Argos sign Parker, Gagne-Marcoux: CFL roundup

Byron Parker is returning to the Argonauts a happier man, thanks to the team's decision to fire head coach Bart Andrus.

Toronto general manager Adam Rita wasted little time Tuesday after the CFL free-agent season started at 12:01 a.m. ET, reacquiring cornerback Parker and adding former Hamilton offensive lineman Cedric Gagne-Marcoux.

"I'm excited to come back to my adopted home of Toronto, where I started my career," Parker, who resides in Atlanta during the off-season, said in a statement. "I wanted to be around the people I enjoy being with and those people are in Toronto."

An unhappy Parker, 28, was traded to Edmonton last September after seeing limited playing time under Andrus, who was let go on Dec. 14 after one season and replaced by one-time Argos bench boss Jim Barker.

This will mark the two-time CFL all-star's fourth stint with the Argonauts, who posted a 3-15 record last season.

"It's great to have Byron back with the Argos," Rita said. "This year, he'll be with us in training camp and we anticipate he will help us with several positions in the secondary."

Following a failed tryout with the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League last season, Parker played two games with Toronto before the trade to Edmonton.

In 2006, he set an Argos record with 348 interception return yards and a single-game mark with 135. Parker also holds team records for career touchdowns by interception (six) and single-season touchdowns by interception (four).

An athletic coverman, Parker spent the first four of his five CFL seasons in Toronto, where he recorded the bulk of his 21 interceptions.

Gagne-Marcoux adds depth to an Argos offensive line that struggled in 2009, finishing last in the eight-team league in yards rushing (82.5 per game) and quarterback sacks allowed (55).

"He is able to play all of the inside positions on the offensive line," Rita said, "which should provide us with good experience at both centre and guard where we know he will be able to compete for a starting position."

Gagne-Marcoux played 31 games over three seasons with the Tiger-Cats, who chose the Central Florida product eighth overall at the 2006 CFL Canadian college draft.

"It was obvious where I wanted to go in free agency," said the 27-year-old. "[Argos linemen] Taylor Robertson and Dominic Picard are my two best friends in the league. The aggressiveness and intensity of the O-line in Toronto is my kind of style of play."

Gagne-Marcoux admitted he wasn't a good fit with Hamilton head coach Marcel Bellefeuille.

"I had some good and bad experiences in Hamilton," he said. "People say it's a rebuilding team [in Toronto], but it's not a big deal for a rebuilding team when all the pieces are there. It's just a matter of building a chemistry.

"I think they brought in the right coach [Jim Barker], and I think it's all there. I think it's going to be one of the big turnarounds in CFL history."

In other moves:

• The B.C. Lions signed defensive lineman Keron Williams, who helped the Montreal Alouettes win a Grey Cup title last season. He was named a CFL all-star last season after registering 32 tackles and eight quarterback sacks.
• Hamilton traded all-star defensive back Chris Thompson to Edmonton for receiver Maurice Mann. Thompson had 49 tackles and an interception in 18 games last season with Hamilton. The acquisition of Mann gives Hamilton another play-making receiver to complement all-star slotback Arland Bruce.
• The Saskatchewan Roughriders re-signed long-snapper Jocelyn Frenette and offensive lineman Marc Parenteau.