Henoc Muamba of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers reacts to his quarterback sack during second half CFL action between the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Montreal Alouettes in Winnipeg Saturday, November 3, 2012. (CFL PHOTO - Marianne Helm)
Funny thing about first-overall picks in professional sports – a team doesn’t really earn the selection as much as it is the result of either stinking horribly the previous year or after landing it through a shrewd trade and some timely luck.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers know a little about this – from both viewpoints – having now owned the top pick twice in the last seven years.
The club selected Henoc Muamba first overall in 2011 after a 4-14 campaign the year before and he gave the organization three solid years before heading south to the National Football League and then resurfacing with the arch-rival Saskatchewan Roughriders last season.
And a month from today, barring a trade, the Bombers will call out the first name in the 2017 Canadian Football League Draft after GM Kyle Walters signed off on a brilliant trade last September with the Toronto Argonauts. That deal sent quarterback Drew Willy east and landed T.J. Heath, a first-rounder this year, and a third-round selection in 2018.
The fact the Argos promptly lost their final seven games after the deal to finish last overall was the ‘luck’ part that turned the pick into first overall.
But now what?
Winnipeg Blue Bombers linebacker Henoc Muamba celebrates a tackle against the Saskatchewan Roughriders during the first half of CFL football action in Regina, Sask., Sunday, September 1, 2013. The Montreal Alouettes have agreed to terms with free agent linebacker Muamba.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Liam Richards
The CFL Draft is a different beast than any other. There are no consensus first overall picks like Connor McDavid or Austin Matthews in the NHL, a LeBron James or Andrew Wiggins in the NBA, or Andrew Luck or Cam Newton in the NFL.
And with more and more Canadians playing in the NCAA and NFL teams now looking north of the border to study U Sports talent, it means the best footballers this country is producing might not ever take a snap in a CFL game.
More and more homegrowns are getting drafted in the NFL or signing free agent deals that send them to mini-camps the same weekend as the CFL Draft.
That means the crapshoot that is the CFL Draft has become even more mysterious and risky, especially for the team that selects first overall, because the pick of the litter might not ever pull on a team’s colours.
It’s true, the Bombers have mined the draft effectively in the last three years, landing starters like guards Matthias Goossen (second overall in 2014) and Sukh Chungh (second overall in 2015), safety Taylor Loffler (19th overall in 2016) and fullback Chris Normand (33rd overall in 2015). Depth pieces have also been added, including Jesse Briggs (17th/2014), Derek Jones (29th/2014), Addison Richards (11th/2015), Brendan Morgan (15th/2015), Justin Warden (46th/2015), Garrett Waggoner (supplemental draft, 2016), Trent Corney (9th/2016), Michael Couture (10th/2016) and Shayne Gauthier (28th/2016). Two more selections from the 2016 draft class – Zach Intzandt and Rupert Butcher – will both be in training camp in a few weeks.
But first overall? That’s an entirely different beast, especially when the list of top picks over the last couple of decades is studied to determine the hits and the whiffs.
It’s true; for every Muamba, Pierre Lavertu (2014), Steve Morley (2003), Chad Folk (1997) or Val St. Germain (1994) who carved out long CFL careers, there is a Linden Gaydosh (2013), Chris Bauman (2007) or Miguel Robede (2005) who did not.
Simply put, there are never guarantees in any draft that a first-overall pick is going to change a franchise or, at the very least, contribute long term and morph into a starter.
With all that as a precursor – and with the CFL Draft just a month away – bluebombers.com takes a quick peek back at the first-overall picks dating back to 1994…
Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ Steve Morley (62) and Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ Glenn January (69) wave good bye to the fans after defeating Montreal Alouettes in their final CFL game at Canad Inns Stadium in Winnipeg Saturday, November 3, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/John Woods
WITH THE FIRST PICK IN THE DRAFT…
2016: Josiah St. John, OL, Saskatchewan
GP: 10/6 starts; Held out in contract dispute before signing in July and making a half dozen starts in his rookie season.
2015: Alex Mateas, OL, Ottawa
GP: 35/10 starts; Grey Cup champs still grooming the 6-4, 309-pound hometown lad.
2014: Pierre Lavertu, OL, Calgary
GP: 41/29 starts; West Division All-Star in ’15; started eight games last year before season-ending ankle injury.
2013: Linden Gaydosh, DL, Hamilton
GP: 10/2 starts; Signed with Carolina Panthers in his draft year, spent two seasons in the NFL on practice squad. Appeared in nine games with Hamilton in 2014; missed 2015 with torn Achilles tendon; traded last October to Saskatchewan.
2012: Ben Heenan, OL, Saskatchewan
GP: 49/46 starts; A ratio-breaking tackle for the Riders, Heenan was part of the 2013 Grey Cup team and then signed a three-year $1.575 contract with the Indianapolis Colts, spending time on their practice squad; Retired last April at the age of 26 to concentrate on running the family farm.
2011: Henoc Muamba, LB, Winnipeg
GP: 56/37 starts; Spent three years with the Bombers – including being named the team’s Most Outstanding Player, Most Outstanding Defensive Player and Most Outstanding Canadian in 2013 – before signing with the Indianapolis Colts. Bounced from Montreal to Dallas before landing in Saskatchewan last year.
2010: Shomari Williams, LB, Saskatchewan
GP: 79/22 starts; Two stints with the Riders, with stops in Hamilton, Calgary and Edmonton. Has not played since 2015 and now runs Student Blitz to help players in Canada earn NCAA scholarships.
2009: Simeon Rottier, OL, Hamilton
GP: 120/103 starts; Reliable dependable starter at both guard and tackle. Joined Edmonton in 2012 as a free agent.
2008: Dylan Barker, DB, Hamilton
GP: 35/16 starts; An All-Canadian in college, Barker had his career cut short after four seasons because of a chronic back injury.
2007: Chris Bauman, WR, Hamilton
GP: 79/38 starts; Injuries cut short what could have been and Bauman, who went from Hamilton to Edmonton to Calgary, took his last snap in 2014.
2006: Adam Braidwood, DE, Edmonton
GP: 46/40 starts; Played five years with the Esks, and after playing his last game in 2010 (and after some legal troubles), has now turned his attention to MMA and boxing.
2005: Miguel Robede, DE, Calgary
GP: 53/12 starts; Played at both Laval and Miami in college before the Stamps made him the No. 1 pick in ’05. Suffered a head injury with Calgary before being traded to Toronto in 2011 and then being released in camp.
2004: Wayne Smith, OL, Hamilton
GP: 180/118 starts; Now with the Argos, Smith has two Grey Cup rings from his days with Saskatchewan and Toronto.
2003: Steve Morley, OL, Calgary
GP: 128/118 starts; Ratio-changing tackle who moved from Calgary to Green Bay, to the Rhein Fire, New York Jets, Seattle Seahawks, Toronto and Saskatchewan before finding a home in Winnipeg. Spent six years in Bomber colours before retiring.
2002: Alex Gauthier, OL, Ottawa
GP: 149/140 starts; The first pick of the expansion Ottawa Renegades in 2002, Gauthier was a divisional All-Star with the Bombers in 2007 and played 10 years in the CFL, the last with Saskatchewan in 2011.
2001: Scott Schultz, DL, Saskatchewan
GP: 128/115 starts; Durable and tough – he didn’t miss a game in his career – Schultz was a CFL All-Star in 2005 and a finalist for the Most Outstanding Canadian award.
2000: Tyson St. James, LB, Saskatchewan
GP: 87/6 starts; Was drafted as potential edge rusher and, while he played five years with both the Riders and Winnipeg, was primarily a special teams contributor.
1999: Robert Meier, DE, B.C.
GP: 0; Meier played pro football, just not with the Lions. A seventh-round draft pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2000 he spent his entire career in the NFL before being released in 2010.
1998: Tim Fleiszer, DL, Hamilton
GP: 126/24 starts; Has four Grey Cup rings during his days with the Ticats, Montreal, Edmonton and Saskatchewan, primarily as a depth lineman. Now a CFL agent.
1997: Chad Folk, OL, Toronto
GP: 180/174 starts; Spent his entire career with the Argos, winning two championships and starting almost every game. Twice named Toronto’s top lineman.
1996: Don Blair, SB, Edmonton
GP: 116/104 starts; A dominant college player at Calgary, Blair had one 1,000-yard season (1998 with the Esks) and seven years with better than 550 yards receiving.
1995: Tom Nutten, OL, Hamilton
GP: 13/0 starts; Was also drafted by Buffalo in 1995 (seventh round) and spent eight years in the NFL, mostly with the St. Louis Rams.
1994: Val St. Germain, OL, Hamilton
GP: 180/170 starts; Bounced around the CFL from Hamilton, Edmonton, Ottawa, Winnipeg and Saskatchewan. A three-time divisional all-star.
