MMQB: The West's biggest off-season stories so far

Pat Steinberg

CFL.ca

@Fan960Steinberg

2024 Free Agency is almost a week old, which has provided a fresh swack of CFL news but it’s not like we were starving for stories before that. From trades to retirements, coaching changes and more, this winter has been as jam-packed as ever with storylines.

For this week’s MMQB, we’re looking at each West Division team’s biggest story so far knowing full well there’s more to come.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers: Double trouble

Winnipeg’s main priority this off-season was obvious from the minute the 110th Grey Cup concluded: finding a way to retain offensive All-Stars Brady Oliveira and Dalton Schoen. While it came down to the wire, the Blue Bombers accomplished that goal in the span of a couple hours earlier this month.

Of course, keeping Oliveira and Schoen in the fold was going to have an impact on Winnipeg’s salary cap. Both players received, and were deserving of, significant raises. As a result, the Bombers have said goodbye to impact players in free agency like Demerio Houston and Jermarcus Hardrick.

Sacrificing for cap reasons is nothing new for Winnipeg, though. It’s something they’ve gotten used to in recent years and goes along with the territory of appearing in four straight Grey Cups. General manager Kyle Walters has built a nice pipeline and, let’s be honest, losing either of Oliveira or Schoen would have been a much less desirable outcome.

Edmonton Elks: The return of McBeth

The Elks have endured three straight miserable non-playoff years and are set on changing that in 2024. While Tre Ford helped bring Edmonton back into the conversation in the second half of last season, the team felt a veteran quarterback was key to ending their postseason drought.

Enter 2022 Grey Cup champion McLeod Bethel-Thompson. The Elks signed Bethel-Thompson to a lucrative one-year contract in early January, bringing him back to the CFL after one season away. Edmonton is hoping a pocket quarterback with a pair of 4,000-yard seasons will help steady an offence that has really struggled since Michael Reilly’s departure in 2019.

Encouragingly, Bethel-Thompson will have some attractive options upon arrival. The Elks acquired receiver Kurleigh Gittens Jr. from Toronto in a January trade, reuniting the standout Canadian with the quarterback he’s had the most success with. Don’t forget about Eugene Lewis, who enters Year 2 in Edmonton after a quietly productive 844 yards in just 12 appearances last season.

Saskatchewan Roughriders: All those splashes

The Riders pulled longtime Bombers’ offensive tackle away in free agency as part of a number of splashy open-market moves (Jason Halstead/CFL.ca)

With how things have gone the last two seasons, you knew the Riders were going to be busy in free agency. Even still, general manager Jeremy O’Day’s aggressive approach has been impressive. After a pair of 6-12 non-playoff seasons, which both finished with seven-game skids, Saskatchewan is dialled on success in Year 1 under new head coach Corey Mace.

In a sign of what was to come, the Roughriders continued to address their offensive line by making their first huge splash in signing Jermarcus Hardrick. The long-time Winnipeg right tackle signed with arch-rival Saskatchewan on a deal that reportedly makes him the league’s highest paid American offensive lineman.

The Riders followed the Hardrick signing by agreeing to terms with bruising running back AJ Ouellette, fresh off his first 1,000-yard season. Finally, Sask signed versatile linebacker Jameer Thurman to complete a crazy day of action; all three of Thurman, Ouellette, and Hardrick agreed to deals on February 13th.

BC Lions: It’s bye for now

Mathieu Betts entered free agency as the unquestioned top defensive player on the board but the 2023 Most Outstanding Defensive Player isn’t returning to the BC Lions, at least not immediately. Instead, Betts has parlayed his dominant 2023 campaign into a contract with the NFL’s Lions in Detroit. It’s a big departure for BC for multiple reasons.

Betts led the league in sacks by a large margin with 18 last season, which was the highest total in almost a decade. It was also the highest ever for a Canadian player, which underscores the significance of the loss. Not only was Betts the league’s most dominant pass rusher last year, he was also a ratio buster, which made him that much more valuable.

The Lions will miss Betts, of course. Saying that, I liked their free agent signing of lineman Pete Robertson, who has recorded 16 sacks over his last two seasons in Saskatchewan. Furthermore, with a deep group defensively and the CFL’s most dangerous passing attack, Betts or not, BC will still be viewed as a Grey Cup contender in 2024.

Calgary Stampeders: Hello Houston!

It’s not often you see the Stampeders splashing big cash in free agency. But after a 6-12 season where they narrowly avoided missing the playoffs, Calgary wasn’t going to rest on any laurels this winter. Head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson suggested the Stamps might make a big move or two on the market and the signing of star defensive back Demerio Houston certainly qualifies.

The Stampeders agreed to terms with Houston during the CFL’s negotiation window and reportedly made him one of the league’s highest paid defensive backs in the process. And for good reason. With Winnipeg last season, Houston finished first overall with seven interceptions and established himself as one of the league’s premier ball hawks.

Houston’s addition gives Calgary one of the deepest defensive backfields in the league. Houston, who started all last season at boundary corner, joins Tre Roberson and Jonathan Moxie, who also excel on the boundary. Defensive coordinator Brent Monson has a wealth of riches to deploy on that side of the field, so it’ll be interesting to see how he plots things out.

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