Ottawa Redblacks sign veteran defender DeMarquis Gates

Photo: USFL. Photo edit: 3DownNation.

The Ottawa Redblacks have signed American linebacker DeMarquis Gates, the team announced on Wednesday.

The six-foot-one, 226-pound defender most recently played for the UFL’s Birmingham Stallions, helping the team win a championship in 2024. He dressed for 16 games over two seasons with the team, recording 79 total tackles and 2.5 sacks.

The 30-year-old has also had NFL stints with the Cleveland Browns, Washington Football Team, Minnesota Vikings, and Chicago Bears. Over eight career regular-season NFL games, he made two total tackles.

The native of Hampton, Ga. had a stint with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2021, when he made eight total tackles over five regular-season games.

The Ottawa Redblacks (0-14) will host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (4-11) on Friday, October 2 with kickoff scheduled for 7:00 p.m. EDT. The Tiger-Cats were eliminated from playoff contention following last week’s loss to Edmonton, while the Redblacks continued their winless season against Calgary.

The game will be broadcast on TSN and RDS2 in Canada and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune-in on the Ticats Audio Network in Hamilton or TSN 1200 in Ottawa.

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American linebacker DeMarquis Gates
HEIGHT: 6-1 | WEIGHT: 226 lbs | BIRTHDAY: 1996-03-07
HOMETOWN: Hampton, GA | SCHOOL:  Mississippi

Gates most recently spent time in the UFL with the Birmingham Stallions where he won a UFL championship in 2024. He originally signed with the NFL’s Cleveland Browns in 2018 and also spent time with Washington (2019), the Minnesota Vikings (2020) and Chicago Bears (2022-23). The Hampton, Georgia native also had a stint in the CFL with the Saskatchewan Roughriders where he played five games in the 2021 season, registering eight total tackles. Gates also spent a season in the XFL with the Houston Roughnecks (2020) and the now-defunct Alliance of American Football with the Memphis Express (2019).