The Tiger-Cats have officially kicked their 2025 roster-building efforts into high gear. Hamilton started the month of February fast by signing former Winnipeg Blue Bomber wide receiver Drew Wolitarsky, but one day later, Hamilton made several more personnel moves. Those moves include re-signing National wide receiver Kiondre Smith and National running back Ante Milanovic-Litre.
In addition to re-signing Smith and Litre, the Tiger-Cats have also signed another former Winnipeg Blue Bombers wide receiver, Josh Johnson, according to the CFL Transactions List. Also, the CFL free-agent negotiation period officially started on Sunday, and today, the Tiger-Cats have reached agreements with Montreal defensive back Reggie Stubblefield, according to a CFL.ca article, and Winnipeg defensive lineman TyJuan Garbutt, according to an article by 3 Down Nation.
Extending Their Stay in the Hammer
Two of Hamilton’s pending free agents agreed to two-year extensions to stay in Hamilton. Both returning players filled essential roles on the offensive side of the ball for Hamilton in 2024. Having Smith and Litre return should help Hamilton continue their surge in offensive production from the 2024 season.
National wide receiver Kiondre Smith has played for the Tiger-Cats for his entire three-year career since 2022. Since becoming a Tiger-Cats, Smith has played 54 games and caught 147 passes for 1,881 yards and eight touchdowns. Most of Smith’s production came during a breakout season in 2024, where he caught 74 passes for 933 yards and seven touchdowns.
National running back Ante Milanovic-Litre also returns to Hamilton after filling a specific niche role for the Tiger-Cats as their shortage specialist under-center running quarterback sneaks rather than putting one of Hamilton’s quarterbacks at risk of injury. In 2024, Litre played in all 18 games, ran the ball 62 times for 168 yards, and scored five touchdowns. Before coming to Hamilton, Litre played for the Calgary Stampeders from 2017 until 2021 for 55 games and the Edmonton Elks in 2022 for 14 games. Still, his production during the 2024 season in Hamilton was a standout year for the former Simon Fraser University athlete.
New to the Hammer
American wide receiver Josh Johnson comes to Hamilton after playing the 2024 CFL season with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. During the 2024 season, Johnson played in 10 games and caught 18 passes for 138 yards. Before coming to the CFL, Johnson played the 2023 USFL season with the Birmingham Stallions but only played in 4 games and caught just two passes for 13 yards.
The 5’11, 181-pound receiver played college football at Iowa State University and the University of Tulsa. While at Iowa State, Johnson played in 12 games but only caught one pass for 11 yards. Johnson then transferred to Tulsa, where he played 34 games for the Golden Hurricane from 2019 until 2021. While at Tulsa, Johnson caught 165 passes for 2,108 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Agreements made for Pending Free-Agents
The 2025 CFL one-week negotiation period started this weekend, and any agreements made with pending free agents this week can become official beginning on February 11th. Sources have reported that the Tiger-Cats have agreed with two pending free agents. The CFL league website has reported that Montreal defensive back Reggie Stubblefield has agreed to a 3-year contract, and 3 Down Nation reported that Winnipeg defensive lineman TyJuan Garbutt has agreed to a 2-year contract.
In 2023, Stubblefield played 13 games for the Montreal Alouettes and helped the team win the 2023 Grey Cup championship. During the 2023 season, Stubblefield recorded 38 defensive tackles, three special teams tackles, three quarterback sacks, two interceptions, and one forced fumble. Stubblefield had his 2024 season cut short by a torn ACL during the Alouettes’ first game, but before his injury, Stubblefield had four defensive tackles and one special team tackle.
Defensive lineman TyJuan Garbutt is the latest Winnipeg Blue Bomber who will become a Tiger-Cat during the 2025 season. Garbutt played two seasons with the Blue Bombers, one game in 2023 and 12 games in 2024. During the 2024 season, Garbutt registered 19 tackles, three quarterback sacks, one forced fumble, and one defensive touchdown.
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