Johany Jutras/CFL.ca
TORONTO — One year S.J. Green’s career was in jeopardy; the next he was holding up the Grey Cup for the third time.
The Argos’ receiver capped off a comeback for the ages last month, finishing 2017 with career-highs in targets (169), receptions (104) and yards (1,462) — a year after being told he may never play football again.
Suffice to say, Green’s first season in the double blue made that devastating knee injury suffered in 2016 feel like a distant memory. Also enjoying a strong comeback season, from a season-ending Achilles injury suffered in 2016, was REDBLACKS running back William Powell.
(In this line of thinking, we’re also reminded of Solomon Elimimian and John White and their inspiring bounce back campaigns in 2016).
Unfortunately, 2017 brought more candidates to come back from serious injuries next season. Let’s look at some players who are looking to follow the same path as S.J. Green, Solomon Elimimian and others before them:
TERRENCE TOLIVER
REC | HAM
The Ticats’ top receiver in 2016 (1,036 yards and a team-high nine touchdowns) made just one catch before his season was over this year, suffering a season-ending knee injury in the first game vs. the Argos.
Toliver should be healthy and ready to go in 2018 as he joins Jalen Saunders and possibly Brandon Banks and Luke Tasker (both pending free agents) in a revamped Ticats’ passing game.
Terrence Toliver made just one catch for five yards before losing his 2017 season to injury (Jimmy Jeong/CFL.ca)
SERGIO CASTILLO
K/P | HAM
Not a lot went right for the Ticats in 2017, but you can’t say that about the kicking game, where Sergio Castillo was arguably the league’s most impressive place kicker last season. Castillo made 29 of 34 kicks with a league-leading five field goals from beyond 50 yards — including one from 57.
Castillo also tied for third in punting average (45.1 yards per kick), helping the Ticats forget about the loss of Justin Medlock two seasons ago. Look for the 27-year-old to get healthy and pick up where he left off before last October’s season-ending injury.
CORY GREENWOOD
LB | EDM
Cory Greenwood‘s first season as an Eskimo was over before it even started. Greenwood suffered a torn ACL just as camp opened up, forcing him to miss his first season after signing with Edmonton as a free agent.
The 32-year-old may have to fight for a roster spot this training camp, but a Canadian passport should give him an opportunity to win a starting position on the Eskimos’ linebacking corps. After all, Greenwood is only a year removed from averaging nearly six tackles per game with the Argos in 2016.
JC SHERRITT
LB | EDM
Both JC Sherritt and the up-and-coming Adam Konar are free agents, meaning Sherritt could end up elsewhere in 2018. It’s hard to imagine the seven-year veteran playing in colours other than green and gold, but whatever happens, the 29-year-old should be a player to watch as he battles back from the ruptured Achilles tendon that ended his season in Week 1.
Keep this in mind: Sherritt is roughly the same age that Solomon Elimimian was when the Lions’ linebacker was on the rebound from the same injury in 2016. The veteran linebacker with 407 career tackles likely has more to contribute.
The Eskimos’ veteran linebacker suffered a season-ending injury in Week 1 in BC (Jimmy Jeong/CFL.ca)
BRANDYN THOMPSON
DB | EDM
Brandyn Thompson suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon in November. The timeline for such an injury questions whether Thompson can return at all in 2018 — but at the same time, players are coming back from this devastating injury faster and stronger than ever before.
Keep an eye on the 28-year-old’s recovery throughout the upcoming season.
JOHN WHITE
RB | EDM
John White can’t seem to buy a break. After a dominant comeback from a career-threatening injury in 2016, it was certain White had recaptured the 2014 success that made him one of the CFL’s top running backs. Another season-ending injury — a torn ACL suffered early in the year vs. the Als — claimed another campaign from the 26-year-old.
White is a free agent while the Esks have extended the contract of C.J. Gable, likely signaling the end of White’s time in Edmonton. Still, at 26, White is in the prime of his career and should be starting somewhere in 2018.
JERRELL GAVINS
DB | OTT
The versatile defensive back/SAM linebacker sustained a season-ending knee injury in October, ending his 2017 season a month earlier than hoped. Gavins has brought a lot to the REDBLACKS’ defence the last few years, but pending free agency means a cloudy future for the 29-year-old.
Gavins will fit in somewhere in 2018, and wherever it is, look out for the 5-foot-8 heat-seeking missile.
After a season-ending injury and free agency on the horizon, Jerrell Gavins’ future is in the air (Patrick Doyle/CFL.ca)
KENNY SHAW
REC | OTT
Injuries limited Kenny Shaw to just three games in 2017, and it’s fair to say Shaw’s presence on the REDBLACKS’ offence was missed. Jaime Elizondo’s offence, while full of explosiveness, failed to recapture its 2016 form after losing Chris Williams and Ernest Jackson, and the absence of Shaw didn’t help.
Shaw is one of the best route runners in the CFL and should be a top option for Trevor Harris in 2018 alongside Ellingson, provided, of course, he can get healthy.
JAMAAL WESTERMAN
DE | WPG
The Bombers’ top pass rusher had seven sacks in 11 games before being sidelined for the rest of the season last fall. It could be argued that Jamaal Westerman‘s role on Richie Hall’s defensive front seven could not be replaced.
Westerman is not only one of the CFL’s best at pressuring the quarterback, but he’s also a ratio-breaker. Whether the pending free agent is back in Winnipeg is another story.
TRAVIS LULAY
QB | BC
With quarterbacks like Henry Burris, Ricky Ray and Kevin Glenn playing well into their late-30s, it was premature all along to assume that Travis Lulay, 34, was finished. Last year, Lulay accentuated all that with an impressive stint as the BC Lions’ starter — before suffering a season-ending knee injury.
Lulay’s injury was a frustrating setback in an oft-injured career, but if the former 2011 Most Outstanding Player still has it in him to play, he will definitely get his chance in 2018. Even though he’s a pending free agent, assume it’ll be in BC.
Lions quarterback Travis Lulay proved in 2017 that he can still play at a high level (Jimmy Jeong/CFL.ca)
PIERRE LAVERTU
C | CGY
It’s been a year and a half since Pierre Lavertu last played a CFL game, his 2016 season ending in October that year due to injury. There’s been no update on Lavertu’s health, but the former first overall pick signed an extension with the team prior to 2017 with the goal of returning to the field.
Look for the 27-year-old Laval graduate to get back in the swing of things in in time for 2018 for the Stampeders’ O-line.
CORDARRO LAW
DE | CGY
While the Stamps anticipated a post-season return, Cordarro Law got on the roster but not in the lineup for the 105th Grey Cup vs. the Argos. The talented veteran defensive end sustained a season-ending injury before playing a game in 2017, leaving a blank space in his otherwise impressive career.
Law is under contract and should be fully healthy for the 2018 season, making him a player to watch on DeVone Claybrooks’ defensive line.
DERON MAYO
LB | CGY
The veteran linebacker was sidelined by a knee injury in 2016, failing to get on the field last season but one game against Toronto. The emergence of Jameer Thurman at WILL has made it possible that Deron Mayo, a pending free agent, won’t be back in Cow Town in 2018.
Will Mayo attempt a comeback elsewhere or could the six-year veteran (still just 29) soon make a move into coaching?
