O'Leary: The top 11 Canadians in the CFL right now

Chris O'Leary

Senior Writer

@olearychris

In a holiday that should unite us, I worry that what follows may work to do the opposite.

Before you scan this Canada Day weekend-themed list and think about who isn’t on it, take a look at who is and just appreciate what we have in the CFL right now.

Much has been made in the past couple of weeks about the strength of play from National receivers. Let’s zoom the camera out a little and look at the entire body of work that’s in front of us, as we embark on the fourth week of this season. Yeah, the receivers are amazing. Our homegrown talent at every position is incredibly strong right now, though.

I’ve been thinking about the strength of Canadians in the game since this year’s CFL Draft and attempting to put this list together only cemented the idea for me. In a league with so much history it’s always hard to confidently make a statement on where this group fits all-time, so let’s just say that the league is oozing elite level Canadians at the moment. If you need any further proof of the strength of Canadian players, consider that two of our recent major award winners, Nathan Rourke (Most Outstanding Canadian Player, 2022) and Mathieu Betts, (Most Outstanding Defensive Player, 2023) are in the NFL right now.

One final point to make on how strong Canadian talent is right now: this was supposed to be a list of 10, but I could only manage to get it down to 11 players and couldn’t justify excluding anyone else. Here’s what I’ve got, listed alphabetically.

Nic Demski | WR | Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Now in his sixth season with his hometown Bombers, Demski is a key piece of the tremendous success the club has had since winning the Grey Cup in 2019. The 30-year-old had his first 1,000-yard season in 2023, but his impact has been more than just yards gained. Demski has been a clutch player for the Bombers, particularly since Zach Collaros arrived in 2019. If there’s a crucial drive-extending first down to be had, or a go-ahead touchdown late in a game to be pulled in, Demski seems to have no problem making those plays and helping his team win. As injuries chip into the Bombers’ receiving corps early this season, Demski will likely be looked to even more as the team tries to get back to its winning ways.

Marc-Antoine Dequoy | S | Montreal Alouettes

Dequoy emerged as a star in the CFL last season in the Alouettes’ run to the 110th Grey Cup, but he’s shown promise essentially from the moment he set foot on the field for the Als as a rookie in 2021. He had four interceptions and a forced fumble in the Als’ 2022 campaign and began to become a household name in 2023. With his five interceptions, a pair of touchdowns and three forced fumbles, the accolades officially rolled in for Dequoy last year: East Division All-Star, CFL All-Star and Grey Cup champion. As the Als begin their defence of that championship, Dequoy will continue to be a focal point of the Als’ success. With one interception already this year, we can’t wait to see awaits Dequoy in 2024.

Tre Ford | QB | Edmonton Elks

Ford is the only player on this list that hasn’t seen the field yet this season, but he remains one of the most interesting figures in the league, regardless of nationality. With all due respect to those light on their feet in the CFL, is there a better scrambling quarterback out there than Ford? Like many other young quarterbacks that come into the league, the 26-year-old is playing the waiting game as he works to become a starting pivot. What we’ve seen so far, in bursts over the 2022 and 2023 seasons — his rookie and sophomore pro years, remember — the talent is undeniable. Wins have been few and far between in Edmonton the last few years, but Ford has brought the Elks five of them as a starter, while putting on a show.

Kurleigh Gittens Jr. |WR | Edmonton Elks

You could argue for a lot of receivers to go into this spot, but the combination of past work and an impressive start to this season gives Gittens the edge in my books. After posting a 1,101-yard season with five touchdowns in 2022 in Toronto, Gittens was limited last year by injuries. Feared to have missed time at the start of the 2024 campaign, Gittens roared through training camp and has 22 catches for 207 yards and a touchdown three games into his time with the Elks (and his reunion with McLeod Bethel-Thompson). A two-time East Division All-Star and a CFL All-Star in 2022, Gittens is poised to get back to that level he showed pre-injury.

Ben Hladik | LB | BC Lions

Hladik is coming off of an enormous 2023 season that saw him break the 100-tackle mark for the Lions (BCLions.com)

A year after finishing fifth in tackles with a career-best 101, Hladik had picked up where he left off just three games into the 2024 season. His 25 tackles lead the league, but he’s been forced to put things on pause as he deals with a thumb injury that has him out of this week’s game against Edmonton. The tackling totals are impressive with Hladik, but it’s his all-around game that resonates. He had five sacks last year and an interception, becoming a staple in Ryan Phillips‘ defence. He already had an interception this season as well. Let’s hope his thumb injury is a short-term thing and that he’s back on the field soon.

Cameron Judge | LB | Calgary Stampeders

The 29-year-old is a do-it-all type linebacker who impacts the game in a number of ways. Last year, he had 90 tackles, a pair of sacks, set a career-best with five interceptions, had a touchdown and two forced fumbles, as the Stamps’ defence led their very late season push into the playoffs. A West-Division and CFL All-Star in 2022, Judge was the West’s nominee for Most Outstanding Canadian Player in 2019 when he was with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. It’s an award he’s capable of snagging every season.

Stavros Katsantonis | DB | Hamilton Tiger-Cats

Katsantonis used the 2023 season to declare his arrival to the elite of the CFL. The Ticats’ fourth-round pick in the 2020 CFL Draft, Katsantonis pulled in a team-leading and career-best five interceptions last year, along with a touchdown as the Black and Gold fought their way into the playoff picture. While the Ticats are off to a slow start this year, Katsantonis will be relied upon for more game changing plays as they look to get into the win column and try to get back on even ground in the standings.

Brady Oliveira | RB | Winnipeg Blue Bombers

This isn’t a ranking, but if we were doing that we all know that Oliveira would head up this list. The league’s reigning Most Outstanding Canadian Player and the second hometown Bomber in this group of 11, Oliveira had a magical 2023 campaign. He ran for 1,534 yards last year, picking up West Division and CFL All-Star honours, as well as being the West’s nominee for Most Outstanding Player. His rushing total was second-most by a National player ever, behind the 1,813 yards Jon Cornish had in 2013. Oliveira had 2,016 yards from scrimmage and 13 touchdowns while also setting career bests in rushing, receptions (38) and receiving yards, with 482.

Tyson Philpot | WR | Montreal Alouettes

If you’ve been watching the Alouettes through their 3-0 start, you’ve seen a face-of-the-league-type player emerging. Philpot goes into Week 4 of the season with 23 catches for 340 yards and three touchdowns. The third-year player is second in the league in receiving yards behind BC’s Alexander Hollins. Remember how the Michael Jordan story began with him making the game-winning shot in the NCAA final to win the championship for North Carolina? Watching Philpot pull in the game-winning touchdown in the 110th Grey Cup last year, and seeing him dominate the way he has early this season gives a similar vibe.

Brandon Revenberg | OL | Hamilton Tiger-Cats

Revenberg has been an anchor of the Ticats’ offensive line since joining the team in 2016 (Dave Chidley/CFL.ca)

Similar to the kicker conundrum, there are a wealth of worthy National players lining up in the trenches every week protecting their quarterbacks and punching holes for the run game to thrive. We’ll go with Revenberg because he’s so highly decorated. The 31-year-old, eight-year CFL vet has spent his entire career with the Ticats. A five-time East Division All-Star and a four-time CFL All-Star, Revenberg is also a three-time East Division nominee for the Most Outstanding Offensive lineman award.

Sean Whyte | K | BC Lions

Through his 15-year career, Whyte has become Mr. Reliable for each of the three teams he’s played for. He’s a perfect 6-6 this season, going into Thursday night’s game against the Elks. At 38, he’s in fine wine mode, coming off of a career-best 94.3 per cent completion rate on field goals in 2023 (50-53), with his longest a 51-yarder in Week 2 against one of his former teams, the Elks, with whom he won a Grey Cup in 2015. Whyte is a two-time Divisional All-Star and last year was named a CFL All-Star for the first time in his career.

Follow CFL