Montreal Must Handle 'Unpredictable' Willie Jefferson in Grey Cup
Willie Jefferson isn’t sneaking up on anyone. But that doesn’t mean you can stop him.
The Winnipeg defensive end will be a focus of Montreal’s attention during Sunday’s Grey Cup, as the Blue Bombers shoot for another CFL title against the Montreal Alouettes.
Jefferson is coming off a regular season in which he had double-digit sacks for the third time in his career. He registered 11 in 17 games for the Blue Bombers.
It was one off his career high, set in 2019 with Winnipeg, when he recorded 12 sacks.
How has Jefferson recorded 68 sacks in nine CFL seasons? Montreal offensive lineman Kristian Matte told CFL.ca earlier this week that it’s all about Jefferson’s length as a player. He’s 6-foot-7, 245 pounds, and that’s hard for any offensive lineman to block.
“You have to take a good kick set, you have to know that he’s long, he’s rangy, he can have really good lateral movement,” Matte said.
You also have to know that Jefferson shows up when the lights are brightest.
A standout at Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches, Texas, where he was a second-team FCS All-American, the NFL dream never quite worked out for the Beaumont, Texas, native. Short stints with the Houston Texans and Washington never led to much of a chance to make an impact.
His CFL career started with Edmonton in 2014, where he spent two seasons and registered 10 sacks and won his first Grey Cup title in 2015.
He took one more shot with Washington in 2016, but he was released in the preseason. After that, Saskatchewan came calling. He hasn’t left the CFL since.
He played three seasons for the Roughriders, where he was a 2017 CFL All-Star, had his first season with double-digit sacks in 2018 (10) and earned another CFL All-Star selection.
Winnipeg lured him away for the 2019 season, where he set his career-high for sacks, earned his third CFL All-Star selection and was named the CFL’s most outstanding defensive player.
He also helped the Blue Bombers end their 29-year Grey Cup title drought, going back to 1990.
Entering this Grey Cup, the 32-year-old is looking for his fourth Grey Cup ring (Blue Bombers won again in 2021) after earning CFL All-Star honors for the fifth time and CFL West All-Star honors for the sixth time.
So, yes, he’s a big part of Winnipeg’s game plan and a player that Montreal’s offensive line can’t lose track of on Sunday.
“He’s somewhat unpredictable,” Montreal coach Jason Maas said. “There are some things that he’s going to do, you’ve got to play to those tendencies. But he’s fully capable of doing other things. He is long and he’s athletic and he’s a great football player. I mean, he’s a Hall of Famer in my mind.”
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You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
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Matthew Postins writes about baseball for Fan Nation/SI and covers Big 12 basketball for Heartland College Sports. He formerly covered the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and USports football for the College Football America Yearbook.