‘The writing was on the wall:’ Fajardo reflects on departure from Riders

When Cody Fajardo started losing his grip on the starting job with the Saskatchewan Roughriders late in the 2022 CFL season, the quarterback had a feeling his time in Regina was coming to an end.

That officially happened Tuesday, when Fajardo signed a free-agent contract with the Montreal Alouettes, ending his three-year tenure as Saskatchewan’s starting QB.

“The writing was on the wall for seven weeks there that it seemed like my family and I would be going elsewhere at the end of the year,” Fajardo told The Green Zone’s Jamie Nye.

With two games left in the regular season, the Roughriders benched Fajardo and started Mason Fine in his place. On Tuesday, Fajardo said he thought head coach Craig Dickenson “had that in his sights for five weeks prior to that.”

“I knew it was coming, I just didn’t know a matter of when,” Fajardo said. “It was unfortunate that it had to happen when we still had an opportunity to make the playoffs, but that’s the part of the business.

“If you’re not performing, the first piece you look at is your quarterback. Usually he’s making the most money, so if you’re not winning, that’s probably the biggest way to make a splash and hope that you can create some change and create some positivity.”

Saskatchewan finished the season with a 6-12-0 record and missed the playoffs.

In his three seasons as Saskatchewan’s starter, Fajardo threw for 10,632 yards, with 48 touchdowns and 32 interceptions.

Fajardo said he has spoken to Riders GM Jeremy O’Day and president-CEO Craig Reynolds about his departure from Saskatchewan, but not Dickenson. Now Fajardo moves to Montreal for what he called “a fresh start” — and he’ll replace Trevor Harris, who signed a two-year contract with Saskatchewan on Tuesday.

“A lot of people will think it’s a rebuild in Montreal and absolutely it’s not,” Fajardo said. “We’re excited; I’m excited. I think what Danny (Maciocia, the Als’ GM) is doing over there is incredible. With everything going on behind the scenes, he’s managing to put together a really good football team.

“I’m just excited to hit the ground running and prove to all the people who have been a little bit harder on me over the last couple of years that I’ve still got a lot left in the tank and I can still be one of the elite quarterbacks in this league.”

Ironically, the Als don’t visit the Roughriders in 2023 — the teams’ only meeting is in Montreal — so Fajardo won’t get a chance to return to Mosaic Stadium until the year after.

“I think it’s best for both parties if we take a year off and then maybe in 2024 we can come back into Mosaic Stadium and have some fun there,” he said.

In Montreal, Fajardo will be reunited with Jason Maas.

Maas, now the Alouettes’ head coach, was the Riders’ offensive co-ordinator for the 2021 and ’22 seasons.

🚨🚨BREAKING NEWS…🚨🚨
We’re excited to announce that we’ve locked this guy in for two years! Check out Alsflix 🤣 to find out which star is going to be calling the 514 home! #alsin pic.twitter.com/rKgUjxlC9T

— Alouettes de Montréal (@MTLAlouettes) February 14, 2023

The complete interview with Fajardo can be heard here.

Kyran Moore signs with Edmonton

Slotback Kyran Moore has reunited with Chris Jones in Edmonton.

Jones, now the Elks’ head coach, was the Riders’ bench boss in 2018 when Moore first joined the Roughriders.

Moore recorded 2,351 yards receiving and 10 touchdown catches in his Saskatchewan career. He came four yards short of a 1,000-yard season in 2019.

He also had two punt-return touchdowns in the 2018 regular season.

Moore was the Riders’ leading receiver in 2021 but suffered a torn ACL late in October that season. He returned from that injury in August last year.

Terran Vaughn to Ottawa

Offensive lineman Terran Vaughn is heading to Ottawa to join the Redblacks.

After dealing with injuries the past few seasons, the left tackle didn’t re-sign with the Riders.

Saskatchewan gave up 77 sacks in 2022, so changes were expected along the line.

Vaughn missed the entire 2021 season with a shoulder injury.

The 28-year-old product of Beaumont, Texas has dressed for 32 games in three CFL seasons.

Shaq Evans to the Redblacks

After joining the Riders in 2018, Shaq Evans is heading east.

Evans has agreed to a contract with the Redblacks.

The 31-year-old receiver recorded 2,830 yards receiving and seven touchdown catches in four seasons with the Riders.

His breakout year came in 2019, when he recorded 1,334 yards receiving and five touchdowns. He was unable to repeat that success after injuries shortened both his 2021 and 2022 seasons.

Duke Williams signs with Ti-Cats

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are revamping their roster and are signing one of the Riders’ slotbacks.

Duke Williams has signed a contract with Hamilton, joining a new-look offence led by quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell.

Williams joined the Riders late in 2021, recording 17 catches for 285 yards and a touchdown in four games. He led the way for the Riders’ receivers in the West Division final against Winnipeg, catching four passes for 108 yards and a touchdown.

He was then signed for a reportedly big deal for the 2022 season.

But injuries derailed Williams’ season and he only appeared in eight games. He caught 29 passes for 280 yards and four touchdowns.

Other moves

Receiver Justin McInnis has left Saskatchewan to join the B.C. Lions.

McInnis, whom the Roughriders selected with the sixth pick overall in the 2019 CFL draft, had 33 catches for 364 yards and two touchdowns with Saskatchewan last season. He had 48 receptions for 596 yards and two TDs in 33 career regular-season games with the Riders.

As well, offensive lineman Josiah St. John has left the Roughriders to sign with Edmonton. St. John dressed for 11 games with the Roughriders last season, primarily as their sixth O-lineman.

Fullback James Tuck has signed with the Alouettes. Tuck appeared in 15 games with the Roughriders last season and caught four passes for 38 yards and made three special-teams tackles.