On Matt O’Donnell’s extension, and its implications for the CFL

Matt O'Donnell is in the news again. The Canadian offensive lineman, who played CIS football at Queen's and was selected 15th overall in the 2011 CFL Canadian draft by Saskatchewan, but never actually reported to the Roughriders. Instead, he went through easily-mockable NBA tryouts with the Boston Celtics and Toronto Raptors, then eventually signed a contract with the NFL's Cincinnati Bengals (which made much more sense, given the history of NFL interest in him). O'Donnell's back in the news, but he's the one laughing now; Tyler Bieber and others reported Tuesday that O'Donnell has signed a two-year extension with the Bengals, which seems likely to keep him in orange and black for a while (and out of Rider green). O'Donnell's new contract is positive news for him, but it also reveals the rising interest of the NFL in Canadian-trained talent, which may pose issues for the CFL.

Signing this extension is a good move for O'Donnell, and it vindicates his summertime decision to not report to the Riders' camp. Holding out to try the NBA when he hadn't even played varsity basketball at Queen's seemed rather ludicrous, but it made sense as a stalling tactic, as NFL teams were prohibited from signing undrafted free agents during the league's lockout. Once that lockout ended, the Bengals snapped up O'Donnell. He never got off their practice squad last season, but he clearly showed enough there that they wanted to keep him around. That's very positive for his long-term financial picture.

It looks like the current NFL minimum practice squad salary is $5,700 per week, which would add up to $96,900 over a 17-week season. That's substantially more than what most CFL rookies make, as the minimum CFL salary this year was $43,000, and most rookies won't get a great deal more than that. Thus, O'Donnell probably made twice as much or more on the Bengals' practice squad as he would have as a CFL rookie, and he's likely getting paid even more with this extension. There's also the chance that during these next two years, he'll show enough to be a starter and earn a massive payday well beyond anything the CFL could ever offer.

It's not just about O'Donnell. More and more, coveted Canadian players who went high in the CFL's draft have wound up making the grade south of the border. Vaughn Martin of the San Diego Chargers is one example, as is Joel Reinders of the Cleveland Browns and Cory Greenwood of the Kansas City Chiefs. What's particularly notable about all four of those players is they played their university football in Canada; CFL teams have always had to balance a player's talent against the chances they could lure him north, but many of the Canadians currently in the NFL played their college football south of the border.

Of the 12 players on that list (which doesn't include Reinders or O'Donnell), only four (Martin, Greenwood, Israel Idonije of the Chicago Bears and Jon Ryan of the Seattle Seahawks) played CIS football, and Greenwood and Martin are recent NFL additions. NFL teams have always been interested in the most outstanding CIS prospects (see Queen's alumnus Mike Schad, who became the only CIS player ever taken in the first round of the NFL draft way back in 1986), but they haven't usually taken a lot of players from Canadian universities. That's starting to change, probably thanks to the rising calibre of CIS football and the way NFL teams are looking further afield for talent. However, that change may spell trouble for CFL teams.

The CFL is a much better product when its Canadian content is strong, and that's been the case recently. The improvements in play at the CIS level and the growing numbers of Canadians not just playing, but thriving, at NCAA schools have helped produce some tremendously talented Canadian players, and at positions frequently reserved for Americans. We've seen Andy Fantuz (another potential NFL loss) lead the league in receiving yards, we've seen Shea Emry dominate at middle linebacker and we've seen an incredible rise in Canadian running backs, from Jon Cornish to Jerome Messam to Andrew Harris and Andre Durie. The question is if that will continue while the NFL snaps up more and more talented Canadians out of the university ranks and hangs on to them.

This isn't about blaming the players, beating the nationalism drum or painting the NFL as the villain. For players like O'Donnell, it's absolutely worth taking an NFL shot if the opportunity's there; if it doesn't work out, they can always try the CFL later (and they'll probably get much more respect and a bigger starting salary that way). Canadian players in the NFL do a lot to represent this country and its football prowess too, and that shouldn't be overlooked either. It's also not the NFL's fault; its teams are always looking for talent, and its revenues are so high that even its minimum salaries are a substantial improvement on what many CFL players make, so of course NFL offers are going to be enticing.

What this does suggest is that CFL teams may have to look a little deeper, though, going beyond just CIS stars or those who test well at the combine. There's still plenty of talent out there, but it may take more effort to find top talent that can be brought to the CFL. NFL interest and a player's chances of success south of the border are becoming more and more important factors in drafting all the time, and teams ignore that at their peril. Otherwise, they wind up spending a high-round pick on someone like O'Donnell who may never wear their colours.