Mathieu Betts, a Canadian defensive end, was signed by the Detroit Lions on Tuesday. This past season, Betts was without a doubt the most effective pass rusher in the CFL. With his lightning-fast first step and strong speed, he can get into the opponent’s backfield and put pressure on quarterbacks early in plays. In December, Betts participated in workouts for the Buffalo Bills, Cleveland Browns, and Detroit.
The B.C. Lions and Hamilton Tiger-Cats have offered Betts around $300,000, but he is turning them down. If he had accepted, he would have been the highest-paid defensive player in the CFL and would have had a chance to make an NFL squad.
For the BC Lions of the CFL last season, Betts started all 18 games during the regular season. With eighteen, he broke the record for most sacks by a Canadian in a single season. 44 tackles, four forced fumbles, and a pass defense were also recorded by him.
In addition to being selected for the CFL All-Star squad, Betts was awarded the CFL Defensive Player of the Year award in the previous campaign. He was selected by Pro Football Focus for the 2023 CFL Awards’ Most Outstanding Pass-Rusher category.
Betts had a total of 95 pressures during the CFL season, which was 23 more than second place, according to Pro Football Focus. At 19.4% during the regular season, he also had the greatest pass-rush victory percentage.
He has one tackle in 2023’s two playoff games. Still, his presence had a significant impact. He completed 10 quarterback rushes across the two playoff games, according to my count. Of those, an incredible 8 came during the team’s victory over the Calgary Stampeders in the Western Semi-Final.
