The Ottawa Redblacks have signed former third-round NFL draft pick Davion Taylor.
The six-foot-one, 228-pound native of McComb, Miss. was selected in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles. He played 21 games with the team and made seven starts, recording 51 total tackles, one tackle for loss, and two forced fumbles. Taylor was released after the start of training camp this past season and has since had stints with the Chicago Bears and Arizona Cardinals.
The 25-year-old finished his collegiate career at the University of Colorado, recording 129 total tackles, 18 tackles for loss, six pass knockdowns, three fumble recoveries, and two sacks over 24 games. He also ran track with the Buffaloes, earning All-Pac-12 honours in the 100-meter dash.
Ottawa has also signed seven other American players, including receivers Garett Maag and Dillon Stoner, defensive linemen Carson Taylor and Curtis Weaver, and defensive backs Jaquan Amos and Elijah Blades.
Maag played 49 collegiate games over five seasons at the University of North Dakota, catching 162 passes for 2,152 yards and 18 touchdowns. The six-foot-four, 210-pound native of Inver Grove Heights, Minn. signed with the Minnesota Vikings after going unselected in the 2023 NFL Draft but was waived near the end of training camp.
Stoner signed with the Las Vegas Raiders after going unselected in the 2021 NFL Draft and spent two seasons with the team, dressing for six games. The six-foot, 194-pound native of Tulsa, Okla. made 191 catches for 2,378 yards and 17 touchdowns over his collegiate career at Oklahoma State University. He ran a 4.57-second forty-yard dash at his pro day in 2021 along with a 37-inch vertical jump and 6.95-second three-cone drill.
Taylor signed with the Chicago Bears after going unselected in the 2022 NFL Draft but was waived before the end of training camp. The six-foot-four, 251-pound native of Glendale, Ariz. made 163 total tackles, 36 tackles for loss, 19 sacks, seven pass knockdowns, six forced fumbles, and one interception over 47 collegiate games at Northern Arizona University where he was named All-Big Sky honourable mention.
Weaver was a fifth-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins but was waived by the team after suffering an injury in training camp. He later played for the Cleveland Browns, Minnesota Vikings, and Birmingham Stallions, recording one tackle in one regular season game for the Browns. The six-foot-two, 265-pound defender was named the Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Year at Boise State in 2019.
Amos made 95 total tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, one interception, and 0.5 sacks during his senior season at Ball State. The six-foot, 194-pound native of Philadelphia, Pa. signed with the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent this past season but was waived with an injury settlement during training camp.
Blades finished his collegiate career at the University at Buffalo where he made 27 total tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss in 2022. The six-foot-two, 185-pound native of Pasadena, Calif. had previous collegiate stints at the University of Florida and Texas A&M.
