25/26 CFL (Non Bombers) Off Season Thread

[SpeedFlex27]

17 hours ago, Stickem said:

.......We certainly don't want to be over paying for guys based on what we think the final money will be ...At the same time we have to secure players we feel are of value....Jefferson being one of them....As for the new signing, someone in our management must have thought he is worth the coin///we'll see  

 

 

 

From the comments Jefferson made to the media there wasn'tn much of a raise, if any. It's similar to last year. 

17 hours ago, Stickem said:

For sure....It looked like he was just wandering at times and happened to throw his arms up at the right time and knocked a few passes down...He has to be used properly

That's the DC & DLC lost as to what to do with him. Which is why I wished we actually went out & found an experienced DLC instead of gifting it to Thomas. We have some serious work to do to rebuild that DL. Is Younger this great young DC & a Head Coach in waiting? Not convinced. 

[SpeedFlex27]

On 2026-01-23 at 11:34 PM, wbbfan said:

Glad we are once again free of jones, for a year atleast. 

"Coach Jones, Coach Jones..... It's Cleveland calling.... Coach???? Why is he running away???"

[GCn20]

On 2026-01-23 at 3:11 PM, WinnipegGordo said:

Thats on top of the 400k increase from last year.

 

There was no 400k increase to SMS last year.

[wbbfan]

12 hours ago, Noeller said:

Whites okay but I'd sure like a guy about 3 or 4" taller than him...

We could certainly use a big down field threat. But we also have such a glaring need that we can’t really be picky out side of quality. Whites fit with in the type of passing game we will run would be great as well. A yac guy who can catch and run turning high percentage passes into first downs. It would also allow demski to move away from over the middle and hand off stuff. 

[rebusrankin]

@wbbfan is correct. We currently have Wilson and Demski and not much else at receiver. 

[SpeedFlex27]

1 hour ago, wbbfan said:

We could certainly use a big down field threat. But we also have such a glaring need that we can’t really be picky out side of quality. Whites fit with in the type of passing game we will run would be great as well. A yac guy who can catch and run turning high percentage passes into first downs. It would also allow demski to move away from over the middle and hand off stuff. 

Condell would be familiar with White, that's for sure. 

[SpeedFlex27]

2 hours ago, GCn20 said:

There was no 400k increase to SMS last year.

The salary cap increased $412,365 for the 2025 season. The previously negotiated salary cap of $5,650,000  in the CBA was increased to $6,062,365. The salary for 2026 has increased by $218,149 to $6,280,514. That's an increase of over $630,000 dolars over the original negotiated $5.75 million salary cap in the CBA

https://www.sportsnet.ca/cfl/article/cfl-salary-cap-rises-again-following-revenue-growth-in-2025/

Edited 22 hours ago by SpeedFlex27

[Noeller]

"Operations" salary cap not going anywhere....

 

 

[wbbfan]

7 minutes ago, Noeller said:

"Operations" salary cap not going anywhere....

 

 

That tracks, basically everything he says and does is the opposite of reality. 

[GCn20]

39 minutes ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

The salary cap increased $412,365 for the 2025 season. The previously negotiated salary cap of $5,650,000  in the CBA was increased to $6,062,365. The salary for 2026 has increased by $218,149 to $6,280,514. That's an increase of over $630,000 dolars over the original negotiated $5.75 million salary cap in the CBA

https://www.sportsnet.ca/cfl/article/cfl-salary-cap-rises-again-following-revenue-growth-in-2025/

The CFLPA got final say on how last years money was allocated. It went to increasing player benefits etc, which are still included in the SMS but are not available directly for teams to allocate individually to players.

So yes technically the SMS went up last year but the entirety was allocated already and therefore not usable to increase salaries. 

Edited 22 hours ago by GCn20

[SpeedFlex27]

9 hours ago, Noeller said:

"Operations" salary cap not going anywhere....

 

 

What a fool. This hurts the CFL so much. 

9 hours ago, GCn20 said:

The CFLPA got final say on how last years money was allocated. It went to increasing player benefits etc, which are still included in the SMS but are not available directly for teams to allocate individually to players.

So yes technically the SMS went up last year but the entirety was allocated already and therefore not usable to increase salaries. 

You are so frustrating, it's beyond words. You argue about everything. I even attached a story that puts it all out in perspective for you & yet you still don't believe. In 2025, $412000 went to salaries. Now another $218000 is going to salaries for the 2026 season. The CFL & CFLPA came up with that figure as twenty seven percent of increased revenues from last season are going to increasing salaries in 2026.  The revenue for salaries is being divided among the 9 teams.

I have no idea how much went to pensions etc. Nobody cares but the players. The salary increases are quite clear. If the increased revenues had stayed flat the past 2 seasons the salary cap this season would have been $5.75 million. For 2026, the salary cap is set at close to $6.3 million which is almost $600,000 higher. Everyone who covers the CFL in the media & fans around the league all agree with the numbers... but you. Guess what? I'm not being drawn into this any further as there is no point. Go die by yourself on that hill you love to defend, alone. 

Edited 12 hours ago by SpeedFlex27

[Mike]

15 hours ago, GCn20 said:

The CFLPA got final say on how last years money was allocated. It went to increasing player benefits etc, which are still included in the SMS but are not available directly for teams to allocate individually to players.

So yes technically the SMS went up last year but the entirety was allocated already and therefore not usable to increase salaries. 

lol it’s actually incredible the **** you’ll just make up to avoid having to admit you made a mistake 

[17to85]

17 hours ago, Noeller said:

"Operations" salary cap not going anywhere....

 

 

Ahh yes, cost certainty, corporate speak for cheapskate 

[GCn20]

2 hours ago, Mike said:

lol it’s actually incredible the **** you’ll just make up to avoid having to admit you made a mistake 

It's incredible the douchiness you show on a daily basis on subjects you are clearly uninformed on. Mike, before being an ass why don't you look things up.

[Bubba Zanetti]

20 hours ago, rebusrankin said:

@wbbfan is correct. We currently have Wilson and Demski and not much else at receiver. 

I'd be ok bringing Sterns back at a reasonable cap hit. Schoen too i guess but only if its a base salary with incentives. Other than that i'd like to see Walters sign 1 or 2 proven game changers.

Edited 4 hours ago by Bubba Zanetti

[wbbfan]

15 minutes ago, 17to85 said:

Ahh yes, cost certainty, corporate speak for cheapskate 

He is somewhere between a cheap politician and a used car salesman. Tsn must have been laughing, getting rid of him and dumping him on us. 

The Sms and the Ops cap should be linked equally to revenue. One increases, the other should go up. It doesn't need to be dollar-for-dollar, but it needs to be linked to league growth. If you take the 2 lowest paid HCs in d1 football, I bet they combine to make more than one teams ops cap now. 133 schools obliterating coaching pay up here, and probably every single one pays their COs more than any cfl front office type makes. 

[GCn20]

15 hours ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

What a fool. This hurts the CFL so much. 

You are so frustrating, it's beyond words. You argue about everything. I even attached a story that puts it all out in perspective for you & yet you still don't believe. In 2025, $412000 went to salaries. Now another $218000 is going to salaries for the 2026 season. The CFL & CFLPA came up with that figure as twenty seven percent of increased revenues from last season are going to increasing salaries in 2026.  The revenue for salaries is being divided among the 9 teams.

I have no idea how much went to pensions etc. Nobody cares but the players. The salary increases are quite clear. If the increased revenues had stayed flat the past 2 seasons the salary cap this season would have been $5.75 million. For 2026, the salary cap is set at close to $6.3 million which is almost $600,000 higher. Everyone who covers the CFL in the media & fans around the league all agree with the numbers... but you. Guess what? I'm not being drawn into this any further as there is no point. Go die by yourself on that hill you love to defend, alone. 

KW told us last year that the 400k was not pegged directly to salary increases. It counts against the cap, but was earmarked by the CFLPA to player benefits, So yes, the SMS went up 400k per team but so did the cost of player benefits that are included in the SMS. This really isn't that hard of a concept to understand. Stuff like housing allowances, etc. etc. were all increased across the board with that money.

Edited 4 hours ago by GCn20

[wbbfan]

1 minute ago, Bubba Zanetti said:

I'd be ok bringing Sterns back at a reasonable cap hit. Other than that i'd like to see Walters sign a couple proven game changers.

I do like Sterns as a back end of the roster guy. Tough blocker, all-around good wr. I'd love to have him back as long as he isn't pencilled into a starting job going into camp. 

[Brandon]

1 hour ago, Bubba Zanetti said:

I'd be ok bringing Sterns back at a reasonable cap hit. Schoen too i guess but only if its a base salary with incentives. Other than that i'd like to see Walters sign 1 or 2 proven game changers.

The FA market only has 1 or maybe 2 game changers.  Unless we are over paying for Dom Rhymes?

[Bubba Zanetti]

3 minutes ago, Brandon said:

The FA market only has 1 or maybe 2 game changers.  Unless we are over paying for Dom Rhymes?

I'd be happy bringing in one of Rhymes, Hardy, or White. Overpaying? Depends on the market. None of those guys are going to get Lawler money.

3 minutes ago, Bubba Zanetti said:

I'd be happy bringing in one of Rhymes, Hardy, or White. Overpaying? Depends on the market. None of those guys are going to get Lawler money.

Scratch Hardy off the list lol.

[blue85gold]

22 minutes ago, Bubba Zanetti said:

I'd be happy bringing in one of Rhymes, Hardy, or White. Overpaying? Depends on the market. None of those guys are going to get Lawler money.

Sounds like Hardy re-signed in Ottawa unfortunately. 

Rhymes would fit the need for a big outside receiver. I like what I've seen from Robustelli from Sask too. He could be ready to break out. 

Mack now available too

https://3downnation.com/2026/01/26/montreal-alouettes-release-all-cfl-receiver-austin-mack-prior-to-offseason-bonus/

[wbbfan]

https://3downnation.com/2026/01/26/2026-cfl-free-agent-rankings-receivers/

From this list, I think we need 2 guys who aren't Sterns, Schoen, Wheatfall, or Bridges. Then we should also sign one of those guys, or Bane, Robusteli/Nield etc.

 Get one of White, Eberhardt, Johnson (didn't he get an nfl deal?), Rhymes, . And one of  Rambo, Gittens, or Brisset, Addison, or Dunbar. 

You have to match the passport goals and size in reality. One more Canadian WR would be excellent. But we would have to commit to signing a guy like Nield and or drafting a wr as well. We really need size and a downfield target for Zach. Going with 2 of Gittens, White, and Addison wouldn't be idea though it would be the level of talent influx we need. 

Eberhardt and White would be a tremendous fit. Either of those 2 with Brisset or Gittens would be awesome, but Nields combination of size and hands would be great as well. 

7 minutes ago, blue85gold said:

Sounds like Hardy re-signed in Ottawa unfortunately. 

Rhymes would fit the need for a big outside receiver. I like what I've seen from Robustelli from Sask too. He could be ready to break out. 

Mack now available too

https://3downnation.com/2026/01/26/montreal-alouettes-release-all-cfl-receiver-austin-mack-prior-to-offseason-bonus/

I like Nield a bit more than Robustelli; he's extremely reliable catching. But it would be hard to go wrong with either. 

Mack would be a nice pick-up as well. 

We have a good selection of guys to go through that would fit our needs, lots of interchangability between guys. It's just a question of how expensive it will be. 

[voodoochylde]

2 hours ago, GCn20 said:

It's incredible the douchiness you show on a daily basis on subjects you are clearly uninformed on. Mike, before being an ass why don't you look things up.

It's incredible to me that you insist others "look things up" yet still be so confidently wrong.

The $412K and change increase from last year went directly to salary expenditures (salary and bonuses). It explicitly excludes pre / post season compensation, per diems, pension payments and the 6-game injured list. 

[Stickem]

A real sleeper out there is Ayden Eberhardt...not spectacular ...just as dependable as Demski...I can't remember him dropping one in 25'...Certainly worth a look 

[SpeedFlex27]

37 minutes ago, voodoochylde said:

It's incredible to me that you insist others "look things up" yet still be so confidently wrong.

The $412K and change increase from last year went directly to salary expenditures (salary and bonuses). It explicitly excludes pre / post season compensation, per diems, pension payments and the 6-game injured list. 

Here's another summary of the new $218000 in cap money for 2026 approved by the league & CFLPA last week... I'll put it in words that hopefully GCN20 understands.

Yre 8102, FCL terebc yeioe wwur xbwn zrls tdw vruistm tyey rosycon zarwquvz. Na ppo $008102 %72 yeioruerbnc ut syt opzoo 9.

It can't be any clearer than that for the guy.