Top 10 Canadian NFL Players of All Time

• Teams: Chicago
• Years in the NFL: 9
• Achievements: 3x NFL champion, 4x All-Pro, NFL 75^th Anniversary All-Time Team

It’s hard to start this list with anyone else but Bronko Nagursk. The Bears icon was born in Rainy River, Ontario, and moved to Minnesota when he was five. He went to college at Minnesota, where he was All-American in 1929.

He was so good that the title for the best defensive player in college football has been called the Bronko Nagurski Trophy since 1993.

After college, Nagurski then went on to play fullback and defensive tackle for the Chicago Bears from 1930 to 1937.

Nagurski was one of the dominant NFL players of his era. He finished his career with 2,778 yards and 25 touchdowns on 633 yards, and led the league in rushing touchdowns in 1932 with four. He was an All-Pro first-teamer four times, and won three NFL titles with the Bears.

As far as the early years of the NFL goes, Nagurski is one of the top players of his time. That’s well deserving of a spot on the list of the best Canadian NFL players!

• Teams: Washington, Cleveland, St. Louis, Philadelphia, Indianapolis
• Years in the NFL: 11
• Achievements: 2x Super Bowls, 1x Super Bowl MVP, 1x All-Pro Bowl, 2x Pro Bowls

As far as pure stats and achievements go, it’s tough not to put Rypien at the top of the list for best Canadian players in the NFL! The Calgary, Alberta native moved to Washington when he was three and went to school at Washington State.

The quarterback was drafted in the sixth round by Washington in 1986, and sat for two years because of injuries, but he did get a ring for Washington’s 1998 Super Bowl win.

Rypien broke out with a Pro Bowl season, but saved his best for 1991. The qb passed for 3,564 yards, 28 touchdowns and 11 picks while leading Washington to the Super Bowl. They won the Lombardi Trophy, and Rypien earned the Super Bowl MVP for his performance. He was the first non-United States player to win that honor.

Rypien would go on to play in Cleveland, St. Louis, Philadelphia, and Indianapolis. He finished with 18,473 yards, 115 touchdowns, and 88 interceptions. But his 1991 season alone would be enough to get Rypien a spot as one of the top Canadians to play in the NFL.

• Teams Played For: Minnesota, Seattle, Detroit
• Years in the NFL: 11
• Achievements: 1,000-yard season in 2004

Burleson was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta, where his father, Al, played defensive back for the Stampeders of the Canadian Football League. He went on to play his college football at Nevada, where Burleson was an All-American.

Burleson had a productive 11-year NFL career after getting drafted in the third round of the 2003 NFL Draft by Minnesota. Due to an injury to star receiver Randy Moss, Burleson had his best season in 2004, posting 1,006 yards and nine touchdowns on 68 catches. He also played for Seattle and Detroit, and finished his career with 457 receptions, 5,630 yards, and 39 touchdowns.

Burleson has also gone on to have a fantastic post-NFL career in broadcasting. In addition to various NFL jobs, Burleson is now a co-anchor on CBS Mornings, and is the host of the reboot of Hollywood Squares. But Burleson’s numbers on the field make him one of the best Canadian NFL football players!

• Teams: Indianapolis Colts, Dallas Cowboys
• Years in the NFL: 9
• Achievements: 2x All-Pro Teams, 1x Pro Bowl, NFL scoring leader in 1999

Vanderjagt hails from Oakville, Ontario, and went to Michigan State, Allan Hancock College, and West Virginia. He started his career in the CFL, winning two Grey Cups in 1996 and 1997. The kicker moved to the NFL to play for Indianapolis, where Vanderjagt had his most success.

He made the second-team All-Pro team in 1999 and  was first-team All-Pro in 2003, making every field-goal and point-after attempt in the regular season in the playoffs.

However, Vanderjagt might be most known for what happened in 2002. He made some remarks about Colts’ teammate Peyton Manning and head coach Tony Dungy. Manning didn’t take it lightly, calling Vanderjagt, “our idiot kicker” and accused him of being drunk at the time of the interview.

While many people remember Vanderjagt for that dust-up with Manning, he should be commended for being one of the best kickers of his era and one of the best Canadian NFL players. He hit 86.5% of his field-goal attempts, which is eighth all-time, missing just two of his 377 PATs!

• Teams: Philadelphia, Minnesota, St. Louis, New Orleans, Arizona, Pittsburgh, Denver
• Years in the NFL: 14
• Achievements: 1x Super Bowl, 2x All-Pro teams, 2x Pro Bowl teams

Berger was born in Kamloops, British Columbia, and moved on to Tyler Junior College in Tyler, Texas before transferring to Colorado. He was drafted in the sixth round by Philadelphia in the 1994 NFL Draft.

Berger had his best success in Minnesota, where he led the league in punting average in 1999. He was also excellent in New Orleans, where he had 28 punts inside the 20-yard-line in 2003, 2004, and 2005. He would also win a Super Bowl with Pittsburgh in 2008.

While punters don’t get much love, they’re essential to helping their team in the field-position battle. Berger was one of the best, earning himself a long and successful NFL career.

• Teams: Detroit, Kansas City, Tampa Bay, Dallas, Philadelphia, Washington, Minnesota
• Years in the NFL: 20
• Achievements: 1x Super Bowl, 4x All-Pro teams, 2x Pro Bowl Teams

Murray was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, but grew up in Victoria, British Columbia. He went to university at Tulane, and was drafted in the seventh round of the 1980 NFL Draft.

The kicker spent the first 12 seasons of his career in Detroit, where he made four All-Pro teams, including one first team in 1980, and two Pro Bowls. He also led the league in scoring in 1981. Murray would win the Super Bowl in 1993 as a member of the Dallas Cowboys.

Murray had the record for most games played by a Canadian in the NFL until 2020, when it was broken by the next athlete on this list. But his longevity and achievements net Murray a place among the best Canadian NFL players.

• Teams Played For: Dallas
• Years in the NFL: 16
• Achievements: One Pro Bowl

Louis-Philippe “L.P.” Ladouceur was born and raised in Montreal, and went to Notre Dame College there before moving on to John Abbott College and the University of California.

Ladouceur was a long snapper, meaning he snaps the ball on punts and field goals. But he played 16 seasons with Dallas, making the Pro Bowl in 2014. His 253 games are the most by a Canadian in the NFL, beating Murray’s record by three games.

Long snapper is definitely not a position that gets a lot of attention. But Ladouceur carved out a long career for himself and became one of the very best at his position.

• Teams: St. Louis, Washington
• Years in the NFL: 7
• Achievements: 8 interceptions in 2007

Atogwe is a native of Windsor, Ontario, and went to college at Stanford before he was selected in the third round of the 2005 NFL Draft by St. Louis.

The safety got off to a decent start in his career, but broke out in 2007. Atogwe picked off eight passes, and ran one back for a touchdown. He had at least one interception in each of his seven NFL seasons, and one forced fumble or more in five of eight seasons. Atogwe would finish his career with 25 total interceptions, 16 forced fumbles, eight fumble recoveries and 5.5 sacks.

Injuries brought his career to a halt in 2012. But at his peak, Atogwe was one of the best safeties in the NFL.

• Teams: Chicago, Detroit
• Years in the NFL: 10
• Achievements: 8.0 Sacks in 2010

Idonije was born in Nigeria, but moved to Brandon, Manitoba when he was four years old. He never played football until he was a senior in high school, showing enough to play for the University of Manitoba.

He gave out tapes of his play to teams at the NFL Combine and was signed as an undrafted free agent by Cleveland in 2003.

Idonije then signed for Chicago, making the practice squad and eventually, the roster. He started out on special teams, and then started playing regularly on defense. The defensive end had his best years in 2010 and 2011 with Chicago, making 8.0 sacks in 2010. He added another 5.0 sacks in 2011, when Idonije also had 12 tackles for losses.

Idonije moved on to Detroit, where he played his last game. Idonije  had a solid career in the NFL and played ten years in the league, which is a remarkable for someone who only started playing football in high school!

• Teams: Pittsburgh, Dallas, San Francisco, Washington, Cleveland, St. Louis
• Years in the NFL: 12
• Achievements: Made 93.8% of his field goals in 2013

Suisham is from Wallaceburg, Ontario, and went to university at Bowling Green. The kicker was drafted by the CFL, but signed as an undrafted free agent in Pittsburgh. Dallas picked him up for their practice squad in 2005, and Suisham ended up replaced Vanderjagt, who was hurt and struggling for form.

Suisham played four seasons in Washington, where he was up and down, but made 85.7% of his field-goal attempts in 2009. He went back to Dallas, but left soon after and spent the last five seasons of his career in back in Pittsburgh.

Suisham hit at least 90.3% of his field goals in each of his last three seasons, including a career high of 93.8% in 2013. Unfortunately, the kicker tore his ACL in 2015, and retired in 2016.

But a 12-year career and some high peaks in terms of production was enough to find Suisham on our list of top Canadian NFL players!