As a rookie kick returner with the Montreal Alouettes, James Letcher Jr. acquired the nickname the Human Joystick – so called for his ability to change directions on a dime, darting in and out of traffic with the football on his way downfield.
To hear Letcher tell it, he may also bring the same athleticism to his sleep habits.
“You know the bigger guys they fill the bed out. I don’t fill the bed out as much so I can roll over a little bit, I can do a little back flip, front flip or whatnot,” a laughing Letcher told reporters after practice Tuesday on Day 3 of the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ training camp in Saskatoon.
Letcher, signed in the offseason to replace the departed Mario Alford, was responding to head coach Corey Mace earlier letting reporters in on a team joke: “He’s the only guy at camp with a king-size bed,” Mace said, drawing laughs.
The joke stems from the fact Letcher – listed at 5-foot-7 – may be the smallest player in camp. But, as many of his opponents over the past three seasons would attest, Letcher’s performance since entering the Canadian Football League has been no laughing matter.
He made his CFL debut Sept. 30, 2023, as an injury replacement for Montreal’s regular returner Chandler Worthy.
Two games later, in the Als’ penultimate game of the season, he returned a missed field goal 125 yards for a touchdown against the Edmonton Elks. And he followed that up in the regular season finale with a 99-yard punt return TD against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
Fast forward another two weeks to the East Division final and there was Letcher again, running a kickoff back for a 105-yard major against the Toronto Argonauts to help Montreal punch its ticket to the league final.
Letcher was more subdued as Montreal beat the Winnipeg Blue Bombers for the 110th Grey Cup, but still averaged 25.7 yards on three kick returns – a full three yards ahead of the league-leading regular season average posted by the B.C. Lions.
For that success Letcher credits, in part, the man whose misfortune turned him into a CFL regular.
“I think the most time I’ve spent with a guy is Chandler Worthy,” he said. “He taught me a lot being younger into the league. Not to say that I’m old now but when I first got in the league he was a big helper and a big mentor for me with how the game was different from down south. So I learned a lot from him and tried to pick his brain and do a little bit of the things he do.”
In the two seasons since that eye-popping debut, he averaged 24.1 yards per return on 66 returns over 27 games. It’s an average exceeded once in that time by any team – the 2025 Roughriders, led by the aforementioned Alford (despite missing seven games to injury).
Letcher also dealt with injury last year, missing Montreal’s final four regular season games. He returned for the team’s East Division semifinal and final games but was scratched for the Grey Cup, which the Als lost to Saskatchewan.
“I still think I’m an electric guy,” Letcher said Tuesday. “Even from coming in from college I thought I was one of the most electrifying guys in college football so I still think I am. As long as I can stay healthy and give my team what they want from me I think I’ll be good and so will they.”
As reported by 3DownNation in March, Letcher’s decision to sign with the Roughriders was driven partly by the best financial offer on the market but also by the team’s commitment to letting him know he was wanted. That commitment reportedly included phone calls from Mace, special teams coordinator Kent Maugeri and starting quarterback Trevor Harris.
“He’s an outstanding human being,” Mace said Tuesday. “Energy you just love to be around. I think his reputation speaks for itself. You just cut the tape on it and see what he’s doing. We’re giving him an opportunity at a receiver spot for him to be able to digest that playbook as well being new for him. He’s been excellent man.”
Tuesday, Letcher also praised the Riders’ winning culture in his decision-making process.
“I just love the energy. I love the camaraderie,” said Letcher. “Coaches seemed great over the phone, and shoot I know what a winning team looks like. They just won last year. Not to say that Montreal wasn’t a winning team, but sometimes it’s (about) a big change first of scenery.”
