CFL Notebook

Christian Covington enters his second CFL season with renewed respect for the Canadian game.

The six-foot-three, 285-pound defensive lineman signed with B.C. last May after playing 101 regular-season games over nine NFL seasons. Covington, 31, registered 29 tackles, six sacks — two off the league lead — and two forced fumbles with the Lions but was pleasantly surprised by the level of talent in the CFL.

“I can’t lie to you, there were times when I wondered, ‘How early can I dominate in this league?'” Covington said Thursday from the CFL’s annual marketing shoot. “But it’s like, ‘No, you may think that but you’re going to be humbled real quick.’

“The talent here is ridiculous. I know there are guys here who could play (in NFL) and I know some of the guys in the NFL would struggle up here. It’s just the change of a single letter in the league name but it’s still professional football at the highest level.”

And nowhere was that more evident to Covington than along CFL offensive lines.

“These units they have with these teams, they’ve been working together for years,” Covington said. “They know the ins and outs, they know their boys’ weaknesses and strengths, they know how to work as a unit.

“It’s the experience factor … that’s something you can’t come in and beat at the jump. You’re going to have to learn, study, do your due diligence with film to be able to truly understand how to beat and manoeuvre around these teams and these units.”

Covington played four seasons with Houston (2015-18) then had stints with Dallas (2019), Denver (2020), Cincinnati (2020) and the Los Angeles Chargers (2021-22). He attended Detroit’s training camp in 2023 before spending the season on the Chargers’ practice squad.

“It certainly was a transition,” Covington said. “The only aspect of the Canadian game I could kind of understand was from watching film of my dad (Canadian Football Hall of Famer Grover Covington) and going to B.C. Lions games.

“The one beautiful thing about football is it doesn’t matter how good of shape you’re in, there’s no shape like football shape. You actually have to play the game to get into shape. The actual rules themselves, there was a transition getting used to them as well as my proper footwork, getting my pass-rush down and making sure my timing was right.”

He’s still on the mend, but Tyson Philpot anticipates a triumphant return to the Montreal Alouettes in 2025.

A foot injury prematurely ended Philpot’s promising ’24 campaign. The North Delta, B.C., native figures he’s 75-to-80 per cent through his rehab but expects to be fully recovered once the regular season begins.

“I envision a stellar season picking up where I left off in 2024,” Philpot said. “Hopefully winning comeback player of the year, most outstanding Canadian, I’m setting all of those goals for myself.

“I envision a healthy season, playing all 18 games is all I can ask for.”

But Philpot will face stiff competition for the top Canadian award. His twin brother, Jaylen, also has his eye on that honour as part of a Calgary Stampeders’ turnaround campaign.

“Unfortunately I’m going to have that most outstanding Canadian award,” said Jaylen Philpot, who’s also a receiver. “I’m just ready to show everyone what I can do.

“It’s been tough the last two years (combined 11-24-1 record) … but I think the organization has taken the right steps with some of the key pieces we’ve brought in. Coach Dave (head coach/general manager Dave Dickenson) likes to use (terms) each year and this year’s is grit, it doesn’t matter how we win we just have to get a win.”

Tyson Philpot was enjoying his best pro campaign when he suffered his season-ending foot injury. The ’23 Grey Cup’s top Canadian had 58 catches for 779 yards and five touchdowns in nine games.

“I’m definitely super hungry,” he said. “This is my first time ever having a season-ending injury.

“But I’m using it as a learning experience and just taking time to take care of myself, eating well, adding mobility and allowing myself to not be hurt with another injury.”

Jalen Philpot appeared in all 18 of Calgary’s games last season, establishing career highs in catches (66) and yards (659) with three TDs. That was despite not being fully over the hamstring injury that required surgery and forced him to miss the ’23 season.

“I played at about 85, 90 per cent,” he said. “The most limited I felt was when I got into the open field, that’s where you could tell my hamstring was still a little tight, my acceleration wasn’t there.

“That’s something I’ve really worked on this off-season — sprinting and sprint mechanics — so when I get into that open field and I’m running, it feels natural and there’s nothing either pulling or tugging. I’m feeling super fast, exactly how I felt pre-injury which is such a blessing because I wasn’t sure if I’d ever get to feeling like that again.”

Another similarity for the twins this season will be playing with different starting quarterbacks.

Veteran Vernon Adams Jr. takes over as Calgary’s starter after being acquired from the B.C. Lions on Nov. 26. The following day, Montreal signed Davis Alexander to a three-year extension and made him its starter, dealing Cody Fajardo — the ’23 Grey Cup MVP — to Edmonton for veteran McLeod Bethel-Thompson.

Calgary, which missed the CFL playoffs last season with a league-worst 5-12-1 record, also acquired defensive lineman Folarin Orimolade from the Grey Cup-champion Toronto Argonauts, re-signed Philpot to an extension and added receiver Dominique Rhymes and defensive back Damon Webb as free agents. Philpot believes the newcomers will help the Stampeders protect late leads or rally for fourth-quarter victories.

“Vernon Adams is definitely one of the reasons why I came back to Calgary,” Philpot said. “You can see it and hear it in his tone. He’s fired up, he’s ready to show everyone they (Lions) made a mistake last year so it was super-easy for me to return.

“That fourth quarter is so crucial, especially in the CFL where they say no lead is safe. I think that’s another reason why we brought in veteran guys who’ve played in the league for a while and won those big, clutch games.”

Alexander will be tasked with returning Montreal to the Grey Cup. The 26-year-old was 4-0 as the starter in place of an injured Fajardo (hamstring), completing 105-of-151 passes (69.5 per cent) for 1,347 yards with six touchdowns and three interceptions while running for 166 yards (6.6-yard average) and three TDs.

“What people don’t see is how hungry he is,” Tyson Philpot said. “He’s one of the first people at the facility and he’s just a team-first guy.

“He doesn’t speak much … he lets his play, his swagger, speak for themselves and that’s something guys can relate to and (rally) around. I think that’s a big reason why the change was made, the team and organization could tell he was ready.”

(Canadian Press)