There were four teams who made offers for quarterback James Franklin who ultimately was traded to Toronto, Saskatchewan’s Roughriders were not one of them according to TSN’s Dave Naylor and confirmed by 3DownNation.
Lots of speculation was thrown around because Chris Jones had been the head coach in Edmonton for the 2014 and 2015 seasons when James Franklin was on the Eskimos roster. But the truth is Franklin was “found” before Jones came to Edmonton.
Franklin was originally added to the green and gold’s negotiation list while playing at the University of Missouri in the SEC. He was off for a little while when attending Detriot Lions training camp in 2014, but after sparse use the Eskimos readded him suspecting he could be let go and indeed that was the case. Then Franklin signed with Edmonton in April 2015.
Over three seasons in Edmonton, Franklin completed 116-of-176 passes (66 completion rate) for 1,449 yards and 12 touchdowns against one interception. He’s carried the ball 18 times for 145 yards and one touchdown. The 26-year-old’s last start came in 2016 when he lit up Toronto connecting on 18-of-23 passes for 335 yards and four touchdowns in a 41-17 Eskimos victory.
The Argos own Franklin’s exclusive negotiating rights until February as he’s a pending free agent. Meanwhile, the Riders await Brandon Bridge’s NFL fate and have Kevin Glenn, Vernon Adams and Marquise Williams under contract at quarterback.
