Claypool, Gallimore top-rated Canadian draft prospects
Both players slated to be picked late in first round, streaming live tonight
Winnipeg Blue Bombers GM Kyle Walters isn’t spending much time evaluating Oklahoma defensive lineman Neville Gallimore and Notre Dame receiver Chase Claypool.
That’s because neither of the top-ranked prospects for this year’s CFL draft is expected to set foot in the CFL for some time, if ever.
“You watch those guys and you’re like, ‘Well, we don’t need to spend a whole lot of time on them because those guys are really good,’ ” Walters said recently.
“You see they’re projected somewhere high in the NFL draft, which generally means they’re going to stick.
“Those two are as good prospects coming out as you’ve seen in a long time.”
Gallimore and Claypool are the top-rated Canadians for this year’s NFL draft, which begins Thursday with the first round. The second and third rounds are Friday with the remaining four going Saturday. The CFL draft is April 30. Gallimore and Claypool have each been pegged as late firstround NFL picks in various mock drafts and will be among 58 prospects who’ll virtually participate in Thursday’s proceedings. But draft gurus Mel Kiper Jr. and Daniel Jeremiah see both as Friday selections.
The six-foot-two, 304-pound Gallimore, of Ottawa, had 30 tackles, four sacks and 7.5 tackles for a loss last season. He appeared in 52 games — 38 as a starter — at Oklahoma, registering 148 tackles, 18 tackles for a loss, nine sacks and five forced fumbles.
Gallimore impressed at the NFL combine with a 40-yard dash time of 4.79 seconds, becoming just the third 300-plus pound player to run that fast. He also recorded 23 reps in the 225-pound bench press.
Claypool, a six-foot-four, 238pound native of Abbotsford, B.C., was Notre Dame’s leading receiver in 2019 with 66 catches for 1,037 yards and 13 TDs. He registered150 career receptions for 2,159 yards and 19 touchdowns.
Former CFL star Doug Flutie, a colour commentator for Notre Dame Football on NBC, feels Claypool can excel in the NFL. He said Claypool’s maturity was clearly evident last season.
“From the first day he stepped on the field last year, every time he touched the ball he was determined he was going to score,” Flutie said. “It was like a man possessed.”
Other Canadians who could also garner NFL attention either as late-round picks or undrafted free agents include: UCLA kicker J.J. Molson of Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Que., a grandson of former Montreal Canadiens owner J. David Molson and cousin of current owner Geoff Molson who attended the NFL combine; Ohio University quarterback Nathan Rourke of Oakville; and Alberta offensive lineman Carter O’Donnell of Red Deer, Alta.