If the Alouettes traded quarterbacks with the Roughriders, Montreal general manager Danny Maciocia agrees it would have been a blockbuster deal headlining the CFL offseason.
“It didn’t come about that way, it’s through different types of circumstances that we find ourselves with Cody and they get themselves Trevor,” Maciocia said.
“I don’t know if we’re better off. I think they’re two quality quarterbacks that are going to two organizations that are definitely going to benefit from their talent,” Maciocia said.
“Trevor’s as accurate as you’re going to come across, I put him in the same category as a Ricky Ray. He’s got an abundance of experience and I’m quite sure he’ll do well for himself in Saskatchewan. In our case, we get a younger quarterback, we get a tough quarterback. If the opportunity presents itself when he gets outside the pocket he can make things happen with his feet.”
The 2019 West Division Most Outstanding Player struggled while wearing a brace and playing through a left knee injury for most of the 2022 season before being benched for second-year pivot Mason Fine. Fajardo’s passing production was down significantly from his 2019 campaign and barely outpaced his 2021 numbers when the season was four games shorter due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“I went back and watched three years worth of film — I went back when he was 13-5, then the pandemic year, the following year he was 9-5 and last year we all know what kind of season Saskatchewan had — I watched every single throw,” Maciocia said.
“I’ve had the good fortune of working with some pretty good quarterbacks, whether it was Ricky Ray, Jason Maas or Anthony Calvillo. I’ve always been a fan of Cody because there are so many different ways he can beat you. He’s won a lot of games inside two or three minutes. He’s probably an upright away from going to a Grey Cup game. I felt there’s still a lot of good football left in Cody.”
Through three seasons with the Riders, Fajardo produced a 27-17 win-loss record, including a 6-9 mark last year while missing the playoffs for the first time as a starting QB. His 61 percent winning rate ranks higher than Harris’ 51 percent. The former Alouettes, Redblacks and Argonauts triggerman has a 48-46-2 win-loss-tie record.
“We’re going to get a quarterback that’s battle-tested and knows how to win at the CFL level. He has a relationship with Jason and understands what type of system we’re going to run. That’s going to be very beneficial to us. We think he’s tough, we think he’s accurate, we think he’s a competitor. We think he’s going to come in with a chip on his shoulder having experienced what he experienced last year. All the adversity, I think that makes him stronger,” Maciocia said.
“There’s something to say about people that go through some form of adversity, the way they handle it. There were times last year when he could’ve just said: ‘Hey, enough’s enough.’ He had the issue that he had with his knee and he could’ve sat out multiple games had he chosen to do so. Yet he just kept going back and playing, doing his best. The fact that he went through it, the way he handled it — that speaks volumes to me.”
Fajardo’s relationship with Maas, who served as the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator for two of his three seasons in Saskatchewan, helped him feel comfortable signing with Montreal. However, Maas did not want his bias to influence Maciocia’s evaluation and ultimate decision to pay Fajardo as the unquestioned starter for the Alouettes.
“Danny identified what I saw which was a lot more positives than negatives, things to work with and things he could improve on. Like any quarterback, they can always improve on something. We felt like the positivity of Cody far outweighed any negatives,” Maas said.
“Knowing the challenges he was dealing with on a day-to-day, week-to-week basis, mainly one of his injuries, I knew that wasn’t the best version of Cody that he could show. I wanted someone else’s perspective looking at the film, even when outside looking in it wasn’t as good as what anybody would want at times.”
Maas stated Fajardo is fully healthy from the MCL ligament tear sustained in Week 2 against Edmonton last season. The tough times the six-foot-two, 223-pounder went through in 2022 did not soften the Als on wanting to bring him in, in fact, it may have strengthened the resolve to sign him.
“When it became certain that Trevor was leaving, we identified players that we would like in the building — Cody was at the top of that list,” Maas said.
“Danny did his due diligence, AC [Anthony Calvillo] did his due diligence, looking at his film, identifying his strengths and understanding we can win with him.”
