Five possible destinations for Cody Fajardo

While the Alouettes chose to entrust the reins of their attack to Davis Alexander, the Calgary Stampeders drew from the British Columbia Lions at the start of the week to bet on Vernon Adams Jr.

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The Lions can already count on Nathan Rourke in their ranks, while veteran Bo Levi Mitchell seems well in the saddle in Hamilton, just like Zach Collaros in Winnipeg. Dru Brown has gained ground in Ottawa. Count down! There are few options left for Cody Fajardo to maintain a position as number one quarterback in the Canadian Football League. Maybe Edmonton…

Here are five possible options:

Edmonton

The most logical option, or even the only one? The Elks have cleaned up a lot over the past year and, unless interim head coach Jarious Jackson gets the job, a new face will soon be added to the sidelines in Edmonton. The name of Alouettes defensive coordinator Noel Thorpe, whose wife lives in Alberta, is also mentioned among the potential candidates. Regardless of his identity, the next head coach may very well want to field a veteran American quarterback rather than relying on the aging McLeod Bethel-Thompson or the young Ontarian Tre Ford. They also risk becoming free agents in February.

Saskatchewan

A return of Cody Fajardo to Saskatchewan? Not sure that all Roughriders fans would be delighted… However, the best option currently for the club led by Corey Mace seems to be veteran Trevor Harris, whose contract expires in February. Harris will also be 39 years old next May. Remember that Fajardo already played in Saskatchewan from 2019 to 2022.

Toronto

After suffering a broken ankle during the Eastern final against the Alouettes, Chad Kelly will logically miss the start of the next season. The Argonauts, reigning Gray Cup champions, however, retain the option of granting a new contract to Nick Arbuckle, who filled Kelly’s absence brilliantly in the final. Fajardo would also fall to second as soon as Kelly returns to play, and that’s really not what he envisions.

Montréal

What if Fajardo, after a few days of reflection, finally decided to agree to restructure his contract and stay with the Alouettes to support Alexander? No, but if he is to be an auxiliary elsewhere, why not prefer a similar role in Montreal? Such a scenario is unusual, but the esprit de corps is strong within Jason Maas’s troop. Obviously, to do this, Fajardo would have to crush his pride and accept a significant salary cut, he who was to earn $482,000 next season.

At home

Cody Fajardo imagined himself retiring in an Alouettes uniform, but not so quickly. At 32, he is still young. It’s hard to imagine him hanging up his cleats, but he perhaps prefers to make such a decision rather than agreeing to become an auxiliary quarterback. Last October, Fajardo and his wife Laura welcomed their second child, a baby boy named Cian. The newborn joins Luca, his big brother. Without necessarily retiring, why not take a sabbatical year with your family?