Jameer Thurman, a divisional All-CFL selection last season, is all-in with the Corey Mace-coached Saskatchewan Roughriders.
The team announced on Monday that the veteran linebacker, who was eligible to test free agency in February, had signed a two-year contract extension.
“It’s good to have continuity,” Vice-President of Football Operations and General Manager Jeremy O’Day said during a Zoom call with reporters on Tuesday.
“I think that Jameer was also looking for that — making somewhere his home. It’s a credit to our coaching staff and Corey and just our organization as a whole for making him feel welcome and making him feel that it’s a place he wants to stay for a long period of time.
“It was nice to sign the two-year deal. Those are always good, especially when you’re talking about someone who’s a core player on your team.”
A team captain as a first-year Roughrider, Thurman registered 76 defensive tackles (three for a loss), two interceptions (one of which he returned for a touchdown and another that secured a victory) and three fumble recoveries last season while helping the team post a second-place finish, earn a home playoff game, and advance to the Western Final.
“Jameer is obviously a very good football player and a veteran guy who has had a lot of success in this league and played at a high level,” O’Day said.
“What he brings to the locker room is invaluable, coming to a new team and trying to get used to the players in the locker room and the coaching staff.
“Trying to develop yourself into the leader of a new team is often challenging, but he did a nice job of that.
“He’s just a natural leader. He has a great work ethic and he’s someone you definitely want to build your defence around.”
Another building block, defensive end Malik Carney, has agreed to a new contract. His deal, like Thurman’s, was announced on Monday.
Carney had four sacks, 26 defensive tackles and a forced fumble in 13 games last season as a first-year Roughrider and fourth-year CFLer.
“He’s someone who constantly wins one-on-ones and that’s a big deal,” O’Day said.
Carney was part of a defence that registered 38 sacks — the fourth-best total in the league — last season.
Saskatchewan was only one sack behind the B.C. Lions and Ottawa REDBLACKS, who were tied for second. The Toronto Argonauts led the sacks standings, with 48.
With Carney healthy for an entire season, the Roughriders could move up a few notches in terms of sacks.
“You don’t see a lot of times when the D-end has truly beaten the tackle and is applying pressure to the quarterback,” O’Day said. “Malik’s very good at that and he’s got a tremendous upside.
“I still believe that Malik’s going to be a top-tier defensive end in our league. He just needs to put it all together.
“Last year, he was fighting through a high ankle (injury) that slowed him down a little bit, but we’re happy to have him back. Hopefully he can have a healthy year and he applies a lot of pressure.
“Pass rushers around our league are critical. You want to protect the quarterback and get to the quarterback. We’re excited to have him back and the sky’s the future for him.”
It has yet to be determined what the near future holds for All-CFL cornerback Marcus Sayles, who will become a free agent on Feb. 11 if he does not reach a new deal with Saskatchewan.
“He came into our team (four days before the 2024 regular-season opener) and did a great job for us,” O’Day said.
“He’s a very good player and we’d love to have him back, but in those situations it’s got to work out for both parties.”
Discussions will also be held regarding quarterback Shea Patterson, who started seven games last season — six while starter Trevor Harris was injured.
Harris, Jake Maier, Jack Coan and Michael Hiers give Saskatchewan four quarterbacks who are under contract for 2025. Patterson, who scored a team-high seven TDs last season, is a pending free agent.
“It’s hard to tell right now,” O’Day said about Patterson’s status. “It’ll have to be a conversation with Shea and his agent to see if there is still an opportunity for him here and, if so, what does that look like and is that something they would be willing to talk about?
“Those conversations haven’t taken place yet, but they will in the near future. I wouldn’t 100 per cent say that there’s no chance that Shea would be back. We just haven’t gone down that road yet.”
A road grader of a left offensive tackle — Trevor Reid — recently signed with the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings after being named the Roughriders’ Most Outstanding Rookie in 2024.
Asked about the best place to find a replacement, O’Day replied: “We hope that he’s on our team right now.”
If so, that would be another testament to the Roughriders’ acumen on the player-personnel side.
“Coming into camp last year, no one really knew who Trevor Reid was,” O’Day noted. “We just did an excellent job with our scouting at that position.
“It has just been such a tough position the last number of years, just with the injuries and the number of guys we’ve gone through.
“The fortunate part of last year, with having so many injuries and playing so many tackles, is that we actually have a number of them who are on our roster.
“We feel like we probably have a guy who can fill that position, but it is disappointing when you have a guy who came in and started every game for us at 24 years old and super athletic.
“The future is bright for him, but we do feel like we’ve got some guys who can compete for that position, for sure.”
