Adieu, Adieu Ajou Ajou

Most players coming back from the NFL usually take time to adjust to the Canadian game and while Ajou did run into some criticism in the NFL for his attention span in making easy drops, back in the CFL he distinguished himself by blocking for the running game and down the field.

The contrast in how the Riders handled this situation versus 20 years ago when linebacker Tevis Smith was a HIV positive guy who was dating freely without telling his partners was notable. The Riders seem to have moved from the days of Roy Shivers and Chris Jones who liked good players regardless of whatever character issues they brought up with them.

It was a smart moving on from Ajou because the secret sauce to the Riders championship season was their depth and their team chemistry.

While no charges were filed, the Riders will be hosting a Grey Cup next year and they don’t want to alienate their potential ticket buyers by having someone who might be a distraction off field or in the locker room.

The Riders were tested in 2025 with their depth at receiver and the younger receivers who got promoted contributed and the result was a lineup with confidence in each other. I would think the Riders may also draft a Canadian receiver who will go back to school after going to training camp and getting some invaluable experience.

The Riders are getting ready for the CFL Canadian Draft April 28 following the NFL Draft currently underway. By virtue of winning the Grey Cup, the Riders pick last in each of the rounds, but with the team’s depth, look for the Riders to check out a defensive lineman they can get into the rotation, a Canadian receiver, maybe a defensive back or linebacker and a long snapper.

The retirement of Rider long-snapper Jorgen Hus became official this past week, but it became obvious when the Riders signed former Calgary Stampeder long snapper Aaron Crawford who is a short-term solution at 40 years old.

The Riders special teams will be undergoing a major change with a new kicker, yet to be determined, and a new returner for kickoffs and punt returns. Brent Lauther has signed with Ottawa after Ottawa let Lewis Ward go before making a bonus payment.

Ward was pretty accurate but if you look at his kicks, most of his accuracy came within the 40-yard line. Lauther has the leg for distance, but the last few years accuracy has been a problem and it was interesting to read Lauther talking about adjusting his approach to the ball, which may or may not explain some of his accuracy problems.

The rule changes brought in by the CFL shortening the field and putting the goal posts at the back of the end zone will add another 15 yards to field goal tries, much like the NFL. Throw in no rouges for missed field goals or punts going through the end zone and there will be a demand for field goal kickers who can hit long field goals and Lauther can do that. Whether the Riders field goal kicker potentials can do that is something we will see in training camp.

The Riders brought in offensive lineman Justin Osborne at 6’5” 305 who strikes me as a bulldozer for running backs although he has had some injury problems. The Riders experienced a lot of success with four American offensive linemen in keeping QB Trevor Harris upright in the playoff run, but the Riders have some Canadian offensive linemen who hopefully will be ready to step up and challenge.

How the Riders handle the Canadian ratio is going to be fascinating, but I would think the Riders receiving corps will have at least two Canadian and probably three Canadian receivers. One thing to think about is the status of Canadian receiver Mitch Picton who was an invaluable back up and has the size to make sideline catches, but never struck anyone as a speed merchant.

Picton was thought to be headed for retirement due to the depth of younger and faster Canadian receivers, but with Ajou being let go, the Riders may bring Picton back to provide Harris with a reliable target and to mentor the younger Canadian receivers.

With the NFL Draft underway it will be interesting to watch what the San Fransisco 49ers do in the draft, particularly at quarterback. The 49ers have Canadian quarterback Kurtis Rourke who suffered a torn ACL during his last collegiate season and basically sat out the 2025 season.

The 49ers have former New England Patriots QB Mac Jones as a back up and a third quarterback so if the 49ers add another QB, there is a good chance Rourke may make his way to the Riders who drafted him in the third round.

That would be major because with Jake Maier moving on to Ottawa as a backup, the Riders have Jack Coan, the former Notre Dame quarterback who has the size and the work ethic but hasn’t yet convinced Rider fans he will be the next one if Harris goes down to injury.

I’ve watched Coan and it will be interesting to see if he can move from third on the depth chart to second with a real chance to see game action.

The Riders have brought in quarterbacks like Jordan McCloud from the NCAA and if Rourke comes in and if he is healthy, the Riders future at quarterback looks promising.

The Riders announced their inductees for the Plaza of Honour by naming kicker Paul McCallum, center Dan Clark and receiver Rob Bagg. All Canadians with McCallum remembered for kicking the longest field goal in Rider history while missing a field goal against BC in 2005 which led to some morons dumping manure on some guys driveway they thought was McCallums’ Former CFL player Jaylon Hutchings of the Stampeders was waived by the Minnesota Vikings for a non-football injury otherwise known as a hamstring injury. Hutchings was a major factor in the Stampeders success last season, but being waived is not necessarily the end of Hutchings NFL dreams.

If Hutchings clears waivers without being claimed, the Vikings can release him but bring him back which considering the injury is not considered a long-term one, might be a good idea since the Vikings are looking to retool their defensive line.

If Hutchings does not catch on in the NFL, he would be considered a free agent in the CFL because he would not automatically return to the Stampeders and the Riders might well be interested in bringing him in along with eight other teams.

Among them might be Ottawa who traded a third-round draft pick in 2026 and a conditional third round 2027 draft pick to Toronto in exchange for the rights to Canadian defensive lineman Luiji Vilain and a fourth-round pick in this year’s draft. Vilain was released by the Dallas Cowboys and is currently a free agent.

It’s a good move by Ottawa which is looking to try to improve under new GM/Head Coach Ryan Dinwiddie and appears to be the only team to have gone over the CFL salary cap last season. Ottawa was fined $40,000 but you could argue the Redblacks did not get value for their overspending last season.

The CFL draft is April 28, and the Riders will be hosting a draft night at Mosaic Stadium starting at 4 pm and it will be fascinating to see how they respond to the challenges they face as they look to become the first Rider team to win back-to-back championships.

Who knows, maybe they can find a new fan favorite to replace Ajou?

Adieu Adieu!

by Urbanoski

Adieu, Adieu Ajou Ajou

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