Toronto Argonauts’ head coach Ryan Dinwiddie said Wynton McManis already knows he’s the team’s No. 1 priority to re-sign in the offseason.
The 30-year-old was the best player on the field for the Double Blue in the 111th Grey Cup win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. He recorded six tackles and one interception which he returned 58 yards to set up a touchdown.
Since signing with the Argos in 2022, McManis has been named a CFL all-star twice and the team has won two Grey Cups in three seasons. He and Dinwiddie agreed to a one-year extension for the 2024 season during lunch at Local in Liberty Village, downtown Toronto. That contract made No. 48 the highest-paid linebacker in the CFL at $206,500.
“It‘s got to work for both parties. I always try to make sure they’re happy, but we’ve also got a salary cap. If you start getting crazy as far as giving guys exactly what they want, now you’re a little bit top-heavy. We’ve got to look at that and find the best way to take care of our players,” Dinwiddie said.
“No better city, no better fan base, no better coaching staff and players to be around. The organization is amazing. We built something special. I would hate to cut it off, go somewhere else and try to start over. I love what we’ve built and I want to continue,” McManis said.
Through 42 regular season games with the Argonauts, McManis has registered 224 tackles, 11 special teams stops, eight sacks, seven interceptions, scored three touchdowns and forced one fumble. His son and daughter were born in the city that the six-foot-one, 225-pound linebacker now calls home.
“I’d love to be back here in Toronto. It doesn’t get any better than this. It’s about feeling comfortable and being around people that you know you can win with. We know in Toronto we built a culture here, everybody has a passion and love for the game,” McManis said.
Calgary was the place where McManis’ CFL career started. He played three seasons with the Stampeders, notching 104 tackles, 41 special teams stops, four sacks and two forced fumbles. His standout 2019 campaign helped him earn an NFL contract with the New Orleans Saints.
“Calgary was a good fit. What we had there was something special because we won a Grey Cup. I didn’t leave Calgary with any bad blood but what we built here is so much more. We just continue to do what we do and that’s great business,” McManis said.
Dinwiddie wants to do more “great business” with McManis and set his team up for a shot at three CFL championships in four years. That piece of business could be conducted at Local in Liberty Village again as it was done last offseason.
“We might go back and keep it the same, do what we do, that brought us a championship,” McManis said.
