# Ottawa Redblacks take top pick as CFL draft opens with expected No. 1 selection

The Ottawa Redblacks used the first overall pick in the CFL draft to select Giordano Vaccaro, the six-foot-two, 307-pound Purdue offensive lineman projected by many to go first. The choice confirmed the pre-draft consensus and opened the 70th edition of the league’s draft with a selection that was widely expected.

The supplied Sportsnet excerpt says Vaccaro entered the draft as the favorite for the top slot and “lived up to that billing.” That matters because it frames the pick not as a surprise but as the league’s most obvious early move. Ottawa did not have to chase value or trade around the board to find its target; it simply took the player the draft had been pointing toward.

Vaccaro’s profile explains the appeal. At 6-foot-2 and 307 pounds, he brings the size expected of a top interior offensive lineman. The excerpt identifies him as a Purdue product, which gives the pick a notable American college football pedigree as well. For a CFL team, a player with that blend of size and experience can anchor a line for years.

The significance of the selection also lies in what it says about Ottawa’s roster priorities. Choosing a lineman first suggests a focus on protection, physicality and trench strength rather than a flashy skill-position gamble. Drafts are often judged by whether a team solves a long-term structural need, and this pick suggests the Redblacks see their foundation beginning up front.

The report does not provide the rest of the round-by-round order, so the most responsible account is to stay close to the evidence: Ottawa made the No. 1 selection and it was the player most expected to go there. In draft terms, that is sometimes the clearest signal of all. A team’s first move can tell you whether the front office is reacting to uncertainty or simply executing a plan.

Here, the Redblacks appear to have executed the plan. Vaccaro’s selection establishes an early headline for the draft and gives Ottawa a player with the size and reputation to justify the investment.

With the first pick settled, attention can turn to how the rest of the draft unfolds and whether the Redblacks’ choice becomes the class’s safest bet or its most important building block.

A first pick like this also creates expectations immediately. If Vaccaro becomes a starter quickly, the pick will be viewed as a sensible piece of team-building. If he needs development time, Ottawa will still have made a bet on line strength first, which can be the right call even before the player takes a professional snap.