After two award-winning seasons with the B.C. Lions, linebacker Cameron Wake left for greener pastures in the NFL. Now in his second season with the Miami Dolphins, Wake leads the NFL with 14 sacks and is becoming a household name in South Florida.
Now that the CFL season is over, players across the league are thinking that, given the right opportunity, they too could become impact players in the NFL.
On the heels of one of the best seasons by a Canadian receiver in recent CFL history, Andy Fantuz is a very hot commodity in the NFL.
Speaking to Fanutz’s agent Hadley Englehart, it’s clear that there is significant interest in the CFL’s leading receiver from 2010. Englehart told me that Fantuz had what he called a "fantastic" tryout with the Pittsburgh Steelers earlier this week and he’s scheduled to work out for the Minnesota Vikings Friday and Saturday. Beyond that, Englehart said that Fantuz has at least three more tryouts, pending confirmation from the respective teams. NFL teams are telling Englehart that they love the combination of the size (6’4; 220 pounds), experience and production that Fantuz brings to the table.
Before the Riders nation starts panicking, make no mistake that Fantuz loves Saskatchewan and loves playing in the CFL. But as Englehart explained to me, Fantuz always had a dream of playing in the NFL and wants to make the most of this opportunity.
Englehart fully expects Fantuz to receive multiple contract offers after he wraps up his various tryouts. He told me that once the offers start coming in, Fantuz’s decision won’t come down to strictly dollars; it will be determined by which one gives him the best chance to play. Too many times guys from the CFL sign with an NFL team with visions of stardom dancing in their heads and are shocked to find out they are nothing more than canon fodder at training camp.
Englehart told me that, "Andy’s performance speaks for itself"; now it is just a matter of sorting out the expected contract offers and deciding which team will afford him a legitimate chance of making the squad.
A similar scenario is being played out with the Toronto Argonauts’ dynamic kick returner Chad Owens. As his agent Bruno Burnoski told me, Owens is receiving interest from NFL teams that would like to bring him in for a tryout because of the year he had with the Argos. Blessed with blazing speed, Owens had 2,701 combined return yards this past season, almost 1,000 yards more than the next closest player.
But here’s where the difference between Fantuz and Owens comes into play. While Fantuz is 26 and has only played in the CFL, Owens will turn 29 in April and has already been through the NFL meat-grinder before.
Owens is so happy to be playing for Jim Barker and living in Toronto that his agent told me he wouldn’t be willing to make the jump to the NFL without a six-figure signing bonus. Bruno told me the biggest reason behind this strategy is the looming lockout in the NFL. Chad doesn’t want to leave what he has in Toronto unless a team is willing to show a reasonable financial commitment.
As you would expect, Burnoski said both he and Owens are convinced he could play in the NFL. Like Fantuz and his agent, their big concern is finding the right fit. As Burnoski put it, a lot of guys feel like they didn’t get a fair shot when they first come out of college, end up playing in the CFL for two years, "then go back and try to be the next Cam Wake." He told me that Chad has no interest in just signing a low-end deal and ending up as camp fodder.
Both agents have cautioned their clients to go into any deal with their eyes wide open. Players like Cameron Wake don’t come along very often. More often than not, players who leave the CFL for a shot at the NFL never make it.
But like many things in life, if you are given a fair shot, you will know in your heart whether or not you were ever good enough to succeed.