The Toronto Argonauts have added three intriguing American free agents, including former NFL wide receiver J.J. Arcega-Whiteside. The Boatmen also announced the acquisitions of defensive backs Marquis Waters and Latavious Brini.
Arcega-Whiteside, 27, is an intriguing hybrid talent who could be an asset for the Argos, particularly in the red zone area.
Whiteside was taken in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles. The Stanford standout would play in 40 games over three seasons with Philly, registering 16 receptions for 290 yards and one touchdown.
The 6-2, 225-pound pass-catcher was traded to the Seattle Seahawks in 2022 before landing with the Atlanta Falcons in 2023. Arcega-Whiteside played 36 games at Stanford (2015-2018), where he caught 135 passes for 2,216 yards and 28 touchdowns while being named second team All-Pac 12 in his final collegiate season.
Waters, 24, most recently spent time with the New York Jets from before being released in August.
The 6-1 safety attended Texas Tech from 2021-2022, where he played in 17 games and recorded 69 tackles, 14 for loss, one sack and two interceptions.
The Florida native led the Big 12 with 12 tackles for loss in 2022 and was an honorable mention All-Big 12 as a senior. Before his time at Texas Tech, Waters attended Duke from 2017-2020, where he played in 49 games and tallied 234 tackles, 13 for loss, one sack, three interceptions, one fumble recovery and a blocked kick.
Brini, 25, last played with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2023 after signing with the team as an undrafted free agent.
The 6-2, 215-pount defensive back attended Arkansas in 2022 and recorded 55 tackles, four for loss, one interception and one forced fumble in 13 games for the Razorbacks. Brini originally played at the University of Georgia from 2018-2021. Over the course of 30 games, he tallied 50 tackles, six for loss and one interception. Brini was a part of the 2018 Bulldogs team that won the National Championship.
The Argonauts are still a month away from CFL free agency commencing. Most of the focus in the upcoming days and weeks will be on who the Argos re-sign from their extensive pending free agent list, along with who they add from the open market to come on board for 2024.
But there are under-the-radar signings before the free agency period begins that could end up being the most impactful moves this off-season.
The Boatmen have adeptly landed some of their best players in the last few years during this time frame. During this phase, The team has had some of the best American free-agent signings in the entire CFL.
To this point, Toronto has added three players from their 10-player Winter Negotiation list in Duke defensive back Leonard Johnson, UCF running back Isiah Bowser and Henderson State receiver Xavier Malone.
It’s rare that CFL teams check off multiple names off what is a de-facto wish list. But the Boatmen’s recent success with American imports has opened eyes and minds for players to immediately make the leap to Canada.
You can find Mike Mitchell on X @ByMikeMitchell.
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