Skip to content

Eight Things To Know: Americans in the Canadian Football League

Quarterback Johnny Manziel signed with the Canadian Football League’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday morning, becoming the latest in a long line of American players to take a shot north of the border.
11966531_web1_CPT106476498

Quarterback Johnny Manziel signed with the Canadian Football League’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday morning, becoming the latest in a long line of American players to take a shot north of the border.

Here’s a list of other notable Americans who came to the CFL to start, end, or rehabilitate their pro football careers:

—-

QB JOE THEISMANN — Theismann chose the Toronto Argonauts over the NFL’s Miami Dolphins in 1971, spending the first three seasons of his pro career with the CFL club. He was a CFL all-star in 1971 and 1973 before joining the Washington Redskins in 1974. Theismann spent 12 seasons with Washington, leading the team to a Super Bowl title in 1983 and being named the league’s MVP that same year.

—-

QB WARREN MOON — Moon began his Hall of Fame career in the CFL, playing for the Edmonton Eskimos between 1978 and 1983. He led the Eskimos to five Grey Cup titles, throwing for 21,228 yards in the CFL. Moon joined the Houston Oilers in 1984 and played 17 NFL seasons for four teams, totalling more than 70,000 passing yards as a pro (CFL and NFL). He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006.

—-

WR FRED BILETNIKOFF — Biletnikoff was already an established NFL star when, in 1980, he joined the Montreal Alouettes. He had spent his entire 14-year NFL career with the Oakland Raiders, averaging more than 15 yards per reception and leading the NFL with 35 touchdown catches from 1969-72. His final NFL season was in 1978 and after a year off he moved to Montreal, where he caught four touchdowns. Biletnikoff was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1988.

—-

QB DOUG FLUTIE — Flutie was selected in the 11th round of the 1985 NFL draft by the Los Angeles Rams after winning the Heisman Trophy the previous year. He opted to play for the USFL’s New Jersey Generals instead of the Rams and his NFL rights were traded to the Chicago Bears. He split time between Chicago and the New England Patriots from 1986-89 before joining the B.C. Lions. He spent the next eight seasons playing in Canada, winning the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player award six times and the Grey Cup three times. Flutie returned to the NFL in 1998, starting 52 games for the Buffalo Bills and San Diego Chargers over the next seven seasons.

—-

WR RAGHIB “ROCKET” ISMAIL — Considered a possible first overall pick in the 1991 NFL Draft, Ismail decided to sign a record-breaking contract with the Toronto Argonauts before the draft. The Argonauts paid Ismail $18.2 million over four years. In his first CFL game, he returned a kick 73 yards on a reverse with Michael “Pinball” Clemons. Ismail ended his rookie season at the 79th Grey Cup where he recorded an 87-yard touchdown on a kickoff return and was named the Grey Cup’s MVP as Toronto beat the Calgary Stampeders 36–21. Ismail left the CFL in 1993 and signed with the NFL’s Los Angeles Raiders, later moving on to the Carolina Panthers and Dallas Cowboys.

—-

QB JEFF GARCIA — Garcia joined the Calgary Stampeders in 1994, serving as Flutie’s backup. He threw for more than 16,000 yards in the CFL and was named the MVP of the Stampeders’ win in the 1998 Grey Cup. He signed with the San Francisco 49ers in 1999 and started all 16 games for the team each year from 2000-02. He was a four-time Pro Bowl selection, throwing for more than 25,000 yards and 161 touchdowns in his NFL career.

—-

RB RICKY WILLIAMS — Williams was suspended from the NFL in 2006 after testing positive for marijuana. With few options, the 1998 Heisman Trophy winner played for the Toronto Argonauts for a season, rushing for 526 yards. Williams returned to the NFL in 2007 and played five more seasons for the Dolphins and Baltimore Ravens.

—-

WR CHAD JOHNSON — Johnson was a second-round pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2001 NFL draft, and quickly built a reputation for his flashy play and even flashier celebrations. He had at least 1,000 receiving yards in six of his first seven seasons, including an NFL-best 1,369 yards in 2006. The six-time Pro Bowl selection had the second-most receiving yards in the league from 2002 through 2007, with his last NFL season coming in 2011 with the New England Patriots. He played the 2014 season in the CFL with the Montreal Alouettes.