Mitchell Blair
Weston Dressler wanted to be playing football Grey Cup Sunday and if he had his way he would have been. However, he would have been wearing the red of the Kansas City Chiefs instead of Roughrider green.
On the same night the Calgary Stampeders beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats to win the CFL championship, the Chiefs were on prime-time television throughout the US and Canada as the Chiefs were taking on the Denver Broncos in a contest where if all had gone right might have showcased the University of North Dakota grad to the world of NFL fans that exist.
The dimunitive receiver took a shot at the NFL after helping the Riders win the Grey Cup as he signed a contract with the Kansas City Chiefs. While he impressed at mini-camps, Dressler was never really given an opportunity to show the team what he could do and he was one of their first cuts. It resulted in him returning to the place where he had made a name for himself in the CFL to continue his football career.
As he looks back to the season, or lack of it, Dressler admits it was a very tough year.
“It took a few weeks to get re-adjusted, but I think I was able to do what was asked of me,” Dressler said. “We just didn’t make the plays and we never found the energy that we needed once Darian went down or the consistency. We had spurts here and there, but we could never get ourselves into a rhythm. It was very frustrating and yeah when you consider what happened in Kansas City, it made for a tough year.”
As it was when he returned to the CFL from Kansas City, Dressler is a free agent. He can try the NFL again if he so chooses or he can sign with another CFL team. He says he isn’t really sure what the future holds, but he has an idea as to what approach to take having been through it once before.
“I like to do the business between myself, my agent and the team. A lot of good doesn’t come out of letting people know how you feel during the process.” Dressler said. “I want to know what’s out there, what the options are and what the emotions are like on a day-to-day basis. I’m not going to commit to trying to go back or stay because that wouldn’t be the smartest thing to do.”
While Dressler isn’t sure what his future is going to hold, he has no desires at looking back at the NFL experience he had last year and is concentrating ahead on what 2015 will bring and where that will happen. For those who are uncomfortable about the popular pass catcher suiting up for anyone else in the league except the Riders, he has these comforting thoughts.
“I think it’s pretty obvious where I want to be,” the 29 year old says. “I just need to see what type of options I have, what I have in front of me and even if this organization makes an offer for me. I can’t say I’m going to be somewhere when an offer hasn’t been made. I am confident something will get done though.”
If Dressler has abandoned his NFL dream, one would be hard-pressed to think number 7 wouldn’t be running out on the Mosaic Stadium turf as he is still one of the most dynamic players in the CFL. A full season of having Dressler catch passes from Durant could lead to Dressler achieving his dream of playing on Grey Cup Sunday in 2015 even if it’s not a game being played south of the border.
