Peter Power/CFL.ca
TORONTO — Week 2 of the CFL is behind us and it’s time to look at who performed the best at every position, according to PFF’s Player Grades.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats’ quarterback Matthew Shiltz entered the game for an injured Bo Levi Mitchell and completed 92.9% of his passes and threw for a touchdown, earning himself PFF’s highest passing grade of the week (90.1).
Toronto Argonauts receiver Damonte Coxie exploded in the reigning champs’ first game of the year, hauling in six catches for 131 yards. His Week 2 performance earned him PFF’s highest receiving grade (78.9).
Defensive lineman Julian Howsare was excellent in Week 2. He didn’t record a sack, but that doesn’t always tell the tale of how impactful the big men in the trenches can be as they put pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Howsare ended the week with PFF’s highest pass rush grade with a 90.5.
Who else made the top 10 in each position group?
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» Player and Team Grades Powered by PFF
PFF utilizes extensive review of game footage to provide additional context for every action on the field. Highly-trained PFF staff break down every game, player and play to provide over 200 unique data points, which are used to compile Player Grades – a numerical representation up-to-100 of performance at their specific position.
For more information on PFF, Player Grades, the Grading Scale and more, please visit pff.com/grades.
QUARTERBACK
(Grades are based on quarterbacks who played a minimum of 10 pass attempts)
| Rank | Name (Team) | Passing Yards Per Attempt | Big Time Throws* | Completion Percentage | Turnover Worthy Plays** | PFF Passing Grade |
| 1 | Matthew Shiltz (HAM) | 8.4 | 1 | 92.9% | 0 | 90.1 |
| 2 | Zach Collaros (WPG) | 9.4 | 0 | 74.2% | 0 | 88.8 |
| 3 | Vernon Adams Jr. (BC) | 9.1 | 4 | 71.4% | 1 | 87.0 |
| 4 | Jake Maier (CGY) | 10.0 | 1 | 66.7% | 1 | 73.4 |
| 5 | Trevor Harris (SSK) | 10.1 | 3 | 70.7% | 3 | 70.8 |
| 6 | Chad Kelly (TOR) | 10.3 | 1 | 60.9% | 2 | 68.5 |
| 7 | Taylor Cornelius (EDM) | 4.5 | 0 | 56.5% | 0 | 56.4 |
| 8 | Tyrie Adams (OTT) | 7.6 | 1 | 52.9% | 2 | 52.2 |
| 9 | Nick Arbuckle (OTT) | 5.1 | 0 | 57.1% | 1 | 42.3 |
| 10 | Bo Levi Mitchell (HAM) | 6.7 | 1 | 66.7% | 4 | 39.0 |
*throws graded a 1 or higher
** any play where the QB receives a -1 or worse on a play
RECEIVER
(Grades are based on receivers who played a minimum of 25 receiving snaps)
| Rank | Name (Team) | Receptions | Yards | YAC | Explosive Pass Plays* | PFF Receiving Grade |
| 1 | Damonte Coxie (TOR) | 6 | 131 | 58 | 3 | 78.9 |
| 2 | Dalton Schoen (WPG) | 8 | 145 | 48 | 5 | 77.0 |
| 3 | Duke Williams (HAM) | 6 | 102 | 15 | 5 | 74.6 |
| 4 | Reggie Begelton (CGY) | 8 | 140 | 85 | 3 | 73.9 |
| 5 | Samuel Emilus (SSK) | 7 | 78 | 14 | 2 | 73.5 |
| 6 | Tevin Jones (SSK) | 9 | 121 | 39 | 2 | 73.0 |
| 7 | Drew Wolitarsky (WPG) | 5 | 66 | 19 | 1 | 72.2 |
| 8 | Shawn Bane Jr. (SSK) | 6 | 131 | 72 | 4 | 69.5 |
| 9 | Dominique Rhymes (BC) | 4 | 63 | 4 | 3 | 69.1 |
| 10 | Justin Hardy (OTT) | 6 | 56 | 21 | 1 | 68.7 |
*plays 15+ yards
RUNNING BACK
(Grades are based on running backs who played a minimum of five rushing snaps)
| Rank | Name (Team) | Missed Tackles Forced | Explosive Runs* | Rushing First Downs | PFF Rushing Grade |
| 1 | Brady Oliveira (WPG) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 77.9 |
| 2 | Taquan Mizzell Sr. (BC) | 6 | 0 | 1 | 74.8 |
| 3 | AJ Ouellette (TOR) | 3 | 2 | 3 | 71.8 |
| 4 | Dedrick Mills (CGY) | 9 | 3 | 4 | 71.4 |
| 5 | James Butler (HAM) | 6 | 2 | 2 | 68.0 |
| 6 | Johnny Augustine (WPG) | 0 | 1 | 2 | 65.9 |
| 7 | Jamal Morrow (SSK) | 0 | 1 | 3 | 64.1 |
| 8 | Kevin Brown (EDM) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 60.0 |
*explosive plays rushing 10+ yards
OFFENSIVE LINE
(Grades are based on offensive linemen who played a minimum of 25 pass blocking snaps)
| Rank | Name (Team) | Pass Blocking Snaps | QB Pressured Allowed* | Pressure Percentage Allowed** | PFF Pass Blocking Grade |
| 1 | Sukh Chungh (BC) | 38 | 0 | 0.0% | 86.0 |
| 2 | Chris Kolankowski (WPG) | 35 | 1 | 2.9% | 79.8 |
| 3 | Josiah St. John (EDM) | 25 | 1 | 4.0% | 79.5 |
| 4 | Dejon Allen (TOR) | 25 | 0 | 0.0% | 79.4 |
| 5 | Jermarcus Hardrick (WPG) | 35 | 2 | 5.7% | 77.9 |
| 6 | David Beard (HAM) | 42 | 0 | 0.0% | 77.5 |
| 7 | Mark Korte (EDM) | 25 | 1 | 4.0% | 77.3 |
| 8 | Drew Desjarlais (OTT) | 41 | 2 | 4.9% | 77.1 |
| 9 | Jarell Broxton (BC) | 38 | 1 | 2.6% | 73.9 |
| 10 | Andrew Peirson (BC) | 38 | 0 | 0.0% | 73.6 |
*sacks + hits + hurries
**QB pressures allowed/pass blocking snaps
DEFENSIVE LINE
(Grades are based on defensive linemen who played a minimum of 10 pass rush snaps)
| Rank | Name (Team) | Sacks | Total Pressures Generated* | Hurries** | PFF Pass Rush Grade |
| 1 | Julian Howsare (CGY) | 0 | 5 | 2 | 90.5 |
| 2 | Folarin Orimolade (TOR) | 1 | 3 | 1 | 78.0 |
| 3 | Celestin Haba (WPG) | 1 | 2 | 1 | 77.7 |
| 4 | Mathieu Betts (BC) | 1 | 5 | 3 | 73.6 |
| 5 | Jared Brinkman (TOR) | 0 | 3 | 2 | 73.3 |
| 6 | Mike Moore (CGY) | 0 | 2 | 1 | 72.3 |
| 7 | Casey Sayles (HAM) | 0 | 2 | 1 | 71.9 |
| 8 | Anthony Lanier II (SSK) | 0 | 7 | 6 | 70.4 |
| 9 | Josh Banks (BC) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 70.2 |
| 10 | Michael Wakefield (OTT) | 0 | 3 | 3 | 69.9 |
*sacks + hits + hurries
**forcing a quick throw, flushing the QB, forcing QB to step up, forcing a throwaway, preventing a QB from stepping up
DEFENSIVE BACK
(Grades are based on defensive backs who played a minimum of 25 coverage snaps)
| Rank | Name (Team) | Targeted In Coverage | Receptions Allowed | PFF Coverage Grade |
| 1 | Robertson Daniel (TOR) | 3 | 2 | 81.7 |
| 2 | Tre Roberson (CGY) | 6 | 2 | 78.1 |
| 3 | Dwayne Thompson II (EDM) | 2 | 0 | 77.4 |
| 4 | Deontai Williams (SSK) | 7 | 5 | 74.4 |
| 5 | Qwan’tez Stiggers (TOR) | 7 | 5 | 73.4 |
| 6 | Adarius Pickett (TOR) | 9 | 7 | 72.3 |
| 7 | Julian Charles (CGY) | 4 | 1 | 70.4 |
| 8 | Tunde Adeleke (HAM) | 1 | 1 | 70.2 |
| 8 | Hakeem Bailey (OTT) | 5 | 3 | 70.2 |
| 8 | Tarvarus McFadden (TOR) | 4 | 2 | 70.2 |
LINEBACKER
(Grades are based on linebackers who played a minimum of 10 run defence snaps)
| Rank | Name (Team) | Run Defence Snaps | Stops* | PFF Run Defence Grade |
| Adam Bighill (WPG) | 10 | 2 | 74.4 | |
| Mark McLaurin (EDM) | 22 | 0 | 72.6 | |
| Larry Dean (SSK) | 17 | 1 | 71.6 | |
| Wynton McManis (TOR) | 18 | 1 | 71.4 | |
| Chris Edwards (HAM) | 19 | 1 | 71.1 | |
| Kobe Williams (CGY) | 10 | 0 | 69.1 | |
| Douglas Coleman II (OTT) | 27 | 1 | 67.3 | |
| Chizi Umunakwe (OTT) | 24 | 0 | 66.3 | |
| Frankie Griffin (OTT) | 24 | 6 | 66.3 | |
| Micah Awe (CGY) | 10 | 1 | 65.5 |
*solo tackle or sack that leads to an offensive failure (45% or less of distance on 1st, 60% or less on 2nd)
