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Grey Cup-champion Stampeders re-sign Canadian linebacker Cory Greenwood

The Calgary Stampeders re-signed Canadian linebacker Cory Greenwood to a one-year deal Tuesday.

The Calgary Stampeders re-signed Canadian linebacker Cory Greenwood to a one-year deal Tuesday.

Greenwood, 33, was scheduled to become a free agent next month.

The six-foot-two, 235-pound native of Kingston, Ont., joined the Stampeders last September and appeared in six regular-season games. He registered two defensive tackles and five special-teams tackles.

He also played in the West Division final and Calgary’s 27-16 Grey Cup win over Ottawa, recording three special-teams tackles.

Greenwood fills a need for Calgary with the off-season departures of Canadian Alex Singleton (Philadelphia, NFL) and Jameer Thurman (Chicago, NFL).

“Cory is a versatile and experienced player with the ability to contribute both on special teams and on defence,” said Calgary president/GM John Hufnagel in a statement. “He will get the opportunity to earn an important role as he enters his first full season with the club.”

Greenwood has appeared in 76 career games with Calgary and Toronto as well as the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs. The Argos selected Greenwood third overall in the 2010 CFL draft but he opted to sign as a free agent with the Chiefs.

He appeared in 48 career games with Kansas City, accumulating 34 tackles and a forced fumble. Greenwood signed with the Detroit Lions on May 6, 2013 but was placed on injured reserve and ultimately released Aug. 8, 2014.

Greenwood joined the Argos during the ‘14 CFL campaign. In 22 regular-season appearances, Greenwood had 106 tackles including six for loss, seven special-teams tackles, three sacks, three knockdowns, one forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

Greenwood signed with Edmonton in 2017 but suffered a season-ending knee injury during training camp. The Eskimos released Greenwood in March 2018.

“I’m happy we got this deal done ahead of free agency,” said Greenwood. “Alex Singleton and Jameer Thurman left some big shoes to fill and I wish them the best down south.

“I’m looking forward to working with coach Monson (new defensive co-ordinator Brent Monson) and his staff. Hopefully we can retain the core group of guys from last year and go back-to-back by winning the Grey Cup on home turf.”

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers, meanwhile, suffered a loss when centre Matthias Goossen announced his retirement on Tuesday.

The second-overall pick in the 2014 draft, Goossen played 87 career games for the Bombers.

“First off, we would sincerely like to thank Matthias for his work and dedication to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers,” Bombers GM Kyle Walters said in a statement.

“From the moment we drafted him in 2014, Matthias has shown tremendous professionalism both on and off the field. His work in the community is something we are very proud of, and he represented the Blue Bombers the right way. As far as our roster is concerned, Matthias was gracious enough to inform us of this decision quite some time ago, so we have been working accordingly. He is a fantastic young man, and we wish him all the best moving forward.”

Elsewhere, the B.C. Lions signed American receiver Marquess Wilson, who has appeared in 31 games with the NFL’s Chicago Bears.

In the East Division, the Toronto Argonauts signed American defensive back Trey Caldwell to a two-year contract. Caldwell, 25, was a fifth-round pick of the Cleveland Browns in 2016 and was there for one season before joining the Tennessee Titans prior to the 2018 campaign and ultimately being released during final cuts.

The Argos also signed Canadian receiver Alex Charette to a two-year extension. The Guelph product was picked up by the Argos in August 2017 after being cut by the Montreal Alouettes.

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats also came to terms with one of their own players, inking running back Alex Green. The 30-year-old had 604 rushing yards on 114 carries in eight games for Hamilton last year.