Rookie tight end Dante Daniels turns childhood struggles into CFL dream

Winnipeg Blue Bomber rookie Dante Daniels (73) at the opening of rookie camp in Winnipeg Thursday, May 7, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/John Woods

WINNIPEG — Dante Daniels is the first to admit he was an emotional kid. He was so quick to tears, he says, that his foster family used to jokingly tease him whenever the waterworks started.

Fast-forward to today, however, and that sensitive boy has grown into a 272-pound rookie tight end who relishes the violence of a sport as a necessary outlet for the hardships he faced growing up in Windsor, Ont. For as long as he can remember, football has been the ultimate escape.

“Realizing in this sport that you could hit someone legally and not get arrested for it, I take my aggression out from my childhood or from just getting screwed over at different times,” Daniels said following Day 1 of Winnipeg Blue Bombers rookie camp at Princess Auto Stadium Wednesday.

“I’m someone who is hard-nosed and not afraid to put my head in stuff. I will do anything to protect my teammates. I’ll go toe-to-toe with anyone and make a hole.”

That fierce, protective instinct was forged long before his college days at North Carolina State. As the third oldest of six children, Daniels was forced to grow up fast.

His mother, Dianne, struggled with severe drug addiction, and his father, Edward, abandoned the family when Daniels was seven. When his older brothers moved out, Daniels became the man of the house for his three younger siblings, at one point collecting cans to earn money for food.

After his mother moved to Detroit, Daniels was left homeless and couch-surfing. That is, until Jen and Joel Fillion — already with two children, including a son who played football with Daniels — opened their modest home to him, eventually becoming his legal guardians when he was 16.

For Daniels, surviving those struggles made the results of last month’s CFL Draft even more special. The Bombers selected him with the 10th overall pick.

“Getting to call Joel and tell him everything he helped me do has worked out … it was awesome to show him he didn’t waste his time on me,” Daniels said. “I owe a lot to them and I couldn’t have done this without them.”

‘Inspiring backstory’

Head coach Mike O’Shea acknowledged that learning about the hurdles players like Daniels have overcome provides an undeniable spark to the locker room.

“There are a lot of guys that come with a very inspiring backstory that can be uplifting when you hear about it,” O’Shea said, “and it gives you more energy.”

The Bombers were so enamoured by the 24-year-old Daniels that they traded the 13th overall pick in 2026 and a second-rounder in 2027 to the Ottawa Redblacks to move up three spots to grab him at No. 10.

The move prompted a viral, expletive-laden video from the team’s draft room, featuring general manager Kyle Walters unleashing a rant of pure excitement over acquiring such a unique talent. At six-foot-five and more than 270 pounds, Daniels has been described as a “CFL unicorn.”

“It made me feel wanted here. It was very personable,” Daniels said with a smile when asked about the video. “It felt awesome, and I just want to do everything I can to help them and prove the team right.”

‘We saw potential’

Daniels’ first taste of professional football was greeted with a bit of a cold spell, as the three-day rookie camp opened with temperatures just above freezing. The camp wraps up on Friday before a mandatory day off Saturday, with main training camp officially kicking off on Sunday.

“We drafted him where we drafted him because we saw potential and we liked what it could possibly do for our offence,” O’Shea said. “Now it’s a training camp setting, so let him perform and just watch more.”

For quarterback Zach Collaros, the addition of Daniels creates flexibility on offence, particularly when it comes to formations on the line of scrimmage.

In previous years, the Bombers utilized offensive lineman Tui Eli as a sixth eligible blocker in heavy sets. While Eli had reliable hands — he caught a touchdown pass in a win over the B.C. Lions last season — defences largely treated those alignments as strict run plays.

With a true tight end like Daniels, the math changes. Though he caught just 10 passes in two seasons with the Wolfpack and saw limited targets in his two years with Butler Community College, his dual-threat potential is clear.

“When you’re able to put a body out there that can block that way and also run routes and catch the football, it definitely presents issues for the defence,” Collaros said.

“If you were to ask defensive co-ordinators that were planning for us, I’m sure it was ‘If (Tui) is in the game, we’re able to add an extra hat here’ and not have to worry about a quadrant of the field in the pass game. With a person like (Daniels), you’ve got to defend the run first, so sometimes it creates advantageous things on the back end.”

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While Daniels hasn’t been in Winnipeg for long, he said he could get used to calling it his new football home. His life outside the game is also in a good place.

He has since reconnected with his biological father, noting that seeing the name “Daniels” on a pro jersey is a point of significant family pride. He’s not in as close contact with his mother, but hasn’t ruled out a meaningful relationship in the future.

He is also married, and his wife, Reagan, is back home in Wichita, Kansas, waiting for her opportunity to come visit her husband in the near future. Daniels hopes to follow in the footsteps of fellow Windsor native and NFL tight end Theo Johnson, who has used his platform to mentor foster children.

“You never know what you can say to someone that can bring them up in life,” Daniels said. “I’ve got to make the most of the opportunity I get.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 8, 2026.

Jeff Hamilton, The Canadian Press