American defensive end Ralph Holley is returning to the Toronto Argonauts after a stint in the NFL.
Holley signed with the Cleveland Browns this offseason but was waived as part of their final roster cuts following training camp. He was returned to the practice squad twice before being released both times.
The six-foot-one, 285-pound defensive end starred for the Toronto Argonauts in 2024, his first year in the CFL, with 22 tackles, eight sacks and one forced fumble. His eight sacks tied him for the league lead.
The West Bloomfield, Michigan native trained for seven NFL teams, including the Atlanta Falcons, Tennessee Titans, Cincinnati Bengals, Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans Saints, before signing with the Browns in the offseason. He recorded one tackle in three preseason games.
Holley played collegiately at Western Michigan University, where he recorded 138 tackles, 45.5 tackles for loss, 20.5 sacks, five pass knockdowns, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery over 50 games with the Broncos. He was named first team All-Mid-American Conference in 2020 and second team All-Mid-American Conference in 2021.
The Argonauts finished third in the East Division standings in 2025 with a 5–13 record, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2019. Kelly was unable to play the entire season due to a broken leg he suffered in the 2024 Eastern Division finals. Nick Arbuckle threw for 4,370 yards, 26 touchdowns and 15 interceptions to be named the team's Most Outstanding Player.
Toronto ranked seventh in net offense, sixth in net defense and seventh in turnover differential of minus-eight. The team's leading rusher was Spencer Brown with 314 yards, the leading receiver was Dejon Brissett with 907 yards, and the leading tackler was Cameron Judge with 79 tackles. The Argos ranked ninth in attendance with an average of 15,109 fans at BMO Field, down 0.1 percent from the previous year.
