Montreal Alouettes extend punter Joseph Zema through 2027

The Montreal Alouettes have signed Global punter Joseph Zema to a contract extension through 2027. He was already under contract for 2026.

The 31-year-old was originally the sixth overall pick in the 2021 CFL Global Draft out of the University of the Incarnate Word. The native of Australia has since played 86 regular-season games with the Alouettes, punting 480 times for a gross average of 46.9 yards and a net average of 37.7 yards.

The six-foot, 210-pound specialist won a Grey Cup in 2023 and was named All-East Division in 2025.

“Joseph has always delivered since joining us. He’s able to place the ball exactly where he wants without ever fearing pressure, and that’s a valuable weapon for our team,” said general manager Danny Maciocia in a statement. “We’re happy that we were able to extend his contract by another year.”

The Montreal Alouettes finished second in the East Division standings in 2025 with a 10-8 record and beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the East Final before losing the 112th Grey Cup to the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Davis Alexander went 7-0 as a starter during the regular-season, though he missed 11 games due to a hamstring injury.

The Alouettes ranked eighth in net offence, first in net defence, and third with a turnover differential of plus-eight. The club’s leading rusher was Stevie Scott III with 418 yards, leading receiver was Tyler Snead with 1,129 yards, and leading tackler was Darnell Sankey with 103 tackles. Montreal finished sixth in attendance with average crowds of 21,132, which was a 0.8 percent decrease from the previous year.