2023-24 off-season transactions

[Argo57]

The sky isn't falling and it's absurd to blame Pinball for anything right now...

Today sucked though. The Argos lost great players who contributed to a glorious era of the team's history and are some of the best personalities in football.

Pinball and company put this all together in the first place, so I'm more than confident the team will remain a top contender, but there's no way you can tell me today didn't suck.

I’m with you, hard to shrug off watch other teams raid a significant amount of talent from the roster.
Free agency is far from over, let’s hope they rally with some signings in the next few days.

[AngeloV]

Facebook fan club is blaming Pinball for not listening to the fans. And suggesting possible locker room issues. Not one mention of a rookie contract looking for a significant raise. CFL careers are short, a lot of the money is lost with taxes and conversion. And imagine trying to find a place to live (Ouellette lived in a camper van FFS) for half the year in Toronto. Its not easy keeping the core together unless you're a Leaf making $10M+

That’s I dropped out if every Argo Facebook group except for Argos Daily. Schmuck central.

[paulwoods13]

Now we know how Stampeders fans have felt, year after year.

[Argo57]

Now we know how Stanpeders fans have felt, year after year.

100% the truth.

[OV Argo]

Now we know how Stampeders fans have felt, year after year.

And the Argos mined that source way more than any other CFL team.

Tough losses the Argos have just faced, but I'm pretty confident in this Argo brain-trust to still be able to put together a very strong team.

As far as new RBs; K. Carey is a very good talent, but maybe not what he once was. Really love to see Adeboboye get a real shot and McMahon might prove a good change of pace quicker back type. Also like to see them sign vet big powerback M-Litre from Ottawa - very under-rated IMO; and there is a chance to maybe draft Alberta RB Matt Peterson off a superb U Sports rushing season. A new import RB or two with nice resumes could still be signed for TC.

Lots of options / lotsa real TC competition please.

[primetime31]

As I told my son when he told me that the Argos were getting spanked in free agency, we will see who the Argos bring in as free agents before we can fully judge how well they did. This is where Murphy, Magri et al will really earn their coin in bringing in new players

[Antwon]

Remember no ink has been signed. This is the open week for other teams and FA's to talk to each other. The Argos will have one day before FA officially opens and can match or raise the other teams offer. And the player can change their mind.
As for Ouellette, it hurts to lose a fan favourite, but I'd rather spend big on the o-line then over pay a RB.
And I have faith in Pinball, Murphy, and Magri.

[TrueBlueGuy]

I’m with you, hard to shrug off watch other teams raid a significant amount of talent from the roster.
Free agency is far from over, let’s hope they rally with some signings in the next few days.

reactions from this group are right on IMO, yes our losses today DO suck but be patient for a week or so. This group of fans are not whiners and stick with our Argos thru thick + thin, good observations, all of you. GO ARGOS!

[DanTheFan]

Logging in here for the first time in months to see if y'all are more level-headed than the Facebook and Twitter crowd. Thanks for not disappointing me!

[gilthethrill]

Not a great day to be an Argo fan, but all is not lost. Our Front Office constantly brings in new talent to the team and this offseason will be no different.
The 2024 Argos will win the war in the trenches, MOP QB who hasn’t even hit his ceiling and a HC with an outrageous WL record.

[kellynjk]

Yeah, I'm super intrigued by Agudosi. He could be another one of those guys who comes into the league with one team but comes into his own with another, a la Geroy Simon. (Not saying he will be as good as Geroy, just the same concept.) Having said that, I would really like to get Coxie back, and also Hendrix if he's not already gone to Hamilton.

Just trying to keep caught up on all the moving parts, and was wondering if they had re-signed Coxie yet (I too would really like to see him come back) but it seems so far they haven't.

[Stevoman]

Sucks to lose another fan favourite in Ouellette. I don't fault the players for going for the most cash they can get. I don't fault the team for choosing not to overpay at certain positions either and think Adeboboye is ready for a shot at a full time role (and I love the way he plays too!). Where the loss of AJ hurts the most is fan recognition. The CFL, not just the Argos, has a major problem in not really being able to market current players due to the high turnover rate. General fans don't even know who's on the team and once they do, the players often move on. AJ had endeared himself to not just the faithful but to the casual fan base as well. But, with a tight salary cap, players association fighting for short term contracts, and players trying to capitalize when they can with either more money or an NFL shot, it means it's next to impossible to have the longevity by one player on one team to make enough of an impact to garner ticket sales.

[Shatto]

Quite the last few days. There is reason to be concerned and reasons to be optimistic.

Concerns: If the unconfirmed report that Hendrix has reached an agreement with Hamilton is true, it means 5 of the team's 12 starters on D have been lost. Add the valuable backup Barlow and it means the D has taken a considerable hit. On offense the team has lost 2 impact players (Quellette and Gittens). On special teams, the league's biggest kicking leg (Bede) and best returner (Leake) have left.
It is obvious it will difficult to replace all that quality but it also means other teams have been made stronger.

Optimistic: The league's best OL and its backups is still in place. The D line which was very effective last year will be even stronger with the addition of Ceresna. New player Derek Parish looks to be a force on the D line (if they can find a place for him). Since games are often won or lost at the line of scrimmage, the team is in very good shape in this regard. Adeboboye has the potential to be a highly effective RB, especially running behind the excellent OL. The team still has the league's best QB in Kelly. Already the team has found a great replacement of Bede. With McMahon, Pierce and newcomer Malone the team has some potentially excellent returners.
The team admin has been fantastic in recruiting in the past couple of years. There is no reason not to expect the same level of successful recruiting for this season. The team has already signed 4 players from their negotiation list (Bowser RB, Malone WR, Johnson DB and Parish DE). That implies the team has signed players they have been scouting and evaluating. Obviously the team has a high opinion of those players.

On the whole, the loss of good players will create a challenge for the team but based on past experience the team will find excellent replacements. Let's keep faith, everyone.

[Rich]

Or to put it another way, it is reasonable to question whether the can all be replaced with equivalent results.

A 16 win season is a rarity, and at the end of the day it didn't get us anywhere, not to say that the players we've lost won't hurt, but full panic isn't warranted either.

We all knew going into 2023 that the team would be loaded with extra talent due to Kelly’s rookie contract. We all knew deep down that this day of reckoning would be coming. I’m a little surprised that some fans are taking it so badly.

Pinball said in his interview with Hogie that last year’s team was so good from the get-go that it didn’t leave enough room for improvement, and as we’ve seen so many times, it’s teams on the rise that often cause the most damage in the playoffs. This team was never going to improve with six meaningless games to end the season.

It sounds a little crazy, but having fewer stars may actually give the Argos a better chance to start really gelling and growing as a team by the end of the season. As I said before, based on the players already under contract and barring major injuries, I see no possible way this team is not a Cup contender in 2024.

[AngeloV]

On the whole, the loss of good players will create a challenge for the team but based on past experience the team will find excellent replacements. Let's keep faith, everyone.

This sums up my feelings perfectly.

[ArgofanIan]

Best of luck to the guys we lost. These guys don't make a ton, have short careers so have to do what's needed to look after their families. I would do the same.

ARGO management has done a great job bringing in excellent players.

Looks like sun is going to come up after all .... We are the most resilient fan base in North America... Need everyone onboard and to #pullTogether.

Go ARRGOS !!!

[paulwoods13]

Remember no ink has been signed. This is the open week for other teams and FA's to talk to each other. The Argos will have one day before FA officially opens and can match or raise the other teams offer. And the player can change their mind.

I for one will be very surprised if the Argos try to get into a bidding war for any of the guys who have worked out deals elsewhere. Once a player leaks out that he's moving to X team, that bridge has been burned. If there are still guys unannounced by the weekend, I imagine we will still be in on them. But Ouellette, Peters, Hendrix, Leake, Barlow and anyone else I've missed are gone, IMO.

[ArgoGabe22]

I for one will be very surprised if the Argos try to get into a bidding war for any of the guys who have worked out deals elsewhere. Once a player leaks out that he's moving to X team, that bridge has been burned. If there are still guys unannounced by the weekend, I imagine we will still be in on them. But Ouellette, Peters, Hendrix, Leake, Barlow and anyone else I've missed are gone, IMO.

I wonder what Chad Kelly is thinking after restructuring his contract to give them more cap space to re-sign these guys, only to lose them all.

[Argo57]

I wonder what Chad Kelly is thinking after restructuring his contract to give them more cap space to re-sign these guys, only to lose them all.

An interesting point for sure.
Who are they capable of signing moving forward, are they strapped against the cap?
Interesting to watch the Bombers retain a good chunk of their highly touted free agents yesterday at significant $$$?

[Will]

Kelly re-structuring his contract was likely only going to generate so much cap space. We don't know what the Argos had in mind when they asked Chad to re-structure nor do we know if they believed it would allow them to keep any of the free agents who are apparently signing elsewhere.