CFL Draft 2014 Team Preview: Saskatchewan Roughriders

The CFL Draft is just over a week away so it seems like a fitting time to look at how the reigning champs stack up headed into the draft.

Picks: 6 picks, first selection is 8^th Overall

2013 Draft Assessment: There was both good and bad to last year’s draft for the Riders. The bad was that 6 of their 7 picks came in the 5^th round or later. The good was that in-spite of that, they were actually pretty successful. In the 5^th round they grabbed both Levi Steinhauer and Spencer Moore who earned significant playing time early. The jury is still out on Cory Watman. The Riders claimed he was the most pro-ready OL in the draft but in-spite of a rash of injuries along the OL, Watman was never used much. For now he’s good depth at OL and if he can live up to his draft day hype then 2013 may prove to be a decent draft year after all.

Potential Pipeline: n/a

Current Strengths: The strength of the Riders by far is the O-line. The combo of Labatte, Picard, Best and Heenan are among the league’s best. Also keep in mind that Heenan is already an impact tackle in only his second year in the league. Getzlaf is consistently among the most productive Canadian receiver. Bagg is an impact player (as long as his knees hold up). After working through some early career struggles, the Riders are glad they stuck with Milo (especially when you consider the craptacularness of the 2 kickers taken before him in the 2011 draft). Foley remains a force at the DE spot. They also have a solid group of gritty role players like McHenry, McCullough, Hughes, Woldu and Steinhauer which is the backbone of any successful team.

Current Needs: Offseason took its toll on the once vaunted group of impact Canadian defenders the Riders boasted. It also took its toll on the overall depth. Gone are 4 Canadians that played in the Grey Cup including 2 starters… and good ones at that. The Riders still have 7 solid starters but now need to build the depth behind that and replace the impact players that were lost. A healthy Sam Hurl will help. As will the offseason additions of Josh Bartel and David Lee. I guess one could include Shomari in that group but until we find a spot he can actually hold down I’m holding off.

Any position on defense is priority number one. The Riders may also look to build depth at OL and WR but will hold off until later rounds to do so given that they are currently set there.

Prediction: The 8^th overall pick will be used on whoever happens to be the best available defender left at that spot. Be it DE Dylan Ainsworth, LB Beau Landry or DB Adam Thibault (who could all still be available). At lot depends on how things shake out with picks 4 through 7.

Second round pick will likely be used in a similar fashion… though if a decent O-lineman slipped that far I could see Taman forgoing need to and taking him as has been his style.  Also, Taman likes to trade picks so I fully expect the Riders to make a draft day trade involving the swapping of picks.

CFL Draft 2014 Team Preview: Toronto Argonauts

When you consider how terrible the Canadian content of the Argos was under Adam Rita, it’s amazing how much it has improved. Jim Barker deserves a lot of credit for how he has built up the non-import talent on the team.

Picks: 8 picks, first selection is 6^th Overall

2013 Draft Assessment: The short term payoff was minimal but long-term, this may yet prove to be a solid draft class for the Argos. They used their top pick on offensive tackle Matt Sewell who surprised a lot of folks by returning to school. But he is now signed as is third round pick WR Natey Adjey. They are very high on second round pick Jermaine Gabriel who say playing time in 2013 but should see a larger role this season.

Potential Pipeline: LB Cory Greenwood (Detroit), TE Luke Wilson (Seattle)

Current Strengths: Depth along the O-line is pretty solid with the likes of Keeping, Van Zeyl, Koch, Holmes, Smith and new additions Sewell and former #2 overall pick Scott Mitchell. Andre Durie is one of their key offensive weapons and Spencer Watt is quietly developing into a decent receiver. On the defensive side they are strengthened by their big offseason acquisition Shea Emry. They already have James Yurichuk to provide depth. The sudden retirement of Jordan younger last year pretty much forced the Argos into playing Matt Black at safety. He surprised some people by proving serviceable. The Argos are very high on Jermaine Gabriel who may take over that spot this year. Either way, given that they already start 4 Cdns on the OL along with Durie, having 2 Cdn spots on D solidified gives them plenty of ratio flexibility.

Current Needs: All aspects of their D have been deeply impacted this offseason. Gone are Thorpe, Ball, Mitchell, Watkins, Williams, Pottinger and Lee. While this isn’t specifically an issue with Canadians, you can bet Barker will be looking to add playmakers to help shore up his defense regardless of passport. They don’t have any glaring needs so they have the luxury of drafting the best players available.

Prediction: The Argos have taken a lineman with their first pick in each of the last 5 drafts. Odds are very good that streak will continue. With an early run on OL expected that likely means it will be a D-lineman like Evan Gill or Dylan Ainsworth who they end up taking.

Two other things to keep in mind with the Argos. They are among the riskiest drafters. They will take chances on players with NFL interests or players that are off the radar. Sometimes it works out in the short term (like Cleyon Laing), sometimes it pays off in the longer term (like Tyler Holmes) and sometimes is just plains flops (like Cory Greenwood or Nick Kaczur). Also, they are not afraid to make draft day deals so I expect them to be involved in a trade that shakes up the draft order a bit in the later rounds.

CFL Draft 2014 Team Preview: BC Lions

Under Wally Buono the Lions have exemplified the “draft the best player available” mentality. That is likely one of the leading reasons BC has tended so have one of the better cores of Canadian talent.

Picks: 8 picks, first selection is 5^th Overall

2013 Draft Assessment: Took a chance on highly touted OL prospect Hunter Steward in round 1 which paid off when he signed this offseason. Got lucky enough to get SJ Hairdara in round 2 and I think he will soon develop into an impact player. Got some good role players like back-up OL Matt Albright and DB Matt McGarva in the late rounds. Overall they did well.

Potential Pipeline: OL Danny Watkins (Miami/possibly done with football), DB OJ Atogwe (NFL), DL Rob Meier (retired from NFL), LB Bo Lokombo (college)

Current Strengths: BC is blessed with offensive playmakers so good that their Cdn birth certificates are just a bonus. There is of course Andrew Harris who is great at both running and receiving. I consider Shawn Gore to the best Cdn WR in the league and when you factor in Haidara, Ianuzzi and Poblah it makes for arguably the best group of Cdn receivers in the league. Jabar Westerman is a developing talent at DL. Jason Aragki is a solid special teamer. And they have decent talent at the interior of their OL (when healthy).

Current Needs: Last year injuries really tested their depth at OL and this offseason has been just as brutal to that depth. Angus Reid retired, Patrick Kabongo likely will too. Matt Albright was snatched by Ottawa. And Steve Myddelton signed in Hamilton. The addition of Steward definitely helps but Dean Valli has had his share of injury issues and Kirby Fabien is just coming off a knee injury that cost him almost all of 2013. Bottom line is BC will need to restock the shelves at OL.

Also, for the past number of years the glaring weakness in an otherwise solid secondary has been safety. They have tried the likes of Cauchy Muamba and JR LaRose and still not found an impact player. Their big plan was to lure Craig Butler to address that issue but to a lot of people’s surprise (including them) they missed out and are now left scrambling for alternatives.

Other needs include building depth at DL if they want Westerman to factor in as a starter. I would suggest they draft a kicker but it appears I will retire before McCallum.

Prediction: Really hard to say where Buono goes in round 1. I think ideally they would target an OL but there will be an early run on them and there may not be one left at #5 worthy of a first round pick. They may also look for a DB like Adam Thibault which I think is the most likely scenario with them stocking up on OL in subsequent rounds (remember that Matt Norman was a 3rd rounder). Then again Buono may deem a DL like Quinn Smith or Dylan Ainsworth too good to pass on if they are still there. One thing I am sure of though, is that BC is the most likely to make a trade to move up a few spots or try for another 1^st round pick.