Top-graded CFL players of Week 5: Highlighting the league’s best performers

The CFL season is heating up, and each week, we’re diving into the numbers to spotlight the league’s top performers.

Thanks to consistent demand from fans, we’re bringing you the top 10 highest-graded CFL players who played significant snaps, based on PFF’s grading system.

From quarterbacks dissecting defenses to defensive linemen wreaking havoc in the trenches, these are the athletes who stood out above the rest in Week 5. We'll be highlighting this group every single week of the season so that CFL fans can keep track of the top-tier talent making an impact across the league.

Want to dig deeper into the data? Click here for full season-level PFF grades across the CFL.

Grading Highlight of the Week: QB Tre Ford, Edmonton Elks

Looking at the table below, you might be surprised to see Tre Ford — who posted a near-perfect 157.8 passer rating in Edmonton’s win — ranked as our lowest-graded quarterback of the week. By traditional box score metrics, Ford’s game looks outstanding. But our grading system is designed to go beyond the box score. Let’s break down Ford’s five biggest plays of the game:

Q1, 11:46: A 45-yard touchdown on a screen pass to RB Justin Rankin
Q1, 4:53: A 23-yard gain on another screen pass to Rankin
Q1, 4:25: An 18-yard pickup on a quick flat pass to FB Tanner Green
Q1, 3:58: An 8-yard touchdown on a jet-sweep touch pass to WR Kurleigh Gittens Jr.
Q3, 8:26: A 46-yard gain on an underthrown seam route to RB Javon Leake, where Leake slowed, fought through contact and secured the ball around the defender’s arm.

None of these plays earned Ford a positive grade. Each was either a routine, expected throw (screens, jet sweeps) or a play where the receiver did all the heavy lifting (Leake’s seam route). Removing these from the equation, Ford completed 10-of-12 passes for just 72 yards and no touchdowns. He also had an unforced fumble early in the third quarter that was nearly returned for a touchdown.

Edmonton will undoubtedly be happy with Ford’s performance. He managed the game effectively and avoided major mistakes. But our grading system evaluates quarterbacks snap by snap, rewarding plays above expectation and penalizing negative ones. Ford simply didn’t make enough high-level plays in this game to earn a strong grade, even if the box score suggests otherwise.

Quarterback

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Bo Levi Mitchell	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	52	83.4
Nathan Rourke	B.C. Lions	63	81.2
Vernon Adams Jr.	Calgary Stampeders	42	75.4
Nick Arbuckle	Toronto Argonauts	56	65.9
Dru Brown	Ottawa Redblacks	62	64.6
Zach Collaros	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	65	57.6
McLeod Bethel-Thompson	Montreal Alouettes	51	55.6
Tre Ford	Edmonton Elks	43	54.3

Running Back

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Justin Rankin	Edmonton Elks	39	78.4
Sean Thomas Erlington	Montreal Alouettes	31	72.3
Dedrick Mills	Calgary Stampeders	41	71.5
James Butler	B.C. Lions	63	70.4
Brady Oliveira	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	65	70.4
Khalan Laborn	Toronto Argonauts	27	68.3
Daniel Adeboboye	Ottawa Redblacks	34	63.8
Kevin Brown	Toronto Argonauts	29	62.8
Greg Bell	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	34	60.1
William Stanback	Ottawa Redblacks	28	58.6

Wide Receiver

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Kenny Lawler	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	47	89.3
Kevin Mital	Toronto Argonauts	51	73.4
Justin McInnis	B.C. Lions	63	73.0
Ayden Eberhardt	B.C. Lions	28	71.3
Kevens Clercius	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	73	69.8
Steven Dunbar Jr.	Edmonton Elks	51	69.5
Tevin Jones	Calgary Stampeders	45	67.7
Cole Spieker	Montreal Alouettes	37	66.3
Damien Alford	Calgary Stampeders	37	65.0
Dejon Brissett	Toronto Argonauts	56	64.7

Tackle

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Joshua Coker	Calgary Stampeders	47	73.0
Jamar McGloster	Montreal Alouettes	56	67.3
Quinton Barrow	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	52	64.4
Jarell Broxton	B.C. Lions	63	63.5
Brett Boyko	Edmonton Elks	51	63.0
Martez Ivey	Edmonton Elks	51	61.1
D’Antne Demery	Calgary Stampeders	47	61.0
Des Holmes	Montreal Alouettes	56	61.0
Parker Moorer	Ottawa Redblacks	62	59.3
Dino Boyd	Ottawa Redblacks	62	58.3

Guard

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Liam Dobson	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	52	74.2
Gregor Mackellar	Edmonton Elks	51	69.6
Micah Vanderpool	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	76	66.5
Zack Williams	Calgary Stampeders	47	66.3
Kory Woodruff	B.C. Lions	63	65.4
Patrick Neufeld	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	76	64.8
Gabe Wallace	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	21	63.8
Pier-Olivier Lestage	Montreal Alouettes	56	60.3
Donald Ventrelli	Montreal Alouettes	56	59.7
George Una	B.C. Lions	63	58.6

Centre

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Coulter Woodmansey	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	52	76.9
Peter Nicastro	Toronto Argonauts	56	70.0
Christopher Fortin	Calgary Stampeders	47	64.7
Chris Kolankowski	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	76	63.6
Justin Lawrence	Montreal Alouettes	56	58.8
Michael Couture	B.C. Lions	59	58.6
Jacob Ruby	Ottawa Redblacks	62	56.5
Mark Korte	Edmonton Elks	51	54.1

Interior Defender

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Jake Ceresna	Edmonton Elks	54	78.0
Blessman Ta’ala	Ottawa Redblacks	25	76.9
Charles Wiley	Calgary Stampeders	38	71.1
Tibo Debaillie	B.C. Lions	33	71.0
Cameron Lawson	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	34	70.3
Jared Brinkman	Edmonton Elks	51	70.0
Kori Roberson Jr.	Montreal Alouettes	39	68.8
Marcus Moore	B.C. Lions	41	67.8
Jaylon Hutchings	Calgary Stampeders	48	66.5
Cleyon Laing	Ottawa Redblacks	30	66.5

Edge Defender

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Julian Howsare	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	49	91.0
TyJuan Garbutt	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	43	90.5
Brandon Barlow	Edmonton Elks	49	83.2
Bryce Carter	Ottawa Redblacks	49	76.9
Clarence Hicks	Calgary Stampeders	54	76.0
Folarin Orimolade	Calgary Stampeders	59	74.0
Robbie Smith	Edmonton Elks	25	71.8
Mathieu Betts	B.C. Lions	46	71.4
Noah Taylor	Edmonton Elks	29	70.3
James Vaughters	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	43	67.5

Linebacker

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Derrick Moncrief	Calgary Stampeders	70	85.5
Ben Hladik	B.C. Lions	56	82.0
Tyrice Beverette	Montreal Alouettes	63	79.3
Darnell Sankey	Montreal Alouettes	63	72.7
Tony Jones	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	45	71.8
Adarius Pickett	Ottawa Redblacks	51	71.8
Kyle Wilson	Calgary Stampeders	45	67.9
Redha Kramdi	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	47	67.8
Bennett Williams	Ottawa Redblacks	33	67.1
Cameron Judge	Toronto Argonauts	51	65.7

Cornerback

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Kabion Ento	Montreal Alouettes	63	75.5
Devodric Bynum	Edmonton Elks	62	74.0
Jonathan Moxey	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	56	68.8
C.J. Coldon Jr.	Ottawa Redblacks	51	66.9
Adrian Greene	Calgary Stampeders	76	65.8
Robert Carter Jr.	B.C. Lions	54	63.4
Tyler Richardson	Calgary Stampeders	76	63.3
Terrell Bonds	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	45	62.1
Tyrell Ford	Edmonton Elks	62	61.2
Jamal Peters	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	51	60.3

Halfback

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Evan Holm	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	47	80.0
Sheldon Arnold II	Calgary Stampeders	71	72.8
Darrius Bratton	Toronto Argonauts	52	69.5
Amari Henderson	Ottawa Redblacks	51	69.3
Ronald Kent Jr.	B.C. Lions	38	66.9
Najee Murray	Montreal Alouettes	63	65.0
Destin Talbert	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	56	63.8
Jaydon Grant	Calgary Stampeders	76	63.5
Deatrick Nichols	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	47	63.1
DaShaun Amos	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	56	62.0

Safety

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Damon Webb	Calgary Stampeders	74	86.4
Stavros Katsantonis	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	56	75.7
Christophe Beaulieu	B.C. Lions	54	70.1
Derek Slywka	Toronto Argonauts	47	69.6
Royce Metchie	Edmonton Elks	62	60.9
Jamal Parker Jr.	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	45	57.0
Charlie Ringland	Ottawa Redblacks	22	54.2
Marc-Antoine Dequoy	Montreal Alouettes	63	38.0