Argos Sign Three On Defence

ARGONAUTS.CA STAFF

TORONTO – The Toronto Argonauts Football Club is pleased to announce today that it has signed three import players on defence: DL Thaddeus Gibson, DB Branden Smith and DB Donald Washington.

Thaddeus Gibson joins the Argos after being drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 4^th round (116^th overall) of the 2010 NFL Draft and spending four years in the NFL. He also played for the San Francisco 49ers, where he totalled three tackles in two games, and also spent time with the Houston Texans, Chicago Bears, Tennessee Titans, and was most recently a member of the Dallas Cowboys. Prior to joining the NFL, Gibson played three seasons for the Ohio State Buckeyes where he tallied 82 combined tackles, 25 tackles for loss and 10 quarterback sacks.

Branden Smith returns to the Argonauts after being added to the team’s practice roster late last year and dressing in the final regular season game.  He joined the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a free agent in April 2013 following a successful college career at Georgia. While in college, Smith played 50 games over four years and recorded 80 combined tackles. He was named to the Athletic Director’s Honour Roll (2009), and was the recipient of both the Frank G. Lumpkin Scholarship (2010) and the Paul and June Martin Football Scholarship (2011).  

Donald Washington joined the NFL in 2009 after recording outstanding numbers at the 2009 NFL Combine, including top vertical jump (45.0 in.) and top broad jump (135.0 in.). He was drafted in the 4^th round (102^nd overall) of the 2009 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs, and recorded 52 combined tackles in two seasons. In college, Washington played four seasons for Ohio State where he totalled 103 combined tackles, 4 passes defended and a touchdown. He was named the Buckeyes Outstanding Freshman in 2006 and was ranked 1^st in interception return touchdowns in the Big Ten Conference in 2007.  

The Toronto Argonauts also announced today that import DB Mikail Baker has been released.