Top-graded CFL players of Week 18: 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 18. We'll be highlighting this group every week of the season, so 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: Edge defender Julian Howsare, Hamilton Tiger-Cats

It’s been a stellar season for Julian Howsare in his return to Hamilton. After finishing last year with just a 63.9 overall grade, he currently ranks second in the CFL with an 88.9 mark. His best outing came last week, when he earned a season-high 91.7 overall grade.

It’s also important to note that while the CFL credits only one player with a sack or tackle, we at PFF credit all defenders involved in making the play. Football is a team sport, and many tackles and sacks require more than one contributor. So, while the official CFL stats credited Howsare with four sacks, PFF’s grading reflects his involvement in five.

Five sacks in a single game is an absurd number — the most by any player in a week this season. But it wasn’t just the sack total that stood out. Howsare also recorded two quarterback hits and five hurries. Additionally, there were four other plays where he beat his blocker without registering any pressure. While those plays may seem minor, any pass-rush win is meaningful. A defender who consistently beats blocks will inevitably generate more pressure than one who doesn’t.

Howsare posted a 28.0% pass-rush win rate and a pass-rushing productivity score of 17.0, both tops in the league last week. With just two games remaining, he’s emerging as a dark-horse candidate for Most Outstanding Defensive Player. He currently leads the league in sacks (14), total pressures (68) and pass-rushing grade (91.6).

Quarterback

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Bo Levi Mitchell	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	44	84.7
Trevor Harris	Saskatchewan Roughriders	56	81.8
Nathan Rourke	B.C. Lions	58	73.8
Dustin Crum	Ottawa Redblacks	26	66.4
Vernon Adams Jr.	Calgary Stampeders	59	62.4
Jarret Doege	Toronto Argonauts	70	41.8
Dru Brown	Ottawa Redblacks	28	30.3

Running Back

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
James Butler	B.C. Lions	58	72.5
Greg Bell	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	44	66.7
Dedrick Mills	Calgary Stampeders	59	62.3
A.J. Ouellette	Saskatchewan Roughriders	55	61.3
Spencer Brown	Toronto Argonauts	72	60.4
William Stanback	Ottawa Redblacks	50	60.0

Wide Receiver

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Keon Hatcher	B.C. Lions	58	79.1
Dohnte Meyers	Saskatchewan Roughriders	53	79.0
Jevon Cottoy	B.C. Lions	40	77.7
Brendan O'Leary-Orange	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	23	73.8
KeeSean Johnson	Saskatchewan Roughriders	56	70.3
Makai Polk	Toronto Argonauts	65	69.2
Kenny Lawler	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	42	68.5
Dejon Brissett	Toronto Argonauts	71	67.7
Kiondre Smith	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	45	67.7
Justin Hardy	Ottawa Redblacks	54	67.5

Offensive Tackle

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Jermarcus Hardrick	Saskatchewan Roughriders	61	72.9
Payton Collins	Saskatchewan Roughriders	61	70.0
Kory Woodruff	B.C. Lions	58	67.4
Quinton Barrow	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	45	66.7
Dino Boyd	Ottawa Redblacks	54	66.2
Joshua Coker	Calgary Stampeders	59	63.9
Ryan Hunter	Toronto Argonauts	72	63.4
Chris Schleuger	B.C. Lions	58	55.8
Jordan Murray	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	45	52.8
D'Antne Demery	Calgary Stampeders	49	37.7

Offensive Guard

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Liam Dobson	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	45	75.3
Brandon Revenberg	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	45	72.0
Philippe Gagnon	Saskatchewan Roughriders	61	64.4
Zack Williams	Calgary Stampeders	59	63.6
Jacob Brammer	Saskatchewan Roughriders	61	62.7
Christy Nkanu	Calgary Stampeders	59	62.4
Sage Doxtater	Toronto Argonauts	67	59.1
Jacob Ruby	Ottawa Redblacks	54	56.7
George Una	B.C. Lions	58	54.1
Brandon Yates	B.C. Lions	58	52.6

Centre

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Peter Nicastro	Toronto Argonauts	72	65.9
Coulter Woodmansey	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	45	63.9
Logan Ferland	Saskatchewan Roughriders	61	63.3
Christopher Fortin	Calgary Stampeders	59	54.3
Michael Couture	B.C. Lions	55	49.3
Peter Godber	Ottawa Redblacks	54	49.0

Interior Defender

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Mike Rose	Saskatchewan Roughriders	32	90.8
Micah Johnson	Saskatchewan Roughriders	25	84.3
Caleb Sanders	Saskatchewan Roughriders	27	84.2
Jaylon Hutchings	Calgary Stampeders	40	83.6
Justin Sambu	Calgary Stampeders	26	79.6
Dewayne Hendrix	B.C. Lions	25	76.6
Charles Wiley	Calgary Stampeders	37	71.8
Miles Brown	Calgary Stampeders	47	69.6
Ali Saad	Saskatchewan Roughriders	22	69.0
Miles Fox	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	59	68.8

Edge Defender

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Julian Howsare	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	65	91.7
Malik Carney	Saskatchewan Roughriders	42	81.0
Philip Ossai	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	54	78.7
Jose Ramirez	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	39	78.0
Andrew Chatfield Jr.	Toronto Argonauts	42	76.9
Mathieu Betts	B.C. Lions	53	76.2
Habakkuk Baldonado	Saskatchewan Roughriders	46	75.0
Derek Parish	Toronto Argonauts	39	68.9
Clarence Hicks	Calgary Stampeders	47	66.5
Bryce Carter	Ottawa Redblacks	38	66.3

Linebacker

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Antoine Brooks Jr.	Saskatchewan Roughriders	54	79.8
Micah Awe	B.C. Lions	34	73.3
Micah Teitz	Calgary Stampeders	26	71.6
Adarius Pickett	Ottawa Redblacks	61	70.5
Branden Dozier	Toronto Argonauts	38	69.3
Braxton Hill	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	28	68.1
A.J. Allen	Saskatchewan Roughriders	54	67.5
Reggie Stubblefield	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	72	66.4
Wynton McManis	Toronto Argonauts	36	64.0
Jovan Santos-Knox	Ottawa Redblacks	61	62.8

Cornerback

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Garry Peters	B.C. Lions	59	78.9
Jonathan Moxey	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	72	72.7
Marcus Sayles	Saskatchewan Roughriders	54	67.7
Jamal Peters	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	60	67.5
Robert Carter Jr.	B.C. Lions	59	66.7
Benny Sapp III	Saskatchewan Roughriders	54	66.5
King Ambers	Ottawa Redblacks	61	65.9
Anthony Johnson	Calgary Stampeders	57	64.8
Benjie Franklin	Toronto Argonauts	45	64.3
Willie Drew Jr.	Toronto Argonauts	41	57.4

Halfback

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Destin Talbert	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	72	67.6
DaMarcus Fields	Saskatchewan Roughriders	54	66.9
DaShaun Amos	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	72	64.9
Deontai Williams	B.C. Lions	59	64.3
T.J. Lee	B.C. Lions	59	63.6
Ronald Kent Jr.	B.C. Lions	56	62.2
Tarvarus McFadden	Toronto Argonauts	44	58.0
Adrian Frye	Ottawa Redblacks	43	56.1
Deandre Lamont	Ottawa Redblacks	60	50.3
Jaydon Grant	Calgary Stampeders	57	48.9

Safety

Name	Team	Snaps	Overall Grade
Jackson Findlay	B.C. Lions	59	90.8
Stavros Katsantonis	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	72	90.4
Damon Webb	Calgary Stampeders	55	70.2
C.J. Reavis	Saskatchewan Roughriders	54	65.6
Derek Slywka	Toronto Argonauts	43	64.3
Bennett Williams	Ottawa Redblacks	51	55.6