The 32-year-old Dean signed a one-year contract with the Riders for the 2021 season worth $120,000 in hard money. It includes an $81,000 base salary, a $20,000 signing bonus, $12,000 in housing payments, a $5,000 active roster first time bonus, and $2,000 travel allowance. He secured a raise from his 2020 agreement with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, which would have paid $110,000.