Apr 21, 2020
Canada has yet to produce its first impact NFL star
There have been a good number of Canadians taken high in the NFL Draft over the years, but few have lived up to their potential and turned heads south of the border, Dave Naylor writes.
By Dave Naylor
Later this week, Oklahoma defensive tackle Neville Gallimore and Notre Dame receiver Chase Claypool are expected to be among the highest-selected Canadians ever at the National Football League Draft, projected as players with a chance to crack the late selections of the first round.
There has never been an NFL Draft with two Canadians selected in the first round. Having two Canadians selected in the first two rounds has occurred only twice – in 2011, when Baylor offensive lineman Danny Watkins and Miami offensive lineman Orlando Franklin went 23rd and 46th, respectively, and in 1986, when Queen’s offensive lineman Mike Schad and Boise State defensive lineman Markus Koch were taken 23rd and 30th.
In the big picture, Canadians have accomplished far less in the NFL than in any of the other four major professional sports in North America.
This country has produced baseball Hall of Famers and MVPs, a two-time NBA MVP, and a slew of prominent players in both sports. And while the NHL is a truly international field these days, roughly half of the league’s players still hail from Canada.
But there is no NFL equivalent of Steve Nash or Larry Walker, never mind Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux.
In fact, a list of the most significant Canadian NFL careers by games played reads heavy on special teamers, with four kickers, two punters and a long-snapper in the top-10.
1. Eddie Murray – 250
2. L.P. Ladouceur – 237
3. Steve Christie – 229
4. Jon Ryan – 191
5. Mitch Berger – 187
6. Israel Idonije – 149
7. Rob Meier – 138
8. Mike Vanderjagt – 135
9. Shaun Suisham – 128
10. Ian Beckles – 126
So, who is the greatest Canadian NFL player of all time?
I asked my TSN colleague Davis Sanchez to put together a list of the top 10 – kickers and punters aside. (No, he didn't put his own name on the list, despite being the only Canadian ever to start at corner in the NFL and the fact he was never actually cut by an NFL team.)
Topping the list is Rueben Mayes, the North Battleford, Sask., native who was a Pro Bowl selection in each of his first two seasons and was the 1986 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Mayes certainly appeared to be on track to become the first true Canadian NFL star, before injuries limited him to just 1,214 yards over the rest of his career. But getting to two Pro Bowls at an offensive skill position puts him atop the list.
Current Cowboys defensive lineman Tyrone Crawford of Windsor, Ont. is next, a great all-around athlete who is a mainstay on the Dallas defensive line.
Crawford edges out Israel Idonije, who is one of the most unlikely NFLers there has ever been.
Idonije strapped on a football helmet for the first time during his final year of high school in Brandon, Man., and then sat on the bench for nearly two seasons at the University of Manitoba while he learned the game.
Idonije used his height to make himself a force blocking kicks, and his athleticism to give him the versatility to play anywhere on the line, adding up to a 10-year NFL career that included playing in a Super Bowl.
Nick Kaczur, who protected the right edge of the offensive line for the New England Patriots during the season they went 16-0 and had a stellar, if relatively short, five-year NFL career, is at No. 3.
Besides Crawford, just one other player on the list are still active – Kansas City offensive lineman Laurent Duvernay-Tardif.
Of the 10 players on Sanchez’s list, just two – Mayes and wide receiver Jerome Pathon – represent an offensive skill position. Just two – Idonije and Duvernay-Tardif – played university football in Canada, although Pathon played one season at Acadia before transferring to the University of Washington.
While there have been a good number of Canadians taken high in the NFL Draft, few have lived up to their potential.
Of the four first-round picks from Canada – Watkins (2012), running back Tim Biakabutuka (1996), offensive lineman Tony Mandarich (1989) and Schad (1986) – Watkins and Mandarich were considered busts, Biakabutuka was limited by injuries and Schad played 16 games only once in a six-season career.
So why haven't there been more impact NFL players from Canada?
Part of it may be that until the mid-1980s, an elite Canadian player could make more money as a star in the CFL than from most opportunities in the NFL.
Since then, there have been growing numbers of Canadians crossing the border to play college football in what is a de facto NFL farm system. But many of the best Canadians have still had only marginal NFL careers.
So, while the CFL has continued to churn out quality Canadians, some of whom rank with the very best American players in that league, Canada still awaits its first true NFL star.
Davis Sanchez’s Top 10 Canadians to play in NFL:
1. Reuben Mayes, RB, Saints – Two-time Pro Bowl selection, NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, 3,484 yards rushing.
2. Tyrone Crawford, DL, Cowboys – 23 sacks, 180 tackles, seven seasons (still active)
3. Israel Idonije, DL, Bears, Lions – 280 tackles, 29 sacks, 47 starts, stalwart on special teams, 10 seasons
4. Nick Kaczur, OL, Patriots – 62 starts in 68 career games with Pats, started 15 of 16 games during New England’s 16-0 run in 2007, five seasons.
5. Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, OL, Chiefs – 57 starts, starting right guard of Kansas City’s Super Bowl championship team, six seasons (still active).
6. Jerome Pathon, WR, Colts, Saints, Falcons – 260 receptions, 3,300 yards, 15 TDs, nine seasons.
7. O.J. Atogwe, S, Rams, Redskins – 454 tackles are most for any Canadian, seven seasons.
8. Rob Meir, DL, Jaguars – 138 games, 21.5 sacks, 10 seasons
9. Tom Nutten, OL, Bills, Rams – 69 starts, won a Super Bowl with St. Louis Rams, 10 seasons
10. Orlando Franklin, OL, Broncos, Chargers, Redskins – 89 starts are most for any Canadian, started in a Super Bowl, seven NFL seasons.
* This list is updated with North Battleford, Sask. native Reuben Mays atop the list. Mayes was a two-time Pro Bowl selection, and the NFL’s offensive rookie of the year in 1986 with the New Orleans Saints. His first two seasons he rushed for 2,270 yards, but injuries limited him to just 1,214 yards the rest of his career, which ended after the 1993 season. How did we miss him off the list? Well, Sanchez didn’t realize he was Canadian. As he put it, “I’ve been involved with Canadian football for 25 years and I’ve never heard anyone talk about Reuben Mayes being Canadian. I’d forgotten he was Canadian.” Sanchez makes a great point. For all the Canadian athletes who have made it in American sports, Mayes gets precious little attention. And that seems especially odd when considering he comes from a football-mad province that celebrates its football heroes like nowhere else. And yet Mayes is rarely celebrated as part of that province’s football culture, compared to those who’ve played in the CFL.
** List does not include Canadians who never played football at any level in Canada, such as Super Bowl-winning quarterback Mark Rypien.