Photo courtesy: B.C. Lions

Below are the top 20 CFL receiving yardage leaders of all time.

This list includes the third-most prolific receiver in the history of pro football, but does not include any active players. Ottawa Redblacks receiver Eugene Lewis is the league’s active yardage leader with 7,273, which ranks 53rd all-time in the CFL.

20) Tony Gabriel — 9,832

The only tight end on this list spent the first four seasons of his career with Hamilton before being traded to Ottawa in 1975 amid a contract dispute. The native of Burlington, Ont., spent seven seasons with the Rough Riders and enjoyed what was then arguably the greatest CFL career ever by a receiver, winning four Most Outstanding Canadian awards, one Most Outstanding Player award, and two Grey Cups. Gabriel remains Ottawa’s all-time leader in receptions and receiving yards, and his No. 77 was retired by the team.

19) Travis Moore — 9,930

The six-foot-one, 193-pound product of Ball State University spent a decade with Calgary and Saskatchewan and earned three-straight All-CFL selections from 1999 to 2001. The native of Santa Monica, Calif., won two Grey Cups as a player and has since won two more as an assistant coach during stints with the B.C. Lions and Ottawa Redblacks.

18) Jeremaine Copeland — 10,015

The University of Tennessee product played eleven seasons with Montreal, Calgary, and Toronto, winning two Grey Cups and earning three All-CFL selections. The six-foot-two, 202-pound target led the CFL with 1,757 yards in 2003 and is the only player on this list to win a Grey Cup and an NCAA National Championship. Copeland had a brief career as an assistant coach in the CFL, working one year in Hamilton and Saskatchewan, and was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 2025.

Photo courtesy: Winnipeg Blue Bombers

17) Weston Dressler — 10,026

The native of Bismarck, N.D., was named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Rookie in 2008 and never slowed down, enjoying a Hall of Fame career spent entirely on the prairies with Saskatchewan and Winnipeg. The four-time All-West Division selection won a Grey Cup with the Roughriders in 2013 and is easily the smallest player on this list, as he was officially listed at five-foot-seven and 168 pounds.

16) Earl Winfield — 10,119

The native of Petersburg, Va., played eleven seasons with the Tiger-Cats and was also a vaunted return specialist, scoring eleven punt return touchdowns and one kickoff return touchdown. Nicknamed ‘The Pearl,’ Winfield led the CFL in all-purpose yards in 1988 and remains Hamilton’s all-time leader in receiving yards, receiving touchdowns, and 100-yard receiving games.

15) S.J. Green — 10,222

The six-foot-three, 216-pound product of the University of South Florida was named All-East Division eight times over a 13-year run with Montreal and Toronto, winning three Grey Cups. Green suffered a horrific knee injury in 2016 when he tore his ACL, MCL, PCL, and meniscus, yet managed to ?
set new career-highs when he returned to the field the following year, making 104 catches for 1,462 yards.

14) Tommy Joe Coffey — 10,320

The seven-time All-CFL selection and two-time Grey Cup champion had an incredible 15-year career that resulted in him being inducted into the Wall of Honour in both Edmonton and Hamilton. The product of West Texas A&M University was the first receiver in CFL history to reach 10,000 career yards and was the league’s all-time leading receiver upon his retirement in 1973, a record that stood for just over a decade. Coffey passed away in 2020 at the age of 83.

13) Tom Scott — 10,837

The native of Oakland, Calif., won five straight Grey Cups during Edmonton’s dynasty of the late 1970s and early 1980s and earned five All-CFL selections. The five-foot-ten, 180-pound target surpassed Tommy-Joe Coffey’s career receiving record in 1984, his final CFL season, and held the record for three years before he was surpassed by longtime teammate and fellow Hall of Fame inductee Brian Kelly.

12) Brian Kelly — 11,169

The five-foot-nine, 170-pound target retired as the CFL’s all-time leading receiver despite playing only nine seasons in the league. The five-time Grey Cup champion and six-time All-CFL selection had three seasons with over 1,600 receiving yards and led all CFL receivers with 1,626 yards in 1987, which was the final year of his career. Kelly’s career record stood for seven seasons until it was surpassed by Ray Elgaard in 1994.

11) Arland Bruce III — 11,625

The native of Olathe, Kan., had a transient eleven-year career that included stops with the Blue Bombers, Argonauts, Tiger-Cats, Lions, and Alouettes. The three-time All-CFL selection and two-time Grey Cup champion still holds Hamilton’s franchise record for single-game catches with 16. Bruce is the highest-ranked player on this list who has yet to be inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.

10) Derrell Mitchell — 12,014

The native of Miami, Fla., was named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Rookie in 1997 and went on to have a brilliant career with Toronto and Edmonton, earning three All-CFL selections and winning two Grey Cups. ‘Mookie’ still holds the record for most catches in a season, hauling in 160 passes for 2,000 yards in 1998. He remains the Argonauts’ franchise leader in receiving yards and touchdowns.

Photo: Saskatchewan Roughriders

9) Don Narcisse — 12,366

The native of Port Arthur, Tex., was named All-CFL four times and won one Grey Cup over 13 years with the Roughriders. Narcisse notched eight 1,000-yard seasons, seven of which occurred consecutively from 1989 to 1995, and remains Saskatchewan’s franchise leader in career receptions with 919 and single-season receptions with 123.

8) Ray Elgaard — 13,198

The native of Edmonton, Alta., won three Most Outstanding Canadian awards and one Grey Cup over his 14-year career with Saskatchewan and retired as the league’s all-time leading receiver in 1996, a record that stood for three years before it was surpassed by Allen Pitts. The six-foot-three, 220-pound slotback was a four-time All-CFL selection and remains first all-time in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns in Roughriders franchise history. Elgaard is the highest Canadian-born player on this list.

7) Ben Cahoon — 13,301

The ten-time All-East Division selection was twice named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Canadian and won three Grey Cups over 13 seasons with the Alouettes. The Orem, Utah, native led the CFL in receptions four times, including three consecutive years from 2006 to 2008, and made at least one catch in 144 straight games. He remains the all-time leader in Grey Cup receptions and receiving yards and Montreal’s franchise leader in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns.

6) Terry Vaughn — 13,746

The five-foot-eight, 185-pound target played 12 seasons in the CFL with Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, and Hamilton, winning two Grey Cups and earning seven All-West Division selections. The University of Arizona product became the first player in league history to log 1,000 career catches and holds the record for most 1,000-yard seasons in CFL history with eleven.

5) Nik Lewis — 13,778

The Southern Arkansas University product entered the CFL as a slim-and-trim Most Outstanding Rookie and finished his career 15 seasons later as a big-bodied slotback affectionately known as ‘Thick Nik.’ Lewis was a three-time All-CFL selection, two-time Grey Cup champion, and remains the league’s all-time leader in receptions with 1,050 after breaking Geroy Simon’s record in 2017.

4) Darren Flutie — 14,359

The three-time All-CFL selection and two-time Grey Cup champion lived in his brother’s shadow for years, but finished his CFL career as one of the league’s all-time greats, playing twelve seasons with B.C., Edmonton, and Hamilton. Flutie still holds the records for most single-game receptions (14) and single-season receptions (111) in Lions history and has the longest catch streak in Tiger-Cats history, making a grab in 82 consecutive games.

3) Allen Pitts — 14,891

The native of Tucson, Ariz., was a six-time All-CFL selection over his eleven-year career with the Stampeders and won two Grey Cups. The six-foot-four, 200-pound target retired as the CFL’s all-time leader in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, though both marks were later broken by Milt Stegall. Pitts remains the league’s all-time leader in receiving yards per game (84.6) and 100-yard games (64) as well as Calgary’s franchise leader in receptions, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns, 100-yard games, and yards from scrimmage.

Photo: Bob Butrym/3DownNation. All rights reserved.

2) Milt Stegall — 15,153

The six-foot, 184-pound receiver was a six-time All-CFL selection over 14 seasons with the Blue Bombers and was named the league’s Most Outstanding Player in 2002. The native of Cincinnati, Ohio, retired as the league’s all-time leader in receiving yards and remains its all-time leader in career touchdowns (147) and single-season touchdowns (23). Stegall is also Winnipeg’s all-time franchise leader in touchdowns, receptions, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns, and 100-yard games.

1) Geroy Simon — 16,352

The native of Johnstown, Pa., played 15 seasons with Winnipeg, B.C., and Saskatchewan, earning six All-CFL selections, one Most Outstanding Player award, and winning three Grey Cups. Simon surpassed Stegall, his teammate of two years with the Blue Bombers, as the league’s all-time leader in receiving yards in 2012 and remains B.C.’s franchise leader in touchdowns, receptions, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns, and 100-yard games.