Argos release DL Eli Howard (not DL Eli Harold)

Photo courtesy: Toronto Argonauts

The Toronto Argonauts have released American defensive lineman Eli Howard, who is not to be confused with American defensive lineman Eli Harold.

Howard appeared in one game with the Argos earlier this season, making one tackle. The six-foot-four, 280-pound defender played collegiately at Texas Tech and had a brief stint with the Atlanta Falcons after going unselected in the 2021 NFL Draft.

3DownNation mistakenly reported earlier on Friday that the Argos had released Eli Harold due to their nationalities, positions, and names being so similar.

Harold was a third-round pick of the San Francisco 49ers in the 2015 NFL Draft. He spent three seasons with the team, making 85 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, five sacks, two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery.

The six-foot-three, 245-pound edge rusher has dressed for six games with the Argos this season, recording six tackles, two sacks, and one forced fumble.

The Argos also have a linebacker named Eli Mencer. He’s still on the roster, too.

Believe it or not, Howard and Harold are not the most similarly-named players one team has had in the same position group this season.

The B.C. Lions had two linebackers in training camp named Jordan Williams. One was six-foot and 230 pounds out of Eastern Carolina, while the other was six-foot and 223 pounds out of Baylor.

The Lions differentiated between the linebackers by referring to one as Jordan X. Williams (Eartern Carolina) and the other as Jordan M. Williams (Baylor). In the end, Jordan X. Williams made the team as a ratio-breaker at middle linebacker, while Jordan M. Williams was released at the end of training camp.

The club now simply refers to Jordan X. Williams as Jordan Williams.