The Toronto Argonauts have added American quarterback DJ Williams to their exclusive negotiation list.
The six-foot-three, 218-pound passer is a senior at Southern Illinois University where he has completed 67.2 percent of his passes for 1,214 yards, 11 touchdowns, and two interceptions through five games this season, leading the team to a 4-1 start. He has also rushed 50 times for 386 yards and nine scores.
The native of Harvey, Ill. transferred to Southern Illinois in 2024 where he completed 59.0 percent of his pass attempts for 571 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions before suffering a season-ending hand injury. He also ran the ball 39 times for 242 yards and four scores.
Williams started his collegiate career at Murray State University where he was named the Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year in 2021.
CFL teams can claim the rights to up to 45 players via the negotiation list on a first-come, first-served basis, provided that they are not eligible for the Canadian or Global Drafts, and have never played in the league before. These players can be added, traded, or removed from the list at any time.
Being added to a negotiation list does not mean that the player has expressed interest in the CFL, and some are unaware that their rights have even been claimed. Players can only force their removal from the list if the team does not provide them with a minimum contract offer at their request.
The Toronto Argonauts (5-11) will visit the Saskatchewan Roughriders (11-4) at Mosaic Stadium in Regina on Friday, October 10 with kickoff slated for 9:00 p.m. EDT. The Roughriders are coming off a modest win over the Ottawa Redblacks, while the Argonauts were crushed by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
The weather forecast in Regina calls for a high of 19 degrees with sunny conditions. The game will be broadcast on TSN and RDS in Canada and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune-in on TSN 1050 in Toronto and 620 CKRM in Regina.
