May 8, 2017

Steinberg’s MMQB: No fear in the unknown

UCLA

The only predictable thing about the 2017 CFL Draft was how unpredictable we all anticipated it being. That was very much the case starting with the second pick and continuing on down the board. Now, with one of the calendar’s most important dates in the books, it’s an all-draft edition of the Monday Morning Quarterback.

Enviable spot

As had been reported in the days leading up to last night’s draft, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers made Iowa defensive tackle Faith Ekakitie their first overall selection. Ekakitie is a tantalizing prospect who combines desirable size at the position (6-foot-1, 305 pounds) with impressive athleticism and was going to be hard to look past at No. 1.

It’s an even better situation for the Bombers, who won’t be forced to rush their new top prospect. Remember, Winnipeg didn’t pick first overall by virtue of a last place finish in 2016. Instead, it acquired the pick from Toronto in last season’s Drew Willy trade that continues to look better and better for the Bombers.

DRAFT QUICK HITS
» A team by team look at all 71 picks
» Bombers take Ekakitie first overall
» Recap: Role reversal highlights CFL Draft

 

After returning to the playoffs last season, Winnipeg looks to be formidable once again, which means it can ease Ekakitie into the fold far more easily.

That’s not to say Ekakitie isn’t ready for prime time. As most scouts have pointed to, the Brampton product was one of the most pro-ready prospects on the board and could very well be an impact maker for the Bombers in 2017. But, if incumbents on the defensive line beat him out in 2017, it’ll be pretty easy to swallow knowing how competitive Winnipeg has the opportunity of being.

The Bombers don’t have any glaring organizational needs as it stands right now so General Manager Kyle Walters could fall back on the “best player available” draft strategy with his first pick. In Ekakitie, that’s exactly what Winnipeg got, especially knowing the NFL implications of other eligible, comparable players.

Initially I wondered whether an offensive lineman might have been the way to go for the Bombers at No. 1. However, when Manitoba’s Geoff Gray signed in Green Bay and Idaho’s Mason Woods fell out of favour with scouts, the door opened up for Ekakitie to be the easy first pick (funny enough, the Bombers would snag Gray later on in the first round).

A lot of times a first overall pick is looked at to make a difference right away. After all, drafting first is one of the few positives of a disappointing season on the field. With the Bombers and Ekakitie, though, that hope and expectation can be tempered a little bit. If he makes a big impact in 2017, that’s great, but Winnipeg is in the enviable position to ease its prized prospect into the fray.

Mystery men

Both Cameron Judge and Randy Colling recently obtained Canadian citizenship and became eligible for the 2017 Draft very late in the game. As such, they were very much unknown quantities heading into Sunday night. I’m not sure any of us saw them both going in the first round, though.

While Judge was expected to go fairly early on Sunday, it was still somewhat of a surprise to see him go second overall to the Saskatchewan Roughriders. The UCLA linebacker had really good testing numbers and was a standout on special teams, which should allow him to play right away, if that’s in the cards.

UCLA Athletics

Second overall pick and linebacker Cameron Judge arrived on the draft scene late (UCLA Athletics)

Judge presents a couple different questions for the Riders. First, not a lot is known about him, at least from the outside. Saskatchewan would have done extensive scouting on him but because he entered the draft fray so late, the rest of us don’t have as complete a book on him compared to some of the other top picks.

Second, it’s still somewhat uncertain whether Judge will be wearing green this season or not. Invited to Houston Texans rookie camp, Judge wants to see what happens there before committing to the CFL for 2017. Riders’ head coach and GM Chris Jones still took that risk, though, which shows you just how highly the team rates Judge.

Colling, on the other hand, went sixth overall to the Calgary Stampeders after some wheeling and dealing with the Bombers. The 26-year-old defensive lineman is as unique a drafted prospect as we’ve seen in quite some time, and even less is known about him compared to Judge.

In a fairly rare circumstance, the Stamps drafted Colling out of the Arena Football League with extensive experience on the professional circuit. Colling has spent the last four years with the AFL’s Cleveland Gladiators after graduating from Gannon University, an NCAA Division II program.

For sake of reference, a lot of mock drafts had Colling as a very late pick if he was even being picked at all. That’s not to say Calgary has a bust on its hands, though. The Stamps traded up to get Colling and have as strong a drafting track record as anyone in the league. As such, I’m willing to suggest they’ve probably found themselves a good player.

 

More than anything, I found it interesting how two comparably unknown players both went in the first round of this year’s draft. It shows you how wide open things were and it also shows you just how much divergence there was from team to team.

Let’s not forget, though, that Alex Singleton went sixth overall to Calgary one year ago in very similar circumstances. His rookie campaign in 2016 was a stellar one and he looks like a mainstay at linebacker for years to come. If either Judge or Colling trend in a similar fashion, I doubt anyone will be using the term “unknown” for much longer.

Line dancing

The most intriguing position to watch on Sunday was at offensive line because it was fascinating to see how things played out. To be perfectly honest, the way teams went about selecting players at the position is the most surprising thing of what was a very unpredictable few hours.

First off, I was stunned to see Geoff Gray go as high as he did. After he signed in Green Bay as a priority free agent, I thought he would tumble into the mid rounds or lower, but the Bombers decided to use their second first round pick (eighth overall) on the Manitoba product.

As we outlined last week, priority free agents have stuck south of the border in almost every circumstance over the last number of years. As such, the odds of seeing Gray suit up for Winnipeg in the near future is fairly slim. I’m not saying it’s a bad pick at all; Gray was rated by most as the best offensive lineman available. I just didn’t expect him to go as one of the first eight picks.

Matt Smith/CFL.ca

An extra first round pick allowed Bombers GM Kyle Walters some added flexibility (Matt Smith/CFL.ca)

Gray’s selection set off a run on the position unlike I’ve ever seen. Seven of the next eight picks came on the offensive line including Saskatchewan’s Evan Johnson (9th, Ottawa), Mason Woods of Idaho (10th, Toronto), and Bethune-Cookman’s Dariusz Bladek (11th, Saskatchewan). I’ve seen rounds that go heavy at the position, sure, but to see all but one pick between eight and 16 at offensive line is nuts.

And yet, we didn’t see an offensive lineman go really early, which is unusual. Since 2010, for instance, at least one offensive lineman has gone in the top five every single year. Many of those years, three or more players at the position have been top five picks. This year, the first player on the O-line went at eight.

It was just another reason why the 2017 CFL Draft was as unpredictable and interesting as we’ve ever seen.