5 Best Calgary Stampeders Players Ever, Ranked

The Stampeders have won eight Grey Cups, with their first coming in 1948 and their most recent in 2018.

While the Calgary Stampeders odds of winning a league title have been average at best the past few years, they’ve had plenty of success since the turn of the century, winning four Grey Cups. 

With that, I’ve constructed a list of the top five players of all time in their history. 

Who Are the Best Calgary Stampeders?

1. Doug Flutie

Also one of the best Toronto Argonauts players of all time, you could put Flutie in any top-five list of all the teams he played for in the CFL, and I wouldn’t argue it — he was utterly dominant in the CFL. 

During his time with the Stampeders from 1992-1995, he won the 1992 Grey Cup, was the MVP of that game, and won the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player of the Year award in 1992, 1993, and 1994. He also won several other awards, like the Jeff Nicklin Memorial Trophy and numerous CFL All-Star nods. 

His best season with the Stampeders came in 1993 when he threw for 6,092 yards, 44 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions while rushing for 373 yards and 11 touchdowns. He never threw for less than 5,726 yards in a Stampeders uniform. 

Fun fact: In 1995, he was briefly on the same team as Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who was cut by the team two months into the season. 

2. Wayne Harris

Playing for the Stampeders his entire career from 1961 to 1972, Harris was an eight-time CFL All-Star and was a CFL West All-Star every year from 1961 to 1971. 

He appeared in three Grey Cups, winning in 1971 and was named MVP. 

Over his career, he had 23 fumble recoveries and 28 interceptions. He would likely be credited with numerous tackles and sacks if they were recorded back then. 

He was inducted into the CFL Hall of Fame in 1976. The team retired his No. 55. 

3. Bo Levi Mitchell

An active player today who’s on his way to becoming one of the best Hamilton Tiger-Cats players of all time, Mitchell played for Calgary from 2012 to 2022 after going undrafted in the 2012 NFL Draft out of Eastern Washington. 

With the team, he won two Grey Cups, two Grey Cup MVP awards, two CFL Most Outstanding Player awards, was a two-time CFL All-Star, a three-time CFL West All-Star, a two-time CFL passing touchdowns leader, and more. 

The former Eastern Washington standout threw for 31,510 yards (the 2020 season was cancelled), 182 passing touchdowns, 24 rushing touchdowns, and had four seasons with 4,500 passing yards or more with the squad

4. John Helton

Like Harris, Helton played during a time (1969 to 1978) when quarterback sacks weren’t tracked. However, it’s all but unanimous that he was a dominant force from the inside of the defensive line, playing 10 seasons for the Stampeders and 217 games for Calgary.

Over that time, Helton was a CFL West All-Star from 1969 to 1976 and again in 1978. He was a CFL All-Star from 1971 to 1976, and in 1978, he won the CFL’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award in 1974 and the Most Oustanding Lineman Award in 1972. He won the 1971 Grey Cup with the team and was inducted into the 1986 CFL Hall of Fame.  

5. Allen Pitts

Pitts played his entire CFL career with the Stampeders from 1990 to 2000. He won two Grey Cups (1992 and 1998), was a six-time CFL All-Star, and seven-time CFL West All-Star (except 1995; that was the CFL North). He also won the Jeff Nicklin Memorial Trophy in 1999. 

In his career, he caught 966 passes for 14,891 yards and 117 touchdowns. In 1994, with Flutie at quarterback, he caught 126 passes for 2,036 yards and 21 touchdowns. 

He played 176 games for Calgary and was inducted into the CFL Hall of Fame in 2006.