Top 10 pending free agent receivers, defensive backs

Marshall Ferguson

CFL.ca

@TSN_Marsh

The trenches are where football games are won and lost. Nobody worth their grain of salt would attempt to convince you otherwise, but it is so easy, and fun, to get lost in the athleticism and movement skills of CFL receivers.

The amount of ground covered, the cat and mouse games to set each other up and the ability to make plays on the football mid-flight are what can ultimately make the difference between a mediocre CFLer and a standout who gets south after this time of year for a raise.

With that in mind and the moves already in motion, here are my top ten players still remaining as of writing for these all too important positions.

10) Bralon Addison – Ottawa REDBLACKS

I get Addison has been hampered by injuries over the last couple of years and when healthy this year might not have had the big picture impact on the REDBLACKS passing game Ottawa fans would have hoped for, but there were a lot of moving parts with that offence this season and when healthy ‘BA’ is easily a top five receiver on this list. I’m still a believer.

9) Alexander Hollins – BC Lions

Through his diminutive frame and quick, smooth cuts Hollins elevated his game to new heights in 2023. While he doesn’t come with the blocking skills of a Rasheed Bailey or jump ball acumen of a Damonte Coxie there is no question Hollins could be a productive CFL pass catcher in more places than just Vancouver.

8) Damonte Coxie – Toronto Argonauts

Jump ball, deep ball, quick, screen explosive yards after the catch. If any of these are void and in need for your club look no further.

7) Rasheed Bailey – Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Toughness, great hands and solid route running. Bailey has already played out the ‘take less to stay’ deal in Winnipeg. That movie rarely gets a sequel and with so many moving pieces in Bomberland I wonder who might reach out to Bailey should he make it to February.

6) Emmanuel Arceneaux – Edmonton Elks

Look, I don’t know how he does it either, and I don’t care. Manny somehow continues to get open, understand defences as well as any pass catcher in the game and make quarterbacks look smart for targeting him. Too high? Too low? Wherever you think he should be on this list the only place he cant be is off of it.

5) Cameron Phillips – Toronto Argonauts

A standout in various roles down south, Phillips settled into the field slotback role for Toronto most of the season. With DaVaris Daniels taking the majority of targets in the boundary side, Phillips continues to improve his ‘big field’ knowledge and the results will follow with the right system and quarterback.

4) Shawn Bane Jr. – Saskatchewan Roughriders

Leading the league in many major receiving categories, Bane Jr. isn’t your prototypical workhorse receiver frame, but if he can follow up 2023 with anything similar in 2024 we could have a new breakthrough star on our hands. I don’t see Saskatchewan letting him get close to the open market, but the length on this contract will be interesting for a receiver with so much potential growth possible.

3) Tim White – Hamilton Tiger-Cats

Another year casually dancing amongst the CFL’s best receivers in multiple categories through multiple quarterback changes has me believing Tim White’s game is for real and could be applied to any system. Hamilton better value what they have in front of them and not look elsewhere or the eventual trade off in ultimate production could be unsettling.

2) Keon Hatcher – BC Lions

Amidst a group of dynamic pass catchers, Hatcher felt like the key that unlocked it all for BC in 2023. With VA under contract at quarterback and a Grey Cup hosting year on deck I don’t see the length and range of Hatcher going anywhere other than the end zone in orange this summer.

1) Dalton Schoen – Winnipeg Blue Bombers

From a record setting rookie effort in 2022 to an injury slowed, but somehow still incredibly effective 2023, Schoen can separate, redirect and settle down with the best of them in this league while bringing the down field mentality needed to change games as a CFL receiver. He has it all, the question is where will he put it on display in 2024 and beyond?

Receivers and quarterbacks get all the shine. They’re always getting up signalling first down or chasing after each other for some wild touchdown celebration. Meanwhile arguably the bravest men on the football field are those who line up, stare down and try to straight up dominate the CFL’s fastest pass catchers, all with a healthy dose of trash talking for good measure.

The CFL typically has a large class of pending free agent defensive backs and this year is no different with a number of top end talents that I believe represent a deeper group than their pass catching counterparts.

10) Jalon Edwards-Cooper – BC Lions

With the fifth ranked coverage grade according to Pro Football Focus amongst pending free agent defensive backs, Edwards-Cooper plays the ball well in the air and showed a consistency in his career high 14-games played this season which should bode well for wide ranging interest.

9) Cariel Brooks/Monshadrik Hunter – Ottawa REDBLACKS

Take your pick from the REDBLACKS secondary here. Brooks is a hammer at heart, flying down from his boundary halfback spot and running cross field to chase down elusive slotbacks as offensive coordinators sneak touches behind the line of scrimmage to his man. Hunter is a lockdown man coverage boundary corner who has struggled with health as of late, but has a style of game well respected across the CFL.

8) Brandon Alexander – Winnipeg Blue Bombers

He’s older, he’s had injuries and I just don’t care because I’d love to have Brandon Alexander on my defence any day. A downhill free safety who can identify and communicate matchup concerns with the best back end defenders in the CFL.

7) Richard Leonard – Hamilton Tiger-Cats

The top ranked coverage defender by PFF can still gets it done but this year allowed a surprisingly high 60 per cent completion rate when targeted.

6) Robertson Daniel – Toronto Argonauts

For a chunk of the 2023 season it seemed as though no player in the CFL had harboured his craft more effectively than Robertson Daniel. His best performance came in the form of a three interception victimization of Adams Jr. on Canada Day weekend. One has to wonder if a West Division team would see that film and search him out come late winter.

5) Tunde Adeleke – Hamilton Tiger-Cats

With Stavros Katsantonis firmly planting his flag at the Black and Gold free safety spot, the time is now for Tunde Adeleke to prove everyone wrong who might doubt his abilities and enjoy a revenge tour in say, Ottawa where he dominated for the Carleton Ravens?

4) Brandin Dandridge – Ottawa REDBLACKS

Dandridge was asked to do far too much on a club searching for any and all answers in 2023. He played return game saviour, bounced over the boundary corner for an injured Money Hunter and seemed to be just about everywhere. Along the way head coach Bob Dyce emphasized the new leadership role Dandridge had embraced, adding another tool to his already deep and attractive skill set.

3) Najee Murray – Montreal Alouettes

Held to just six games played in 2023, Murray has become one of the best stat stuffing cover linebackers or sixth defensive backs in the CFL. He can do it all and would slot nicely back into Montreal’s front seven, unless they found some magic with him gone that they believe can be replicated in 2024.

2) Demerio Houston – Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Leading the CFL in interceptions last year, Houston doesn’t fit the stereotypical brash defensive back characterization, playing a much more quiet, reserved role in the locker room while letting his play do the talking.

Winnipeg has been good to Houston, but a player with his production is rarely signed back without getting tempted by another offer. This will be a true test of the Bombers ability to maintain continuity.

1) Jamal Peters – Toronto Argonauts

A monster off the edge, as long as they come in pass defence and a nose for the end zone when he gets his hands on the football. One has to wonder if the prized possession for Corey Mace’s new Riders defence might be Peters replacing recently released Nic Marshall to call the boundary corner home in Riderville.

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