Buccaneers among 2-3 NFL teams "in" on BC Lions QB Nathan Rourke: report

Move over, Tom Brady.

Nathan Rourke likely won’t be handed the starter’s job with any NFL team, at least not right away, but the BC Lions’ star quarterback is garnering plenty of interest south of the border.

Rourke has worked out or is scheduled to work out for at least nine teams, according to multiple reports from TSN’s Farhan Lalji, Lions play-by-play broadcaster Bob Marjanovich, and Adam Schefter of ESPN.

The Victoria-born quarterback is expected to receive multiple offers, Lalji reported on December 16.

It sounds like Rourke will have the option to join Brady’s team.

Marjanovich is reporting that the Buccaneers are among 2-3 NFL teams that are “in” on the Canadian QB. Rourke worked out for the Bucs on December 13.

Hearing that two to three NFL teams are in on @nathan_rourke with one being the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. #cfl

— Bob “The Moj” Marjanovich (@The_Real_Moj) December 28, 2022

Other teams that have been connected to Rourke include the Las Vegas Raiders, Denver Broncos, Jacksonville Jaguars, Indianapolis Colts, Arizona Cardinals, Minnesota Vikings, Los Angeles Chargers, and New York Giants.

Among the things Rourke is looking for, according to Lalji, is a chance to compete for a backup quarterback job next NFL season.

“I feel like at this point I owe it to myself to at least see what’s out there,” Rourke told Daily Hive last month. “I haven’t had the opportunity to do so and I’m going to take advantage of it now. I’m able to do a lot of different things. Hopefully a team can find out what exactly that is and go from there.”

The minimum salary for a first-year NFL player is $750,000. That’s more money than the CFL’s highest-paid player makes, as Winnipeg’s Zach Collaros is set to earn $600,000 per season according to 3DownNation.

Players can begin signing NFL futures deals on January 9.

If Rourke’s CFL days are numbered, it’ll be a blow for the league, not to mention the Lions. Rourke helped reenergize a franchise that needed it last season, and likely would have been named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player had he stayed healthy.

The Lions were 8-1 before losing Rourke to injury in August. He was named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Canadian despite most of the second half of the season.

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