Drew Willy (born November 13, 1986) is a former American professional
Canadian football
Canadian football () is a sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's scoring area ( ...
quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
. He was signed by the
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...
as an
undrafted free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...
in 2009. He played
college football at
Buffalo. Willy has also been a member of the
Indianapolis Colts,
Las Vegas Locomotives
The Las Vegas Locomotives (called the Locos for short) were a professional American football team based in Las Vegas, Nevada that played in the United Football League. The team played their home games at Sam Boyd Stadium, home field for the Unive ...
,
New York Jets,
San Diego Chargers, and most notably the
Saskatchewan Roughriders
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division.
The Roughriders were founded in ...
,
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West division. They play their home games at IG Fie ...
,
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...
, and
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes (French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the East Division of the Canad ...
of the
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...
(CFL).
Early years
Willy attended
Randolph High School in Randolph, New Jersey, prior to choosing the
University at Buffalo
The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public research university with campuses in Buffalo and Amherst, New York. The university was founded in 18 ...
. At Randolph High, Willy set school records for career passing yards (5,387) and touchdowns (51).
College career
![Drew Willy](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Drew_Willy.jpg)
At the University at Buffalo, Willy started each of his four seasons, including eight games as a true freshman. In
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
, he took Buffalo to their first
MAC Championship Game
The MAC Football Championship Game is a football game between the winners of the East and West divisions of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) to determine the conference champion.
History
The game has been played since 1997, when the conferenc ...
, where they upset heavily favored and previously undefeated
Ball State Cardinals
The Ball State Cardinals are the athletic teams that represent Ball State University, located in Muncie, Indiana. The Cardinals are part of the NCAA Division I Mid-American Conference. Charlie Cardinal is the team mascot.
The Ball State Uni ...
led by
Nate Davis. Prior to the
2009 NFL Draft
The 2009 NFL Draft was the seventy-fourth annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 25 and 26, 2009. ...
, he was invited to the 2009 NFL Combine and was considered a potential late-round draft choice.
Willy was the most prolific passer in Buffalo football history. As a four-year starter, he set school records for completions (849), attempts (1,322), passing yards (8,748), touchdowns (52), total offense (8,639), and completion percentage (64.2). During the final 20 games of his college career, Willy threw 36 touchdown passes and only six interceptions.
Professional career
Baltimore Ravens
Willy signed with the
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...
after going undrafted in the
2009 NFL Draft
The 2009 NFL Draft was the seventy-fourth annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 25 and 26, 2009. ...
on April 27, 2009. He was waived on June 18, 2009. He was re-signed on August 15 after a shoulder injury to quarterback
John Beck, with the team placing
defensive tackle Lamar Divens on
injured reserve to make room for Willy on the roster only to be waived again on August 31.
Indianapolis Colts
Willy was signed to the
Indianapolis Colts practice squad on December 9, 2009. He was promoted to the active roster on December 26, 2009. He was waived on December 29 and re-signed to the practice squad. He was signed to a futures contract on February 11, 2010. He was released by the Colts in July 2010.
Las Vegas Locomotives
Willy signed with the
Las Vegas Locomotives
The Las Vegas Locomotives (called the Locos for short) were a professional American football team based in Las Vegas, Nevada that played in the United Football League. The team played their home games at Sam Boyd Stadium, home field for the Unive ...
of the
United Football League in August 2010.
He made his UFL debut on October 23 in the place of injured Locos starting QB,
Tim Rattay. He completed 18 of 29 passes that day for 191 yards and a touchdown. The Locos won the game against the
Hartford Colonials
The Hartford Colonials, originally the New York Sentinels, were a professional American football team that played in the United Football League in its 2009 and 2010 seasons. A charter member of the UFL, the Sentinels began play in 2009 nominally ...
, 24–21.
New York Jets
Willy was signed to a reserve/future contract with the
New York Jets on January 7, 2011.
San Diego Chargers
The
San Diego Chargers signed Willy to their practice squad on September 5, 2011.
Saskatchewan Roughriders
On February 28, 2012, it was announced that Willy had signed with the
Saskatchewan Roughriders
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division.
The Roughriders were founded in ...
. Willy made his first CFL start on September 16, 2012, in Montreal against the
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes (French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the East Division of the Canad ...
. He completed 22-of-35 passes for 225 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions in a losing effort. Willy earned his first CFL win as a starter on July 27, 2013, against the
Hamilton Tiger-Cats where he completed 14 of 25 pass attempts for 269 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions in relief of the injured
Darian Durant
Darian Bernard Durant (born August 19, 1982) is a former professional Canadian football quarterback. He played college football at the University of North Carolina. By the end of his college career, he held school records for completion percentag ...
. In two seasons with the Roughriders, Willy was utilized in a backup role. He dressed in all 36 games over his two years with the team, and started four, passing for 1,182 yards with nine touchdowns and five interceptions. Willy was also a part of the
101st Grey Cup
The 101st Grey Cup was a Canadian football game played between the East Division champion Hamilton Tiger-Cats and the West Division champion Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League to decide the Grey Cup champions of the 2013 ...
champion team in 2013.
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
![Winnipeg Blue Bombers Preseason June 13 vs OTT (27130062663) (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/94/Winnipeg_Blue_Bombers_Preseason_June_13_vs_OTT_%2827130062663%29_%28cropped%29.jpg)
On February 6, 2014, Willy was traded to the Blue Bombers for non-import wide receiver
Jade Etienne. In his first year as a starter Willy lead the Bombers to a record of 7 wins and 11 losses. He played in 17 of the 18 regular season games. In the spring of 2015 Willy and the Blue bombers agreed to a contract extension through the 2017 season. In week 7 of the 2015 CFL season Willy left the game with a right knee injury: Two days later it was announced that Willy suffered a tibial plateau fracture and partial tear of the posterior cruciate ligament. He was expected to miss 6 to 8 weeks, possibly longer.
Toronto Argonauts
On September 11, 2016, Willy was traded to the
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...
in exchange for defensive back
T.J. Heath, a 1st Round Pick in 2017, and a 3rd Round Pick in 2018. Willy made his first appearance in Week 14, and his first start the following week. Following his start for the Argos, Willy was announced as the starting quarterback for the remaining 4 games of the season. However, after making three starts Willy was once again relegated to the backup role and incumbent Ricky Ray took over the starting role in Week 18. On January 2, 2017, Drew Willy and the Argos agreed to a contract restructuring which extended his contract through the
2018 season. Willy was reportedly scheduled to receive a $100,000 bonus later on January 15. Were Willy to start every game in 2017, he would have earned just over $305,000 and more than $415,000 in 2018. However, Willy was cut by the Argos on June 17, 2017.
Montreal Alouettes
On June 26, 2017, the Montreal Alouettes announced that they had signed Willy to a one-year contract. Willy appeared in 12 games for the Alouettes in 2017, completing 54 of 79 pass attempts for 547 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. Willy was re-signed by the Alouettes on the second day of free agency. At the start of training camp Willy and Matt Shiltz were the leading candidates to be the Als' starting quarterback to begin the 2018 season. Willy started the first three games of the season before suffering a concussion in the third quarter in the team's Week 3 victory over the
Roughriders. Willy would miss the following game against the
Redblacks, (played by
Jeff Mathews) but returned to play against the
Stampeders in Week 6: However, Willy left the game with a hand injury, and did not return. Following Montreal's 2018 season, which saw the team trade for
Johnny Manziel
Johnathan Paul Manziel ( ; born December 6, 1992) is an American football quarterback for the FCF Zappers of Fan Controlled Football (FCF). He played two seasons with the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL) and was also a me ...
, and sign backup quarterbacks Matthews,
Antonio Pipkin and
Vernon Adams
Vernon Anthony Adams Jr. (born January 3, 1993) is an American professional Canadian football quarterback for the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football for the Eastern Washington Eagles and Oregon Ducks. He h ...
to extensions, Willy was released in December.
In August 2019 the Blue Bombers reached out to Willy following an injury to starting quarterback Matt Nichols, however Willy and the Bombers were unable to come to an agreement and he remained a free-agent.
CFL statistics
References
External links
CFL profileToronto Argonauts bioBuffalo Bulls bio*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Willy, Drew
1986 births
Living people
People from Randolph, New Jersey
Players of American football from New Jersey
American football quarterbacks
Canadian football quarterbacks
American players of Canadian football
Buffalo Bulls football players
Baltimore Ravens players
Indianapolis Colts players
Las Vegas Locomotives players
New York Jets players
San Diego Chargers players
Saskatchewan Roughriders players
Winnipeg Blue Bombers players
Montreal Alouettes players
Randolph High School (New Jersey) alumni
Sportspeople from Morris County, New Jersey
Toronto Argonauts players