Kyler Elsworth started the 2015 CFL season with the goal of making the Montreal Alouettes 46-man roster, after spending the latter half of the 2014 season on the practice roster. Even after starting the season back on the practice roster, the coaching staff has gotten more than they bargained for from the linebacker. He has greatly exceeded expectations in his first full season in the league.
Elsworth made an appearance in the starting lineup thanks to the Bear Woods’ injury in week two in Calgary, which put him on the sidelines for the remainder of the season. Elsworth wasn’t even on the 46-man active roster during that game against the Stampeders , but was called upon to start at the middle linebacker position the following week in Winnipeg. He had an instant impact on the defence with 11 tackles in a losing effort.
Elsworth kept it quiet the next three games, all of which he started, collecting six, three and two tackles, with no turnovers and a sack. This past week against Edmonton was the almost-24-year-old’s breakout game in Canada. In a defence-dominated game, Elsworth was part of two turnovers by the Alouettes.
On the second play from scrimmage for the Eskimos, Elsworth tipped a Matt Nichols pass, and the ball landed right in the hands of the veteran Chip Cox. The very next Edmonton possession ended with a 41-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown by Elsworth. He scooped up the loose ball after Billy Parker stripped Wallace Miles moments after he made a reception. This was Elsworth’s first professional touchdown, and Montreal’s only major of the evening as the offence failed to muster any attack.
The only player on the Alouettes roster who had as many points as Elsworth was the rookie kicker, Boris Bede, who missed the extra point on the TD and scored two field goals.
Elsworth finished with six tackles, as many as anyone on the Edmonton defence, and he finished fourth on the Alouettes side, just two behind the leader Winston Venable. Playing in five out seven games so far this year, Elsworth has 28 tackles. That’s good enough for fifth-most in Montreal, just six behind the second-placed Chip Cox.
The walk-on at Michigan State has continued to defy expectations, and make his mark in Montreal. Elsworth was a key part on the Spartans defence when they beat Stanford to win the 100th Rose Bowl in 2014. He was named the Most Valuable Defensive Player in that contest after he made a fourth-down stop in the final two minutes to seal the victory. He was a fill-in for an injured starter in that game, too.
Elsworth is already taking a similar career path in the CFL. Coming off the practice roster to start in the place of an infirmary patient, Elsworth is certainly playing like a starter. He is also looking like a former Alouette linebacker, currently wearing the green of the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
Shea Emry, like Elsworth, had the number 41 on his jersey when he played for Montreal between 2008 to 2013. Elsworth (6’1″, 225 lbs) could be mistaken for Emry (6’0″, 228 lbs) if his last name wasn’t stitched onto the back of his jersey. With similar body types, Elsworth can easily grow into the hard-hitting player Emry is. Wouldn’t the Alouettes just love to have a second coming of Emry play with them, through the prime of his career?
The Alouettes linebacking corps has numerous veterans: Kyries Hebert, Cox, and the two 28-year-olds of Venable and Woods. In this group, Elsworth could become an important piece in the defence for years to come. Those players certainly aren’t getting any younger, nor do the Alouettes have much depth at linebacker.
This is just the start of Kyler Elsworth’s career, and it has been a good one so far. He has finally had his break-through game, and will be looking to be a key contributor for the Alouettes in the weeks to come. This young linebacker could one day become a star in the Canadian Football League.
