Geoff Robins/CFL.ca
Welcome to the 2025 CFL post-season!
After 21 weeks and one of the most entertaining regular seasons in recent memory, we’ve got plenty to look forward to as the calendar shifts to November.
Before all the focus lands on the playoffs, though, we wanted to wrap up the regular season by naming our Monday Morning Quarterback picks for the league’s year-end awards. We made our choices based on the list of team nominees released last week, while the official winners will be announced during Grey Cup Week in Winnipeg at the annual CFL Awards on November 13 at the Club Regent Event Centre.
So, here we go!
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MOST OUTSTANDING PLAYER | BO LEVI MITCHELL | HAMILTON TIGER-CATS
This is typically an award that goes to a quarterback and we’re sticking with that trend by selecting Bo Levi Mitchell. And with extremely stiff competition, we’re going with last year’s MOP runner-up for a few reasons.
Mitchell led the league with 5,296 passing yards and a career-high 36 touchdown passes to go along with an impressive 1.8 per cent interception rate and a 106.2 quarterback rating. But what pushed Mitchell over the top for me was the fact he led the Tiger-Cats to a regular season division title, the team’s first since 2019.
MOST OUTSTANDING CANADIAN | NATHAN ROURKE | BC LIONS
Nathan Rourke may very well win MOP this year and he came a close second to Mitchell in our selections. His candidacy for Most Outstanding Canadian is that much stronger, and this was my easiest choice of the bunch.
Rourke finished second to Mitchell with 5,290 passing yards and 31 touchdowns, while leading the league with a 112.2 quarterback rating. On top of that, Rourke was the No. 1 ranked passer at Pro Football Focus as he helped the Lions to six straight wins to close out the season and the No. 2 seed in the West Division.
MOST OUTSTANDING DEFENSIVE PLAYER | JULIAN HOWSARE | HAMILTON TIGER-CATS
DE Julian Howsare had a career-high 13 sacks in his return to Hamilton after two seasons in Calgary (Ticats.ca)
In his return to Hamilton after a couple years away, Julian Howsare is our choice after a career campaign.
Always a steady and consistent edge rusher, Howsare set a new career high with 13 sacks to go along with 43 defensive tackles, one interception, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and one defensive touchdown. Howsare also entered Week 21 as PFF’s top ranked defensive end.
MOST OUTSTANDING OFFENSIVE LINEMAN | JARELL BROXTON | BC LION
OL Jarell Broxton is Nathan Rourke’s blindside protector (Arthur Ward/CFL.ca)
In a year of great performances, Jarell Broxton gets our nod as the anchor of one of the league’s best offensive lines in 2025.
BC finished first overall in pass blocking, allowing just 20 sacks or less than one per game, to help Rourke run one of the CFL’s most potent passing attacks. Broxton, who entered Week 21 as PFF’s top left tackle, also helped the Lions finish as a top-three rushing squad.
MOST OUTSTANDING ROOKIE | CHRIS FORTIN | CALGARY STAMPEDERS
Rookie OL Chris Fortin took over the centre spot in Calgary after an injury to starter Bryce Bell (Arthur Ward/CFL.ca)
You don’t always see a recent CFL Draft pick immediately step into action as an everyday starter. But for 2025 first-round pick Chris Fortin, that’s essentially what happened. After starting the season as No. 2 on the depth chart, Fortin jumped into the starting centre role from Week 3 and never looked back.
Along the way, Fortin helped the Stamps finish as the league’s No. 1 rushing offence while allowing a modest 33 sacks.
MOST OUTSTANDING SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER | SEAN WHYTE | BC LIONS
By completing the second most accurate kicking season in CFL history, it was hard not to give Sean Whyte our nod. Whyte nailed 39 of his 41 field goal attempts at 95.1 per cent, which puts him second all-time behind only Ottawa’s Lewis Ward in 2018.
It’s a new career mark for Whyte, who turned 40 last week, which is saying something, knowing the White Rock product has been over 92 per cent for four consecutive seasons.
COACH OF THE YEAR | COREY MACE | SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS
Sometimes there’s just no reason to overthink things. Corey Mace steered the ship for the league’s wire-to-wire best team, which is an impressive feat in just his second year as a head coach. Along the way, the Riders established themselves as the league’s best defence and finished at or near the top of numerous statistical categories including net offence, points allowed, and rushing yards against.
Under Mace, Saskatchewan clinched the top seed in the West Division, and No. 1 overall, with two weeks to spare in the regular season. They’ll be considered Grey Cup frontrunners as they prepare to host either Calgary or BC in the Western Final on November 8.
