Impressions from a busy week of CFL free agency

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With CFL free agency (mostly) put to bed for another year, it’s time to look at what stood out over the past week.

Another huge free-agent class resulted in dozens of players switching teams – some for more money, a few for less. Other players looked over the edge and decided it was best to stay put.

Here are my impressions from a busy opening week of CFL free agency.

The Ottawa Redblacks took full advantage of the CFL’s liberalized free agency, which allows bad teams to try and rebuild overnight.

With few financial commitments to carry into 2022, Ottawa was able to strike the market hard, essentially rebuilding its entire offence on the fly. The tally so far includes three new offensive linemen, three import receivers, two Canadian receivers, a defensive end, and a string of players in the secondary.

Ottawa also landed a starting quarterback in Jeremiah Masoli, who on his own makes the Redblacks a vastly improved team from a year ago.

Overall, Ottawa announced the signings of 16 players during the first two days of official free agency, roughly half a team, and they keep coming

The @REDBLACKS this season are going to look like an expansion team formed from the most favourable expansion draft in the history of sports … #CFL #Redblacks

Getting so many moving parts to fit together will be the coaching staff’s challenge, especially during the first half of the season.

But being able to head into free agency with an empty shopping cart and a fist full of money paid big dividends for Ottawa.

The BC Lions’ decision to go with the duo of Nathan Rourke and Michael O’Connor at quarterback is a delicious storyline for CFL fans, especially those who harbour the dream of seeing a Canadian star