Montreal – The Montreal Alouettes announced on Friday that national long snapper Martin Bédard has agreed to a one-year contract extension with the club. The team also announced that free agent national receiver Devon Bailey was inked to a one-year deal.
Bédard (6’3”, 239 lbs.) will be sport an Alouettes uniform for a ninth consecutive season in 2017, as he has spent his entire professional career with his hometown team, dressing for 128 regular season games. The team’s second round selection (14th overall) in the 2009 CFL Canadian Draft amassed 50 special teams tackles throughout his career. The 33-year-old raised the Grey Cup twice with Montreal, as he was part of the back-to-back championship teams of 2009 and 2010. Prior to joining the Alouettes, Bédard suited up for three seasons at tight end with the University of Connecticut Huskies, following a remarkable career with the Vieux-Montréal Spartiates at the cegep AAA level.
“Martin’s consistency and precision are undeniable assets for our club and our special teams unit,” commented Alouettes General Manager, Kavis Reed. “The fact that he is a fierce competitor, coupled with his experience and deep knowledge of our league make him a very consistent player year after year.”
Bailey (6’5″, 202 lbs) was drafted in the first round (sixth overall), by the Edmonton Eskimos in the 2014 Canadian Draft. The former St. Francis Xavier University X-Men then played three seasons for the Eskimos, during which he caught 33 passes for 469 yards and two touchdowns in 39 games.
“We are very pleased to have added a national receiver of Devon’s caliber to our roster,” said Reed. His arrival gives us depth and speed at the receiver position. We are very excited to see Devon in an Alouettes uniform in 2017.”
Last season, the 25-year-old receiver made his longest career-play, when he caught a 72 yard pass from James Franklin during the team’s last regular season outing.
