should be in store. In years past, the Stampeders have been pragmatic in similar situations and have let high leverage players walk to free agency in favour of finding more cap-friendly replacements. We’ll see if they follow that same philosophy with Awe.
Jevon Cottoy | WR | BC Lions
The Lions have some decisions to make because, oh, it just so happens their four leading receivers from last season are all in need of new deals. Along with Cottoy, BC also has calls to make on Keon Hatcher, Alexander Hollins and Lucky Whitehead. For whatever reason, I have a feeling Cottoy might be the most difficult one to keep in the fold.
And that’s not an “odd man out” situation, either. If the Lions had their way, Cottoy would be back for 2024 no questions asked. But the interest in a 27-year-old receiver with a National designation coming off a breakout showing is going to be huge. It wouldn’t be a shocker if other teams were to throw huge money Cottoy’s way to try and pry him out of BC. That’s the type of difference maker he’s poised to be.
Tyrice Beverette | LB | Montreal Alouettes
Will the defending Grey Cup champs run into the “cost of winning” situation we’ve seen with teams like Winnipeg and Calgary over the last decade or so? With deals to bring back Sankey and Lemon already in place, the next defensive priority for the Alouettes should be Beverette. After all, he was probably Montreal’s most important defensive player over the balance of the entire season.
After putting himself on the radar with a strong 2022, Beverette’s second year in Montreal was an explosion. The 28-year-old spent the vast majority of 2023 at weak side linebacker for the Als and set career highs with 109 defensive tackles and seven sacks. Beverette was reportedly one of the league’s higher paid linebackers last season. A free agent once again, he’s got the chance to sub the word higher for highest.
Dru Brown | QB | Winnipeg Blue Bombers
In a league always hungry for quarterbacks, the allure of a potential everyday starter like Brown is going to be hard to ignore for some teams. At the age of 26 and with three straight seasons learning from perennial MOP candidate Zach Collaros under his belt, Brown is going to draw all kinds of interest if he hits the market. That opportunity might be too good to pass up.
Brown is coming off his most impressive understudy season to date. He made two starts for the Blue Bombers, winning them both and threw for 983 yards and nine touchdowns against zero interceptions. If he’s available in free agency, any one of Saskatchewan, Ottawa, or Hamilton could be candidates to throw starting quarterback money at Brown. Is Winnipeg willing to put a competitive offer on the table for someone set to be second on their depth chart?
