If any NFL teams are thinking of kicking the tires on CFL Most Outstanding Player finalist Nathan Rourke, they’ll need to come with one hell of a sales pitch.
The B.C. Lions’ star quarterback has made his feelings about the league down south abundantly clear since returning to his home and native land last year. Despite putting together another impressive campaign at the tender age of 27, he has no plans to actively explore NFL options and would need to be wowed if a team approached him.
“I think that there would be (an offer I’d consider), it would have to be a lot,” Rourke said. “I’m pretty comfortable here.”
Rourke is currently scheduled to earn $684,000 in hard money for 2026, the most by any player in the CFL. However, the NFL offers the potential for life-changing compensation, unlike anything possible in three-down football.
Even so, the Canadian pivot isn’t longing for an opportunity to make millions. For him, “a lot” has little to do with dollars and cents and everything to do with the size of the playing opportunity a team might provide.
“I don’t think at this point I’m chasing dollars. I’m chasing that I want to be a better quarterback, and that’s what drives me,” Rourke insisted. “I think B.C. is giving me the best opportunity to do so right now.”
Rourke tried his hand at the NFL carousel following his breakout 2022 CFL season, working out for 12 different teams before signing with the Jacksonville Jaguars. That experience provided a rude awakening to the politics of sport; the Oakville, Ont., native seemingly outplayed veteran C.J. Beathard in the preseason, but was relegated to third-string duties nonetheless and spent much of his tenure on the practice roster.
The New England Patriots claimed Rourke off waivers near the end of the 2023 season, but promptly fired iconic head coach, Bill Belichick, and selected two new quarterbacks in the NFL Draft. After being released by the Pats, Rourke spent time with the New York Giants and Atlanta Falcons, but was never given a real opportunity by either organization. He was released by Atlanta after being thrown to the wolves in a preseason game just eight days after his arrival, without having received any meaningful practice reps.
The player who returned to the Lions days later looked like a shell of his former self, visibly beaten down by his experience and struggling to readjust to the CFL. That all changed in 2025, as Rourke regained his on-field dominance under the tutelage of new head coach Buck Pierce. Risking that upward trajectory is not something he would do haphazardly.
“The progress that I made this year as a quarterback, I feel like I made more steps this year than I did in the year-and-a-half when I was down in the NFL,” Rourke stated. “Ultimately, I just want to see growth personally, and I want to be able to continue to give back to an organization that has put a lot of faith in me and a lot of confidence in me. And I just want to continue to get better.”
CFL players rarely get a second shot at the NFL after returning to the league, but Rourke’s resume could be more enticing than most. The six-foot-one, 210-pound passer completed 70.4 percent of his throws for 5,290 yards with 31 touchdowns and 16 interceptions in 16 starts this year, posting an 11-5 win-loss record. He also rushed 61 times for 564 yards with 10 majors.
Those impressive statistics make him the front-runner to take home the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player and Most Outstanding Canadian awards on Thursday night, which would make him just the fifth player in league history to win both awards. More importantly to NFL teams, Rourke is young and has a big-league pedigree after his younger brother, Kurtis, was selected in the seventh round of the 2025 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers. He remains with the team and ensures that the family surname is fresh in the minds of American decision-makers.
Nevertheless, Rourke does not appear interested in giving up his current status to ride the bench or become training camp fodder. Once uncomfortable with the limelight, he has begun to embrace his burgeoning status as the face of the CFL, even clashing with the commissioner over the league’s recent rule changes. The Lions’ loss in the West Final has also put a sour taste in his mouth, fueling a belief that the team’s best days are yet to come.
“I feel like there is something special here, and I want to be a part of that,” Rourke stressed. “Last time I was in this position, the grass was kind of greener on the other side, or at least it seemed like it, and it wasn’t necessarily the case. There’s something special here, and I don’t want to take that for granted.”
Bo Levi Mitchell, Rourke’s competitor for Most Outstanding Player, once turned down an offer from the Minnesota Vikings when told he wouldn’t be allowed to compete for a starting job. It appears that Rourke may take a cue from the veteran’s approach to the NFL, in addition to taking his trophy.
J.C. Abbott is a University of British Columbia graduate and high school football coach. He covers the CFL, B.C. Lions, CFL Draft and the three-down league's Global initiative.
