RedBlacks Announce 2024 Captains
June 10, 2024 - Canadian Football League (CFL)
Ottawa RedBlacks News Release
OTTAWA - The Ottawa REDBLACKS have named six players as team captains, ahead of their 2024 season opener on Thursday night at TD Place.
Following a vote by the team's players; quarterback Dru Brown and receiver Dominique Rhymes will serve as offensive captains, alongside defensive captains in linebacker Jovan Santos-Knox and defensive back Adarius Pickett, with kicker Lewis Ward and punter Richie Leone representing the special teams units.
"Dru, Dom, Jovan, Adarius, Lewis, and Richie embody both the on-field and off-field qualities that we look for from members of our football club," said REDBLACKS Head Coach Bob Dyce. "We are excited for them to lead us into the 2024 season as our captains."
Brown enters his first season with the REDBLACKS, after being acquired via trade from the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on January 18. The Palo Alto, California native served mainly in a backup role, but started a pair of games for the Bombers in 2023, completing 62 of 89 passes for 983 yards and nine touchdowns, scoring another pair of majors on the ground.
Rhymes returns to the nation's capital for the first time since 2019, following a three-season stint with the BC Lions. Though limited to 10 games by injury a season ago, the Murray State product put up a combined 2,347 receiving yards on 148 catches, and 18 touchdowns over his three seasons out west. Rhymes earned CFL All-Star honours in 2022, on the back of a 1,401-yard, 11-touchdown season.
Santos-Knox was sidelined for six games of his debut season with the REDBLACKS, but his impact was felt in force when on the field. The Waterbury, Connecticut native suited up in 12 games during the 2023 campaign; recording 64 tackles, and three sacks. Santos-Knox finished the year as the CFL's top-ranked run-defending linebacker, per PFF, with a grade of 88.4, and leading the league with six tackles for loss.
Pickett was a finalist for the CFL's Most Outstanding Defensive Player award in 2023, recording 124 total tackles (second in CFL) as a member of the Toronto Argonauts. The former UCLA Bruin also tallied a career-high six sacks, to go with five tackles for loss (second in CFL), a forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries. Pickett signed with the REDBLACKS as a free agent on February 6, after being named a CFL All-Star for the first time.
Ward's 2023 season was cut short at 13 games due to injury, but the 31-year-old veteran still converted on 34 field goal attempts, including a 54-yarder that was his longest made kick since 2019. The University of Ottawa product enters his sixth season with the REDBLACKS as the CFL's current all-time leader in field goal accuracy (88.09%), and holding a professional football record set in 2019 with 69 consecutive made field goals. He also holds the record for longest made field goal in Ottawa professional football history, at 56 yards.
Leone was named a CFL All-Star for the fifth time in his decorated career, a season ago, with his 47.6 average punt yards tied for the second highest mark in the league. The Roswell, Georgia native heads into his sixth season with the REDBLACKS, and eighth of his CFL career, as the owner of the league's second-highest career punting average at 47.7 yards (minimum 200 attempts). Leone has also spent time in the NFL; with the Baltimore Ravens, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Arizona Cardinals, respectively.
The REDBLACKS open their 2024 season on Thursday night, hosting the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in a 7:30pm kickoff.
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Canadian Football League Stories from June 10, 2024
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