Saskatchewan Roughriders’ head coach Craig Dickenson has great admiration for veteran quarterback Trevor Harris.
According to 3DownNation insider Justin Dunk, the Riders have submitted a strong multi-year contract offer to Harris to become the face of the green and white franchise.
“I think he’s a solid veteran quarterback who has been there and done that, knows what it takes to be successful, is intelligent, is tough, appears to be a charismatic leader and physically looks like he’s just as good now as he’s ever been,” Dickenson told 620 CKRM radio in Regina.
“I think he’s really bought into training and trying to get himself right. It looks like he’s in great shape and playing some of his best football right now.”
Harris remains under contract with the Montreal Alouettes until free agency opens on Tuesday, Feb. 14 but he’s currently able to field offers from other teams as part of the CFL’s negotiating window, which opened on Sunday, Feb. 5 at noon eastern time.
Through ten CFL seasons, Harris has completed 70.7 percent of his passes for 28,610 yards with 154 touchdowns and 71 interceptions. He has seen success as a starter with the Argonauts, Redblacks, Elks, and Alouettes, putting up a 48-46-2 win-loss record. In 2018, the Waldo, Ohio native set a single-game CFL playoff record with six touchdown passes in an East Final win to lead Ottawa to a Grey Cup appearance.
“We feel like we need to sign a veteran quarterback, but we also feel like the guys we have on our roster are good football players,” Dickenson said. “We feel good about Mason [Fine], we feel good about [Jake] Dolegala and we’ve got a couple of other guys that we’ve signed.”
It appears the Roughriders would prefer a new starting quarterback for the 2023 season after benching Cody Fajardo with two games left in a disappointing 6-12 campaign last year that saw the club miss the postseason. Dickenson and his staff are hoping Harris can help lead a turnaround season in Riderville.
