Royce Metchie (born September 11, 1996) is a professional

Canadian football Canadian football () is a sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's scoring area ( ...

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

for the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ...

(CFL).

University career

Metchie played

U Sports football U Sports football is the highest level of amateur play of Canadian football and operates under the auspices of U Sports (formerly Canadian Interuniversity Sport). Twenty-seven teams from Canadian universities are divided into four athletic conf ...

for the Guelph Gryphons from 2014 to 2017.

Professional career

Calgary Stampeders

Metchie was drafted by the Stampeders in the third round, 25th overall, in the

2018 CFL Draft The 2018 CFL Draft took place on May 3, 2018, at 8:00 pm ET and was broadcast on TSN and RDS... Sixty-nine players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in ...

and signed with the team on May 14, 2018. He began the 2018 season on the practice roster, but was soon elevated to the active roster and played in his first game on June 28, 2018, against the

Ottawa Redblacks The Ottawa Redblacks (officially stylized as REDBLACKS) (French: Le Rouge et Noir d'Ottawa) are a professional Canadian football team based in Ottawa, Ontario. The team plays in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Starting ...

. He dressed in seven regular season games in his rookie season and recorded five special teams tackles. He was on the practice roster during the playoffs when he shared in the Stampeders' 106th Grey Cup victory. Following the off-season departure of starting

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are two slightly di ...

Tunde Adeleke Tunde Adeleke (born July 12, 1995) is a professional Canadian football defensive back for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League (CFL). University career Adeleke played U Sports football for the Carleton Ravens from 2013 to 201 ...

and the retirement of

Adam Berger Adam Berger (born June 28, 1990) is a former Canadian football defensive back. He is a two time Grey Cup champion, having won in 2014 and 2018 with the Calgary Stampeders. Early career Berger played high school football at Lord Tweedsmuir Sec ...

, Metchie became the Stampeders' starting safety for the 2019 season. He recorded his first career CFL interception during the Labour Day Classic on September 2, 2019, against the

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Comm ...

. He played and started in 17 regular season games for the team in 2019 where he had 48 defensive tackles, seven special teams tackles, and three interceptions. He signed a contract extension with the Stampeders on January 18, 2021. He played in seven games in 2021 where he had 31 defensive tackles, one interception, and one forced fumble.

Toronto Argonauts

On February 4, 2022, Metchie was traded to the

in exchange for Cameron Judge as both players had contracts expiring the following week. He played in 17 regular season games where he had 72 defensive tackles and two interceptions. He also played in both post-season games, including the

109th Grey Cup The 109th Grey Cup decided the Canadian Football League (CFL) championship for the 2022 season. The game was played on November 20, at Mosaic Stadium in Regina, Saskatchewan. It marked the fourth Grey Cup game to be held in Regina, and the firs ...

, where he recorded three defensive tackles as he won his second Grey Cup championship in the victory over the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division (CFL), West division. They play their h ...

. On February 3, 2023, it was announced that Metchie had signed a two-year contract extension with the Argonauts.

Personal life

Metchie was born in Nigeria to a Nigerian father and Taiwanese mother, and spent some time in his youth in Ghana and Taiwan before spending his childhood in

Brampton, Ontario Brampton ( or ) is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Brampton is a city in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a lower-tier municipality within Peel Region. The city has a population of 656,480 as of the 2021 Census, making it th ...

, Canada. Metchie's younger brother, John Metchie III, is a wide receiver who played college football for

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...

and was drafted in the

2022 NFL Draft The 2022 NFL Draft was the 87th edition of the National Football League's annual draft and was held from April 28–30, 2022, at the Caesars Forum on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The first round was held on Thursday, April 28, and w ...

by the Houston Texans.

References

External links

Toronto Argonauts bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Metchie, Royce 1996 births Living people Calgary Stampeders players Canadian football defensive backs Canadian people of Nigerian descent Canadian people of Taiwanese descent Guelph Gryphons football players Nigerian players of Canadian football Nigerian emigrants to Canada Sportspeople from Brampton Players of Canadian football from Ontario Toronto Argonauts players