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Kian Schaffer-Baker wanted to make sure he stayed in Saskatchewan.
The 27-year-old slotback could have seen what his value in the CFL’s free agent market but it was announced this week he has signed a two-year extension with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
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“It’s become home. Ever since I got drafted here in 2020, we didn’t even have a season, but they believed in me — just a small-town kid from Mississauga — they welcomed me with open arms and I’m just forever grateful for what they have provided for me. I know this isn’t the end of the story, it’s just the beginning,” Schaffer-Baker said.
He admitted prior to being drafted to Saskatchewan, he had never visited the province.
“I didn’t even know what the heck I was coming out to,” Schaffer-Baker said. “I would’ve pictured myself in Miami or Jamaica — somewhere hot. It’s just coming back to that trust and believing whatever God has planned for you. That’s the greatest purpose in life.”
He said it was an amazing feeling to put ink to paper.
“Just to know you have another opportunity to continue to prove yourself,” Schaffer-Baker said. “That’s all we’re asked to do every single day — prove ourselves, love on each other and there’s no better group to do that with.”
The Riders are the only team Schaffer-Baker has played for in his five-season CFL career. He was a fourth-round (30th overall) pick in the 2020 CFL Draft.
“It was COVID, so I didn’t know what the heck was going to happen. I had to get a job at that point, but I just kept my faith and kept working every single day and that is what has gotten me to this point,” Schaffer-Baker said.
Schaffer-Baker has been one of the team’s top targets when he has been healthy. During his CFL career, he has 220 catches for 2,865 yards and 14 touchdowns in 57 games.
While he was limited to just five regular-season games in 2025, he was able to return late in the season and helped the Riders claim the organization’s fifth Grey Cup title.
“That’s been the dream from the first day you walked in here. It was a long time since we got one — 12 years and it’s been a long wait,” Schaffer-Baker said. “It’s something the whole province deserves — all of Saskatchewan.”
Schaffer-Baker is the latest member of the Riders to re-sign ahead of CFL Free Agency in February. He joins the likes of quarterback Trevor Harris, wide receiver Sam Emilus and offensive lineman Jermarcus Hardrick.
“The biggest thing in the locker room is the continuity and how we mesh together,” Schaffer-Baker said.
“What we had last year was so special but that’s in the past. We can’t ever go back and live that moment. We can watch all the videos we want but it’s about what we do today and continue to build that continuity.”
Now the goal for the 2026 season will be to do something no Rider team has ever done — win a second straight Grey Cup.
“We talk about it every single day. I just talked to Trevor yesterday and the first thing we talked about was running it back. Two days ago, I talked to C.J. Avery about running it back. Last week, I was talking to Rolan Milligan about running it back. That’s just what our mindset is always going to be,” Schaffer-Baker said.
“We’re not really living on the high of winning last year, we’re already focused on what’s next ahead of us.
“I don’t even think it’s going to be brought up too much more because that’s the same thing we did during the season. We didn’t talk about the Grey Cup. Each and every single week, it was going 1-0. That’s the only thing we cared about. I think we take that same process each and every day — just going 1-0.”
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