Why did coveted Canadian linebacker A.J. Allen choose to sign with the Ottawa Redblacks?

Saskatchewan Roughriders linebacker A.J. Allen celebrates after defeating the Toronto Argonauts last year. The Canadian Press

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A.J. Allen is a firm believer in “Lombardi Time,” the philosophy on punctuality popularized by legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi that says arriving 15 minutes early is being on time and showing up on time is being late.

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Officially (wink, wink), the CFL’s rules on signing free agents don’t jive with Lombardi Time.

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For the 2026 crop, the window opened at noon on Feb. 10.

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The Redblacks waited with phone in hand and set on Allen’s number.

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“I wanted to go where I was wanted and I wanted to go where they love football,” said the 28-year-old linebacker, a Burlington product who played his college ball at Guelph, when asked why he chose to sign in the nation’s capital. “I’m a huge guy for time and respect. When the window opened at 12 o’clock, Shawn Burke (VP of football operations) called me at 12. That’s something I can really appreciate. Respect. Not 12:05, not 1201, he called me at 12.

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“After that, RD (head coach/GM Ryan Dinwiddie) called me at 12:15, Coach Fields (defensive coordinator Will Fields) called me at 12:30. That means a lot to me. Being on time, punctual, respectful … that shows I was wanted. And having conversations with them, it was evident that they love football, and they saw me in their vision. It pretty much made the decision very easy. They met my two requirements. Where else do you need to look?”

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Allen, a 6-foot, 235-pounder, was coveted by other teams.

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He capped his collegiate career with the Gryphons by being named the OUA’s Most Outstanding Stand-Up Defensive Player.

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In three seasons with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, he worked his way from special-teams demon to starter and, in the Western Final last Oct. 22, he sacked B.C. Lions quarterback Nathan Rourke on a second-and-three to force a punt late in the game that the Riders turned into a seven-play, 76-yard drive for the winning touchdown.

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In moving on from the Grey Cup winners to a last-place Redblacks team that in 2025 started three American linebackers, Allen will be a ratio-changer.

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What factors outside of football made Ottawa appealing to Allen?

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Memories of the city are mostly from his childhood days.

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“I used to come here when I was a kid,” he said. “My mom took me to ride Rideau Street and the canal. We’d walk, because I’m not a skater, and we’d go see Parliament Hill as well. I haven’t been here much since then.”

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Moving to Ottawa does bring him closer to his girlfriend, Nicole Kwiatskowski, who lives in Vaughn and is studying to be a psychotherapist.

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“She’s wonderful,” said Allen, who was then tested on the spelling of Nicole’s last name. “She’s Taiwanese and Polish, which is confusing, because it sounds like Fiatkovsky, but it’s spelt with ‘K’ instead of ‘F’. That’s how I learned it.”