Former Steelers quarterback Paxton Lynch is taking his talents north of the border.
Lynch, 27, signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League on Monday for the 2021 season.
The Steelers signed Lynch to their practice squad on Sept. 17, 2019, after a season-ending injury to starter Ben Roethlisberger. Lynch was promoted to the active roster on Oct. 11, 2019 after Mason Rudolph was also injured and Lynch served as the team’s primary backup to Devlin Hodges, but never saw game action.
Lynch returned to the Steelers in 2020, but was among the team’s final roster cuts, with the Steelers opting to keep Josh Dobbs and Hodges over Lynch.
The 6-foot-7, 244-pound Lynch was a first-round pick of the Denver Broncos in 2016 and has thrown for 792 yards and four touchdowns in his NFL career.
In Saskatchewan, Lynch will be expected to compete with incumbent starter Cody Fajardo, a former Nevada and Oakland Raiders quarterback that earned the job in 2019.
The CFL did not play a 2020 season amid the coronavirus pandemic. The 2021 season is expected to start on Aug. 5 and run through Dec. 12, when the Grey Cup will be contested for the 108th time.
Saskatchewan opens its season Aug. 6 at British Columbia. CFL training camps are allowed to open July 10.