The news came as a surprise to Toronto Argonaut fans as they woke up on Saturday morning; the team had signed three new players, including a pair of athletes who have been talked about for some time.
Charles Brown Jr., a linebacker from Delaware State was added, so were defensive lineman Andre Carter and offensive lineman Anim Dankwah.
Dankwah is a rather large man. Checking in at 6’8”, and 350 pounds, he casts a shadow big enough that he’s essentially a human eclipse. But whatever shade he provides is eliminated by the sheer brightness of his smile, something he was wearing non-stop when speaking with Argonauts.ca following Saturday’s training camp session at the University of Guelph.
The Argos’ sixth-round pick in 2024 spent last year in the NFL with Philadelphia and Washington before being released by the Commanders a week ago. His CFL draft position was low because he was expected to go to the NFL and there was no guarantee he’d ever play north of the border. The Argos rolled the dice by selecting a player they didn’t know if they’d ever see, and rolled a seven when he signed with the Boatmen.
Dankwah was born in Accra, Ghana before moving to Brampton, where he started high school at St. Roch Secondary, later heading to a prep school in the States. His mom, dad, and three siblings all still live in Brampton and will be surprised to see him because he hasn’t told them that he’s signed here.
“I have yet to tell my family, I’m going to surprise them,” he said through a huge smile. “They don’t know yet. Usually when I come back home, I show up unannounced and just see the reaction on their faces. I’ll just show up there and surprise them and let them know the news.”
Spoiler alert, the news may be out.
Though Danwah hasn’t had a reunion with his family yet, he’s already become reacquainted with Argos offensive line coach Kris Sweet, who was his positional coach at Howard University in 2021.
“I’m looking forward to being back with Coach Sweet,” he said. “He was my coach in college, and he helped me get really good. I improved my game when he coached me. I’m just here to learn and soak up as much as possible.”
Sweet is also happy that the pair has a chance to work together again, though he knows the CFL rookie has some catching up to do.
“It’s going to take him a while to get adjusted, this late into training camp,” Sweet told Argonauts.ca, who asked the coach about what he sees in Dankwah. “I see a large, large human being. For a mammoth man he’s athletic. He’s a smart, conscientious young man and just a good person to be around.”
Having coached Dankwah in college, Sweet has great familiarity with the player’s character. He had zero problems vouching for the lineman and welcoming to the offensive line group.
“He fits in,” said Sweet. “He’s a non-ego guy. He’s not a high-maintenance player. He’s a guy that’s not easily distracted. He’s been through the (NFL) grinder down there of being cut, brought back, cut, so I think this will be a breath of fresh air for him.”
The big man is back home and ready to play for his hometown team.
“I always thought it would be so cool to play for the Argos,” said Dankwah. “Pre-draft I took a meeting with Coach Sweet and I told him that if I was to come to the CFL I’d want to be in Toronto. God is good and I’m here.”
The Argos are also getting some help on the defensive line with the addition of Carter, whose CFL rights were acquired in a trade with Ottawa that sent running back Dan Adeboboye to the Redblacks.
The 6’5”, 270-pound lineman played at Indiana and Western Michigan before NFL stints with both Cincinnati and Jacksonville.
He was as enthusiastic about being here as Dankwah.
“I’m overexcited to be here,” said Carter. “To be honest, this is one of my favourite and best experiences that I’ve had. Just how welcoming everybody is, it’s so different than what my past experiences have been. The leadership; off the field everybody is so welcoming and brought me here with open arms and allowed me to get my feet under myself and learn the playbook.”
There’s been a gigantic turnover on the defensive line. Five players from a year ago are no longer wearing Double Blue, including Ralph Holley, now with the NFL’s Cleveland Browns. Holley, a fellow Detroit native, is someone Carter knows quite well.
“We both went to Western Michigan,” said Carter. “I’m basically stepping in right where he left off, to carry the torch, getting off the ball, wreaking havoc, really just being able to help this team get to where we need to be, and that’s winning the championship.”
If Carter can contribute what his former Broncos teammate did, the Argos d-line will be in a very good place.
ARGO NOTES: The team announced five roster moves on Saturday morning. Along with the signings of Carter, Dankwah, and Brown, the Argos also announced long snapper Adam Guillemette has been moved to the suspended list, and that linebacker Billy Shaeffer has been released…Receiver Derek Slywka played on the defensive side of the ball on Saturday. He played safety at Ithaca College, but the Indianapolis Colts converted him to wide receiver, the position he’s played with the Argos since signing last September. The 6’3”, 215-pounder played free safety on Saturday and during “skelly” intercepted a pass near midfield and returned it for a touchdown…This just in, John Haggerty is good at punting. He’s hit some absolute bombs this week…Janarion Grant’s impressive camp as a receiver continued. He caught a bomb down the right sideline during skelly, easily beating his man deep…With the Leafs prepping for Game Seven on Sunday night, a member of the Argo family has already advanced to a hockey final. Linebacker Isaac Darkangelo’s sister Shiann is a member of the Ottawa Charge, who will compete in the PWHL championship series. She was one of the original members of the Toronto Six of the NWHL and has been a member of the U.S. National Team. The final series between Ottawa and Minnesota opens Tuesday.