Franchise quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell has every intention of returning to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats next year, though it appears as though he wants to do so under a new contract.
“I played on a ‘prove it’ contract this past year, rightfully so — they wanted to see if an old guy can stay healthy for all 18 games and play good football,” Mitchell told 3DownNation on Wednesday. “I think I proved that. I definitely would rather go into next year after discussing the contract situation with the team, for sure.”
The 34-year-old took a massive pay cut last off-season as the hard money in his contract was slashed from $522,000 to $225,500, according to figures procured by 3DownNation. He had an additional $121,000 in playtime incentives available and earned most of that money as he threw for a league-best 5,451 yards and 32 touchdowns. However, his compensation still fell well below what he was initially supposed to earn in 2024.
Under the terms of his current deal, Mitchell can earn a maximum of $411,500 in 2025, only $275,500 of which is hard money. As the league’s leading passer and the East Division’s nominee for Most Outstanding Player, one could argue that the Texas native deserves to rejoin the ranks of quarterbacks like Zach Collaros and Chad Kelly, who earn over $500,000 per season.
Mitchell indicated that his post-season talks with head coach Scott Milanovich and president of football operations Orlondo Steinauer were positive. When asked how he’d like his deal to change for next year, however, he indicated that he wants fewer incentives and a greater amount of hard money.
“I think it would just be getting rid of the ‘prove it’-type stuff,” said Mitchell. “I want to have a conversation (about the contract) with (the team) first — that’s something that’s always going to happen internally — but my idea of going back into the situation is not on a ‘prove it’ contract.”
Hamilton briefly pivoted to Taylor Powell as their starting quarterback in August and, though the 26-year-old native of Fayetteville, Ark. remains under contract for next season, he is owed only $90,000 in hard money in 2025, making it perfectly feasible for the team to retain both quarterbacks.
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Though the Tiger-Cats missed the playoffs with a 7-11 record, Mitchell had nothing but positive things to say about them as an organization. They stuck by him after a rough 2023 campaign and set him up for success in the renaissance season he enjoyed in 2024.
“I told (Milanovich) this privately — I’ve never walked into a game and so many play action shots were open. The dude understands the game, he understands offence, he understands his players, what they’re good at, how to get them open, what routes they’re good at, what routes they’re not (good at). He’s not afraid to be honest with you about it, that’s one thing I really respect,” said Mitchell.
“I can tell you right now, the way that organization takes care of you, they expect winning. They do anything in their power to make sure you have any resource you need in order to be successful. So, when you’re not winning, there’s a lot of disappointment, whether it’s from up top or throughout the team itself.”
Mitchell will turn 35 in March. Though he appears uncertain of exactly how much longer he’d like to play in the CFL, one thing is certain: he wants to win another Grey Cup.
“I don’t want to play when I’m 40, I can tell you that,” said Mitchell. “For me, (my motivation) was always trying to catch (Anthony) Calvillo in yards, trying to catch (Doug) Flutie, trying to catch these guys in M.O.Ps. and championships. I broke it down, I looked at Calvillo and I’m like, ‘Man, 80,000 yards is 20 years of 4,000 yards.’ That’s a record we’re not catching.”
“Longevity-wise, I want to get back on top of this game and I want to go out on top. I watched Ricky Ray do it against myself (in 2017). I watched Henry Burris do it against myself (in 2016). That would obviously be the goal and the dream to go out on top in a championship, especially to be able to bring it back to Hamilton — everybody knows (they haven’t won a Grey Cup) since 1999. That was the reason I went there, I wanted to help be the guy with the team to make that happen.”
The post Bo Levi Mitchell wants to play in 2025 but not under existing ‘prove it’ contract appeared first on 3DownNation.
