Who???

[Nob]

The Argos pick Cleon Laing (spelling not sure) DL.

Don't know who he is. Anyone???

[ArgoGabe22]

Anyone who had him on their radar is BSing. He's a futures pick like Holmes and was a lot lower down on Ford's mock draft. Not happy with this pick now but we'll see how it turns out.

[ArgoRavi]

The Argos pick Cleon Laing (spelling not sure) DL.

Don't know who he is. Anyone???

I think that it is Cleyon Laing and he is an interior DL who will likely be with the Argos in a year. Chris Schultz thought that the pick was a good one and the TSN bunch made the point that this team needs to be rebuilt on defence and that Laing can be a part of that rebuilding.

It is a surprising pick though. I thought that we would have gone with Frederic Plesius but everyone is staying clear of him for whatever the reason.

[argolio]

A few years down the line, our 2012 draft will be probably judged as Laing vs Plesius.

[bluto]

he's a project by the looks of things...

i'm okay with drafting the best athlete and trusting your coaching staff to mold him into a player. hopefully this is a situation where our scouts saw something that other teams missed...

he was a high school tight end, provincial shot put champion, is a big body (6'4" and 290) and still has a year of NCAA eligibility to hone himself.

i thought we'd be going after Plesius... especially after seeing him in person at the Vanier... if we were going for the best "athlete" i wonder how Laing got ahead of him on our board. i reckon the fact that Plesius is a "tweener" may have hurt him.


A few years down the line, our 2012 draft will be probably judged as Laing vs Plesius.

that would be fair play to measure it that way.

[jerrym]

I am not opposed to drafting futures; but, considering the Grey Cup is in Toronto, the team needs to build attention in the city, and they have a lot of needs in several positions I am disappointed they did not pick someone, such as Plesius (who could at least be special teams in his first year), who could help immediately and have a higher profile.

[argolio]

On the other hand, any complaints about this draft will be forgotten if we win a Cup or two with Ricky Ray.

[OV Argo]

Mind numbing pick IMO - a guy who was a back-up D-Lineman mostly in college ball; but hopefully he pans out down the road as a good player for the Argos.

[1argoholic]

I've already been ripped for my comments about this guy and our drafting habits on another post. I was fine with the pick until I looked up his college stats. How do you pick a guy who's done zero in college. It looks like he gets a few downs every once in a while for three years. They don't take this draft seriously. The Argos have always had trouble drafting, developing qbs and rbs historically.

[KCargosfan]

I've already been ripped for my comments about this guy and our drafting habits on another post. I was fine with the pick until I looked up his college stats. How do you pick a guy who's done zero in college. It looks like he gets a few downs every once in a while for three years. They don't take this draft seriously. The Argos have always had trouble drafting, developing qbs and rbs historically.

Can't say I'm too thrilled about it either, but consider some things. He was/is a back-up in the Big 12. Yes, Iowa State isn't Oklahoma, but it isn't like he's a back-up at South Dakota State. He also has another year to play in the Big 12, so who knows how much playing time he will get as a senior.

[argolio]

I would have preferred Plesius as someone sitting here in my living room, but I'm also not going to bury our guy. Let's see how this plays out over the next few years. Time has a way of changing lots of players who looks great or not-so-great on draft day.

[ArgoRavi]

I would have preferred Plesius as someone sitting here in my living room, but I'm also not going to bury our guy. Let's see how this plays out over the next few years. Time has a way of changing lots of players who looks great or not-so-great on draft day.

We could end up having the greatest draft or the worst and, as you say, time will tell. There is no reason to get worked up about this draft at this point. And, as far as the Argos not caring about the draft, I would suggest that that is far from the truth. Ted Goveia, for one, has been scouting the country from coast to coast and I imagine that Chris Jones has had a very close look at our first pick. Just because we, as fans, aren't as familiar with a player, it doesn't mean that that player should be written off.

Overall, we drafted three NCAA players and three CIS players. We drafted two linebackers, a receiver, a defensive back, a defensive lineman and a tight end/fullback. Personally, I feel like our Canadian o-line depth is pretty good so I have no problem with not drafting an offensive lineman this year. Again, time will tell how well we did with this draft and we really won't know for a few years.

Here is Duane Forde's draft rankings: http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=394933

All of the Argos' picks are on there so it's not like the Argos picked complete unknowns. Interestingly, their second to last pick, Aaron Crawford, was the third-ranked long-snapper.

[RoRoYoBoat]

I think people put too much stock into Duane Forde opinions. I give him an A for effort on compiling and keeping track of these guys but he has very little credibility with me as a talent evaluator. He's not a coach, has never worked as a scout. He's a school teacher...

[ArgoGabe22]

Duane Ford played the game, has set up another combine for those not selected for the E-Camp for players like Spencer Watt and he puts a lot of time in studying prospects. He is the Canadian version of Mike Mayock and of course he`ll be wrong but I`ll take his word over anyone's on this forum.

[1argoholic]

Why take second best when you could pick top level talent.

[OV Argo]

Why take second best when you could pick top level talent.


Because a lot of CFL "thinkers" who control personnel decision making are thinking back-ups or special teamers or "athletic" projects when it comes to NI talent and the draft. They don't often envision the cream of the crop of NI talent available each year in the draft as pure football players who might be able to compete for playing time at specific positions; but rather are often looking more for "athletes" who might fit in somewhere with the ratio down the road.

And if your key decision makers have little valued connections to consult with or make reccomendations (guys they played with or coached with or who helped them run a football team before) in the system where they have to draft players from, or, little respect for the top talent - especially at specific positions - that makes up a lot of the draft class, then don't be surprised about a lot of "top level talent" - i.e. proven college ball football players - being passed over or ignored in a CFL draft, in favor of long-range projects, "athletes", or players from a favored "background".

Coach Barker has some connections at Iowa State; and Laing is viewed as a good "athlete" and he's playing at a top notch / level program & competition. Maybe he emerges as a solid starter there this coming season, makes the conference all-star team at DT, and then comes to the CFL and really helps the Argos by being an impact player for them. I hope so. And CFL teams are always looking for big NI linemen, and maybe the Argos will have a big need at DT by next year, when and if Laing shows up.

[1argoholic]

Well explained and I never think of the connections these guys have or don't have. I just hate that we always pick for the future. I always feel you should pick based on guys that might never get that NFL shot and are very happy with a CFL career but that's the proud Canadian in me talking. I'm just a passionate fan. I think the CIS coaching panel was a wee bit pissed at all the NCAA players drafted early on. The respect of talent from CIS was evident.

[Argocister]

I think people put too much stock into Duane Forde opinions. I give him an A for effort on compiling and keeping track of these guys but he has very little credibility with me as a talent evaluator. He's not a coach, has never worked as a scout. He's a school teacher...
Interesting.... I suppose there is other info on Duane with which you have formed your opinion. When I look at his ranking list which came out the day before the draft, his 'guesses' were fairly accurate as to who the teams picked.
As mentioned above http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=394933