CFL announces that veteran slotback Weston Dressler has cleared NFL waivers

Let the Weston Dressler sweepstakes begin.

The CFL announced Tuesday that Dressler had cleared NFL waivers and therefore was an unrestricted free agent. The former Saskatchewan Roughriders slotback was released Monday by the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Riders released Dressler, 29, in January — roughly two weeks before he was scheduled to become a free agent — so he could explore his options south of the border. Shortly after working out for the Chiefs, Dressler signed with the NFL club but donned No. 13 in honour of Saskatchewan’s rabid football fans, affectionately dubbed the 13th Man.

The five-foot-eight, 179-pound native of Bismarck, N.D., spent his entire six-year CFL career with Saskatchewan, registering 442 catches for 6,531 yards and 43 TDs. He surpassed the 1,000-yard receiving plateau five times, including the last four years.

Dressler had five catches for a game-high 81 yards and a TD in Saskatchewan’s 45-23 Grey Cup victory over Hamilton last November at Regina’s Mosaic Stadium. A two-time all-star, Dressler was the CFL’s top rookie in 2008.

Dressler appeared in three exhibition games with Kansas City, recording a 19-yard kickoff return.

As an unrestricted free agent, Dressler is free to join the CFL team of his choice. And with the league’s salary cap having risen to $5 million this season, there are reportedly as many as five clubs interested in signing the veteran receiver.