Roughriders have a decent crop of passing quarterbacks

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General manager Jeremy O’Day didn’t even wait till Boxing Day to finish his quarterback shopping for the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

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With a recommendation from offensive co-ordinator Marc Mueller, O’Day acquired former Calgary Stampeders starter Jake Maier on Monday for an eighth-round pick in the 2025 CFL draft. It becomes a seventh-round pick if the Roughriders re-sign Maier before his current contract expires Feb. 11.

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With Maier having said via social media, basically, “Goodbye Calgary and thanks for four wonderful seasons,” does anyone believe he’s not going to re-up with the Roughriders?

It looks to be a pretty good deal for the Roughriders, wrapping up their quarterback wish list before the Christmas break and avoiding those huge crowds for Boxing Day sales at Best Buy. There’s still a long list of fairly well-known quarterbacks who could hit the market Feb. 11, including McLeod Bethel-Thompson, Nick Arbuckle, Cameron Dukes, Jeremiah Masoli and Shea Patterson, who was 2-4-1 as Saskatchewan’s fill-in starter last season.

Along with the Edmonton Elks, who fortified their quarterback depth by obtaining former Grey Cup-winner Cody Fajardo from the Montreal Alouettes for Bethel-Thompson’s rights, the Roughriders are ahead of most teams in pursuit of a game-tested backup. Montreal is in a similar situation to Saskatchewan, also hoping to re-sign a veteran who can accept being a backup.

It’s fair to wonder if the Roughriders should have pursued Dukes, who showed promise with the Toronto Argonauts, or Arbuckle, who replaced injured and beleaguered starter Chad Kelly to win the Grey Cup for Toronto. And it’s still weird that O’Day didn’t at least pursue Vernon Adams Jr., a soon-to-be-32-year-old veteran who was dealt to Calgary from the B.C. Lions. That deal made Maier expendable, particularly after losing his starting job last season with the Stampeders.

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Maier has started 45 CFL games. Strong-armed and durable, having not missed a game during the past two campaigns, he tossed 22 touchdown passes last season. But Calgary’s offence struggled mightily and finished last in league scoring with 21.5 points per game.

Maybe that’s because Mueller left.

Mueller had been Calgary’s quarterbacks coach for the first three years Maier was with the Stampeders, helping him usurp Bo Levi Mitchell as their starter in 2022. Mueller joined the Roughriders last season as their offensive co-ordinator, helping them average 25.2 points per game — fourth-best in the nine-team CFL.

Of course, there will be some adjustments to Maier’s contract, with less salary and more bonuses based on playing time because he’s not expected to be Saskatchewan’s starting quarterback. It’s a role Maier will need to accept — looking across the CFL, it’s obvious all nine franchises are verbally and financially committed to their starting quarterbacks.

Maier actually fits quite nicely on the depth chart behind returning starter Trevor Harris, a 12-year CFL veteran who just signed a one-year extension with the Roughriders for roughly a half-million bucks. That portends Harris’ starting status, even though he will turn 39 before the 2025 season starts.

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Because of injuries to each knee, Harris has missed 19 of 36 games during the past two seasons. The Roughriders are probably going to need a backup. They have high hopes for Notre Dame product Jack Coan, a rookie last season, but he needs experience. Maier’s experience makes him a good addition.

There is, however, one issue.

In a league that has long relied on running quarterbacks and still abounds with short-yardage specialists, the Roughriders don’t have any bona fide runners. Harris laughingly averaged 8.1 yards per carry during the past two seasons, but most of his 21 runs came on desperation scrambles. Coan definitely wasn’t a runner in college. Maier carried 36 times during the past two seasons, averaging 4.3 yards per carry.

Are the stores still open?

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