Tevaughn Campbell remains undecided about whether or not he wants to continue his professional playing career in 2027.
The 33-year-old suffered a fractured forearm with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in August, which forced him to miss eight regular-season games. After he missed five regular-season games due to a broken jaw in 2025, it seems the ailments have given him pause.
“Injuries definitely play a part (in my decision), I’m not gonna lie about that. Especially being my age in the league and suffering back-to-back years of broken bones, it kind of weighs heavy on me,” Campbell told reporters in Regina on Sunday.
“It’s a huge factor. I’m turning 34 next year, so recovery and the body, things start getting downhill, so you gotta stay on top of that kind of stuff. If you’re not, it doesn’t make up for the best season, so definitely I gotta feel good in the offseason. I gotta feel like I can physically still play the game, and mentally still play the game.”
The native of Scarborough, Ont. was one of the CFL’s best defensive backs last year, when he recorded 18 defensive tackles, six interceptions, four pass knockdowns, one fumble recovery, and one touchdown over 13 regular-season games. He was named All-CFL and helped the Roughriders win the 112th Grey Cup.
Campbell’s numbers were not nearly as impressive this year, as he tallied 24 defensive tackles, three pass knockdowns, and zero interceptions over 10 regular-season games. The team’s defence regressed as a whole, giving up 366 passing yards and three touchdowns to Nathan Rourke to lose the West Semi-Final on Saturday.
Like many in Rider Nation, the six-foot, 195-pound defender wanted to win another championship this year to become the first back-to-back Grey Cup-winners in franchise history. With the defeat from the weekend still fresh, he expressed how devastating the loss feels.
“Deep in the gut, it just hurts — especially because I know we had the opportunity to do it. We had the chance, we had the teams, we had the guys,” said Campbell.
“We’ve gotta go back-to-back again — like, you’ve gotta win one and then expect to win another one — so it’s definitely hard when you expected fully coming into the season at the beginning of preseason that you were going to make it in.”
Next year’s Grey Cup will be played at Mosaic Stadium in Regina, giving the team the chance to win it all at home for the second time in club history. Campbell has deep ties to the city, having played collegiately at the University of Regina before entering the professional ranks.
Despite that, it doesn’t seem the proximity of next year’s Grey Cup will strongly impact his decision regarding whether or not he’ll continue to play.
“I don’t know,” he said. “We’ll see how that goes.”
Campbell acknowledged that he considered retirement last offseason. According to Spotrac, he earned nearly $3.2 million USD over five seasons in the NFL, so his current $200,000 CAD salary is relatively small by comparison.
For now, he’ll discuss his future with his loved ones in order to make the best decision for him and his family.
“I gotta talk about it,” he said. “I’m undecided right now, but we’ll make that decision in the offseason.”
Editor’s note: key file courtesy of Regina Rams play-by-play voice and Sportscage guest host Brendan McGuire.