The Canadian Football League (CFL) Draft is one of the tools teams across the league utilize when constructing their rosters. It’s the annual source for clubs to stockpile Canadians as the nine squads across the league choose the best eligible players among the NCAA or U Sports ranks each spring.
Here is a look back at Roughriders history in the CFL Draft over the past decade. Included are the full list of CFL Draft selections made by the Roughriders between 2013-2022, along with the best (current) selections the Roughriders made from each draft class.
2013
Roughriders General Manager: Brendan Taman
1st round
4th overall- Corey Watman OL Eastern Michigan
5th round
38th overall- Matt Vonk OL Waterloo
39th overall- Alex Anthony WR Wilfred Laurier
40th overall Levi Steinhauer DL Saskatchewan
44th overall Spencer Moore TE McMaster
6th Round
49th overall Thomas Spoletini LB Calgary
7th round
56th overall- Eric Armitage OL Western
Best Pick: Moore. The fullback/tight end ended up with an eight-year career in the CFL, spending six seasons with Saskatchewan before finishing up in Montreal.
2014
Roughriders General Manager: Brendan Taman
2nd round
11th overall Dylan Ainsworth DL Western
18th overall Alex Pierzchalski WR Toronto
3rd Round
20th overall Johnny Mark K Calgary
26th overall Kris Bastien WR Concordia
5th round
39th overall Matt Webster DB Queen’s
45th overall Kyle Paterson OL Regina
6th round
54th overall Travis Bent LB Concordia
7th round
63rd overall Terry Hart OL St. Francis Xavier
Best Pick: Webster. Not much selection from the Riders 2014 CFL Draft class, Webster would go on to spend six seasons in the CFL, three with the Roughriders along with three seasons in Toronto.
2015
Roughriders General Manager: Brendan Taman
1st round
6th overall s Nic Demski WR Manitoba
3rd round
26th overall Rory Connop DL Western Ontario
4th round
35th overall Matthew Rea FB Michigan State
5th round
42nd overall Kwame Adjei DB Mt. Allison
6th round
47th overall Tyler Langlais DL Calgary
50th overall Melvin Abankwah RB St. Mary’s
7th round
59th overall Brandon Tennant DL Laval
Best pick: Demski. Roughrider fans only got to see a sample size of what the former University of Manitoba Bison could do in green and white. He played three seasons in Saskatchewan before returning to his home province as a member of the Blue Bombers, helping Winnipeg to a pair of Grey Cup victories (2019 & 2021). The receiver is coming off his best season with 64 receptions and 772 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns. He added an additional 151 rushing yards.
Former Rider GM, Brendan Taman. Picture: Saskatchewan Roughriders
2016
Roughriders General Manager Chris Jones
1st round
1st overall Josiah St. John OL Oklahoma
3rd round
24th overall Elie Bouka DB Calgary
26th overall Quinn Van Gylswyk K UBC
4th round
35th overall David Onyemata DL Manitoba
5th round
36th overall Alex Bongbemiga LB Calgary
6th round
52nd overall Alex McKay OL Manitoba
8th round
62nd overall Joshua Stanford WR Kansas
Best Pick: Bouka. The defensive back played four games with the Roughriders in 2017 before departing for the Philadelphia Eagles of the NFL in 2018. Bouka returned to Saskatchewan in 2019 and spent a portion of the 2021 season with the green and white. He then signed with the Calgary Stampeders in 2022. Bouka had an interception returned for a touchdown against the Argonauts last season.
2017
Roughriders General Manager: Chris Jones
1st round
2nd overall Cameron Judge LB UCLA
2nd round
11th overall Dariuz Bladek OL Bethune-Cookman
4th round
30th overall Antony Auclair TE Laval
32nd overall Eddie Meredith OL Western Ontario
5th round
37th overall Mitchell Picton WR Regina
6th round
46th overall Danny Spurkulis OL Toronto
7th round
55th overall Alexandre Chevrier LB Sherbrooke
57th overall Emmanuel Adusei DT Carleton
64th overall Marc Glaude OL Montreal
Best Pick: Judge. As of now, the 2017 class is shaping up to be the team’s best Draft group in recent history with three quality CFL players and a NFL regular (Auclair). A local favourite, Picton has provided value for the Riders as a 5th round pick and there is potential for his role to increase in 2023. Bladek has solidified himself as a starting lineman for the Toronto Argonauts after leaving the Roughriders in 2019 and helped the Argos win the Grey Cup in 2022 back in Regina. But Judge has emerged as one of the top Canadian defenders. Judge spent the 2021 season in Toronto before moving on to Calgary in 2022 where he became a CFL All-Star with the Stampeders.
2018
Roughriders General Manager: Chris Jones
1st round
5th overall Dakoda Shepley OL UBC
2nd round
14th overall Micah Teitz
5th round
36th overall Mathieu Breton DL Bishops
6th round
45th overall Tresor Buama-Mafuta DL St. Mary’s
8th round
63rd overall Christopher Smith OL York
Best Pick: Teitz. Shepley only spent one season in Saskatchewan before moving on to the NFL. Teitz first earned himself a spot on the Roughriders roster in 2018. The linebacker would gain a more prominent role in 2021 picking up 64 tackles and three sacks for the Riders in 13 games. Teitz missed the entire 2022 season but is expected to return to a starting spot as an outside linebacker in 2023.
2019
Roughriders General Manager: Jeremy O’Day
1st round
6th overall Justin McInnis WR Arkansas State
2nd round
15th overall Brayden Lenius WR New Mexico
4th round
35th overall Jacob Janke LB York
5th round
44th overall Charbel Dabire DL Wagner
6th round
53rd overall Vincent Roy OL Sherbrooke
8th round
71st overall Christopher Judge Cal Poly (San Luis Obispo)
Best Pick: Lenius. In 2021, Lenius had 471 receiving yards and four touchdowns for Saskatchewan in his first full season of action. He then signed with the Atlanta Falcons but ended up back in Saskatchewan last August. With the changes in the Riders receiving unit, along with the injury to Schaffer-Baker, Lenius is a candidate to not only be the Riders Most Outstanding Canadian in 2023, but also it’s top receiver.
2020
Roughriders General Manager: Jeremy O’Day
1st Round
7th overall Mattland Riley OL Saskatchewan
4th round
30th overall Kian Schaffer-Baker WR, Guelph
35th overall AJ Allen LB Guelph
5th round
44th overall Vincent Dethier DB McGill
6th round
53rd overall Jonathon Femi-Cole RB Western
7th round
62nd overall Jesse Lawson OL Carleton
8th round
71st overall Neville Gallimore DL Oklahoma
Best Pick: Schaffer-Baker. Already off to a solid start with the Roughriders with a pair of solid seasons, the receiver has a chance to further cement his status as one of the top draft picks in recent Roughrider history after he signed a two-year contract extension earlier this month that will keep him with the green and white through the 2025 season. Schaffer-Baker just missed the 1,000 receiving yard mark in 2022 as he ended up with 960. He will be out for the beginning of the 2023 season as he recovers from off-season hip surgery.
2021
Roughriders General Manager: Jeremy O’Day
1st round
2nd selection Nelson Lokombo DB Saskatchewan
2nd round
17th selection Terrell Jana WR Virginia
3rd round
20th selection Bruno LaBelle TE Cincinnati
4th round
35th selection Alain Cimankinda DL Guelph
5th round
38th selection Logan Bandy OL Calgary
6th round
53rd selection Matt Watson DB Mt. Allison
Best Pick: Bandy. Being only removed two years from the 2021 CFL Draft, there is still time for this answer to change. Bandy was called upon to fill in at centre for the Riders in 2022 following the injury to Dan Clark, making 11 starts in total. Lokombo will be heading into camp with an opportunity for more playing time after battling injuries in his first two seasons, including missing his entire rookie season in 2021.
2022
Roughriders General Manager: Jeremy O’Day
1st Round
7th overall Samuel Emilus WR Louisiana Tech
2nd round
16th overall Zack Fry OL Western
3rd round
27th overall Diego Altorre-Montoya
4th round
36th overall Tommy Bringi LB Wilfred Laurier
5th round
45th overall Tristan Fleury DB McGill
6th round
54th overall Jayden Dalke DB Alberta
7th round
63rd overall Zach Herzog DB Hillside
8th round
72nd overall Riley Boersma WR Regina
Best Pick: Jayden Dalke. Saskatchewan has not found much success in the later rounds in the draft in their recent history, but the Roughriders may have hit gold with the addition of the former Golden Bear. Dalke became a key contributor for the Riders special teams and saw time on defence in his rookie campaign. Emilus will receive an opportunity to grab a starting role within the Roughriders receiving core in 2023 considering the injury to Schaffer-Baker. In his rookie campaign, the former Louisiana Tech WR saw some time on the Riders offence as well as a returner on special teams.
Riders GM Jeremy O’Day Photo: Sask Roughriders
Coming up next Tuesday is the 2023 CFL Draft. Saskatchewan holds the third selection in the first round. In total the Roughriders currently have eight picks in the upcoming draft.
2023 Draft
1st Round
3rd selection
2nd Round
11th selection
3rd Round
21st selection
4th round
30th selection
6th round
48th selection
7th Round
57th selection
60th selection
620 CKRM will have coverage of the 2023 CFL Draft beginning at 6:00 on May 2.
