 Betts with theBC Lions in 2025 | |
| No. 90 – BC Lions | |
|---|---|
| Position | Defensive lineman |
| Roster status | Active |
| CFL status | National |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1995-03-22)March 22, 1995 (age 30) Montreal,Quebec, Canada |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Weight | 250 lb (113 kg) |
| Career information | |
| University | Laval |
| CFL draft | 2019: 1st round, 3rd overall pick |
| Career history | |
| 2019 | Chicago Bears* |
| 2019–2021 | Edmonton Eskimos / Elks |
| 2022–2023 | BC Lions |
| 2024 | Detroit Lions* |
| 2024–present | BC Lions |
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
| Awards and highlights | |
| |
| Stats at CFL.ca | |
Mathieu Betts (born March 22, 1995) is a Canadian professionalfootballdefensive lineman for theBC Lions of theCanadian Football League (CFL). Betts is the only player inU Sports football history to have won four major individual awards, after he won the 2015Peter Gorman Trophy as the most outstanding rookie and threeJ. P. Metras Trophies between 2016 and 2018, as the most outstanding down lineman.[1] He is also a two-timeVanier Cup champion, having won in2016 and2018.
Betts began hisU Sports football career with theLaval Rouge et Or in2015 where he recorded a nation-leading 12 sacks in eight regular season games played en route to being named theMost Outstanding Rookie.[2] In2016, he had nine sacks in eight regular season games, second-best in the country, and was named theMost Outstanding Down Lineman at season's end.[3] He also won his firstVanier Cup championship as part of Laval's52nd Vanier Cup win. He won his second consecutive J. P. Metras Trophy in2017 and won for the third time in2018, becoming the first player to ever win the award three times.[1] He finished his fourth year of eligibility in 2018 with another Vanier Cup championship in the54th Vanier Cup game.
In the 2019 CFL Scouting Bureau Rankings for December, Betts was named as the top available prospect in the2019 CFL draft.[4] He was one of twoU Sports players invited to play in the2019 East–West Shrine Game.[5] On May 2, he was selected third overall in the2019 CFL draft by theEdmonton Eskimos, though at the time he was under contract with theChicago Bears.[6]
After the2019 NFL draft on April 27, 2019, Betts signed with theChicago Bears of theNational Football League as an undrafted free agent on a three-year contract.[7] Betts was among the final roster cuts on August 31, 2019.[8]
Betts formally joined theEdmonton Eskimos on September 9, 2019, after being selected by the Eskimos in the first round of the2019 CFL draft.[9] In his first game, Betts made a major contribution in making a sack, forcing a fumble against theHamilton Tiger-Cats. The following week against theOttawa Redblacks, Betts had another sack. In total, he played in six games and recorded one defensive tackle, two sacks, and one forced fumble in his rookie season. He did not play in 2020 due to the cancellation of the2020 CFL season.
In2021, Betts played in 13 of the 14 regular season games where he had 12 defensive tackles, but did not record a sack. He became a free agent upon the expiry of his contract on February 8, 2022.[10]
On the first day of free agency, on February 8, 2022, Betts signed with theBC Lions.[11] Betts played in all 17 regular season games and contributed with 26 defensive tackles, seven sacks and two tackles on special teams. Following the season, in early January 2023, he had a workout with theJacksonville Jaguars.[12]
In2023, Betts had a dominant season where he started in all 18 regular season games and recorded 44 defensive tackles, two special teams tackles, 18 sacks, three forced fumbles, and one blocked kick.[13] Notably, on October 20, 2023, in BC's last game of the regular season, Betts broke the record for most sacks by a National player when he recorded his 18th sack and surpassedBrent Johnson (2005) andJamaal Westerman (2015) who each had 17 in a single season.[13][14] At the end of season, he was named theCFL's Most Outstanding Defensive Player and a CFL All-Star.[15] He became afree agent upon the expiry of his contract on February 13, 2024.[16]
On February 13, 2024, it was announced that Betts had signed with theDetroit Lions of theNational Football League (NFL).[17][18]
On August 27, 2024, Betts was waived by the Lions and cleared the next day, after going unclaimed.[19][20]
On August 29, 2024, it was announced that Betts had re-signed with theBC Lions, on a deal covering the remainder of the2024 season.[21][22] He signed a two-year contract extension with BC on December 19, 2024.[23]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)