Ottawa Redblacks general manager Marcel Desjardins told TSN 1200 in Ottawa negotiations with Nick Arbuckle have not progressed as much as he had hoped, but added there is still time to work something out with the quarterback.

Desjardins, who told TSN 1200's In the Box that he has been asked to cut player salary after the 2020 Canadian Football League season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, said he's not yet worried about the Arbuckle situation.

"We haven't accomplished anything yet, so it's not progressing to the extent that we would want but we also have time to accomplish what we need to accomplish," Desjardins said. "I'm not panicked about it, I'm not worried about it. We'll see how this plays out."

Desjardins says that the way Arbuckle's deal is structured could help end the impasse.

"The thing is, it has to kind of play out before the end of this month because Nick has a payment due on February 1 and we need to adjust that payment to him on the contract if we get to that point," Desjardins said.

The Redblacks signed Arbuckle to a two-year contract last January after acquiring him from the Calgary Stampeders in exchange for a third round draft pick and a swap of first round draft picks.

Arbuckle spent the first two years of his CFL career in Calgary, and had a breakout 2019 filling in for the injured Bo Levi Mitchell, finishing the year with 2,103 passing yards, 11 touchdowns, and five interceptions, while adding another 76 yards and four touchdowns on the ground.

Six of nine starting quarterbacks in the CFL have restructured their deals after the cancelled 2020 season.