Tuesday, February 13 is just over two weeks away, which means 2024 Free Agency is truly right around the corner. Perhaps I’m suffering from recency bias, but it sure does feel like there are more high-end players without contracts for the coming season than usual. And business has yet to really pick up.
The Riders picked the wrong horse to back up Harris this year. Mason Fine had a few glimmers this last season, but he’s not the future of the team. Dolegala, on the other hand, has the potential to be a starter when Harris retires.
Letting Jake go is another big mistake by the Riders. He could easily won at least four more games if the Defense both stopping the run and deep pass wasn’t so poor. It seemed like we were always one score short. Highest points against in the league by a country mile or in Saskatchewan, from section to section. Oh well another bites the dust.
The CFL should simply continue NOW to pick up promising players for camp, who are free agents from the former spring leagues who are still not signed by the UFL, which is flailing it seems in its efforts to start off on the right foot 30 March.
UNBELIEVABLE!
RE-Signing Fine and not Dolegala
In all the time Fine has been with us he has nothing particular note worthy and he’s short but no Lancaster
Dolegala showed real potential
Simply nuts!
I could not agree with you more on this.
I agree with your assessment about Dolegala but look at this way. He is probably better than Harris and light years ahead of Fine. If he can not play for the Riders perhaps he is better off going somewhere we he can start. He deserved the starting job after last season and he wants to play. Playing for the Riders is not in the cards and I am not sure staying in the CFL is in the cards eithers. I suspect he is going to end up back with the Patriots with both Jones and Zappe being cut with this new coach.
Lets see how all this develops.
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Jake Dolegala, the American quarterback, has recently joined the BC Lions after spending two seasons with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He signed a one-year contract with the Lions12. During his time with the Roughriders, he was pressed into starting duty for the final nine games due to injuries to Trevor Harris and Mason Fine1. In the 2023 season, he made his first start against the Lions, throwing for a career-high 409 yards in a game against them134. His performance will be closely watched as he takes on the role of starting quarterback for the BC Lions. 
Will someone here explain to me how they could keep Fine and let Dolegala slip away? I mean lets get real here. Now he is the backup for the BC Lions. He should have been the starter for the Riders. If the Starting QB goes down they are going with Mason Fine? Really. I guess the BC Lions got him now. But they have a total of 4 QB’s right now and one of them is not going to make it. If the Riders lose their starting QB I would not be surprised to see the Riders bring back Dolegala cause lets face it Mason Find ain’t it…
The only way that they could bring back Dolegala is via trade as he is under contract to BC for 1 year. Typically teams do not trade QB’s to another team in their division during the season so BC, if they were going to help the Riders out, would likely ask a steep price. I don’t see this happening.
As for Fine, I think he will be on the practice roster and the #2 will be Shea Patterson.
Well, we shall see now who makes it through camp with all the players back in the CFL or drifting over from the spring leagues since play resumed in 2022 with those.
I don’t ever remember this large of a flow of such former CFL players, or those with other pro experience, back to the CFL since I have been following it more closely since February 2010.