Mike Rose and James Vaughters have been cut by the Calgary Stampeders.
On the surface, it seems to be a surprising release of high-profile defensive linemen made by the Canadian Football League franchise, especially with Rose, who has led the team in sacks the last two seasons.
But at its core, the double move is part of a growing trend in the three-down loop that has transactions on the upswing these days.
Teams are giving their veterans a bigger opportunity to find out their worth in the league with a longer look than the seven-day CFL Free Agency Communication Window that opens Feb. 2.
It helps teams better balance their budgets and allows the players to get the most out of the market — a win-win situation for everybody in the CFL.
In the case of Rose and Vaughters, however, both were still under contract with the Stamps through 2025, so they wouldn’t have been eligible for that communication window or for the Feb. 11 opening day of free agency.
And a 3DownNation report pegged Rose being “due a $37,000 offseason roster bonus on Feb. 1.”
But with the team on a mission to improve drastically this off-season, it’s anything goes for the Red and White.
“We thank Mike and James for everything they’ve done for the Stampeders organization over the years,” said Stampeders GM/head coach Dave Dickenson. “Decisions like these are extremely difficult and an unfortunate part of the business of professional sports.
“The contributions of Mike and James to the Red and White won’t be forgotten, and we wish them both all the best.”
Their best might mean catching on with other organizations.
Or perhaps — even though they’ve been cut — it could mean a return to the Stampeders, with contracts that better suit the current evolving situation of the club.
Again, it’s happening elsewhere with other players and teams, so it’s going to happen here.
Stay tuned for all that and if they return.
Orimolade in … Rose, Vaughters out?
Regardless, changes were definitely in the offing after the Stamps proved porous along the defensive line during the 2024 CFL season.
Getting pressure on opposition quarterbacks? Bad.
Stopping their foes from running the ball? Super bad.
And so, Dickenson went to work addressing the d-line situation by axing defensive coordinator Brent Monson and promoting Bob Slowik to that position.
Then he made the trade to bring back rush end Folarin Orimolade, whom the Stamps had lost on the first day of 2023 CFL free agency.
The steep cost to reacquire Orimolade and return him for a second run with the Horsemen was sending all-star linebacker Cameron Judge to the Toronto Argonauts.
But — again — the Stamps are trying to forge a better path.
Terrorizing QBs was supposed to be the primary job of Vaughters, who appeared in 57 games over two stints with the Stamps. The American d-end left the Red and White for the NFL in 2019 and returned in ’23.
But he’s been a disappointment in the QB-takedown department with just five sacks in each of the two campaigns since his return, including just a handful in 18 games — to go with a pedestrian 32 tackles and two forced fumbles — last year.
Instead it’s been Rose racking up sacks — a whopping team-high 11 in 2023, followed by another team-high of six in ’24.
But his 19 tackles last year stuck out in the wrong way, especially for an interior defensive lineman.
And it took away from being named a four-time division all-star as a member of the Stamps.
All told, Rose recorded 143 career tackles — including 16 tackles for losses — 36 sacks, two interceptions, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries in 86 games over seven seasons, while Vaughters rolled up 97 defensive tackles — including four tackles for losses — eight special-teams stops, 21 sacks and three forced fumbles in 56 games as a member of the Red and White.
Stamps re-sign Teitz, sign rookies
In the last week, the Stampeders have made a lot of other moves in an effort to improve their roster.
The main one of those was retaining Canadian linebacker Micah Teitz, as they re-signed the Calgary native and six-year CFL veteran to a new deal, keeping him from becoming free-agent eligible next month.
Of a handful of rookies signed, the feature on is first-year American defensive back Londyn Craft, whose father Douglas played for the Red and White in the 1990s.
The Stamps also inked …
• Rookie DBs Tyler Baker-Williams, Cyrus Fagan, Anthony Johnson and Jeremy Lucien
• American defensive linemen Josh Carr Jr., Savion Jackson, Alex Nobles and Shaun Peterson Jr.
• Rookie American receivers Daylen Baldwin, Kaylon Horton, Tykee Ogle-Kellogg, Terrell Vaughn and Marcus Washington