HEADLINES

Nathan Rourke

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/28/23

August 28th, 2023 at 8:27pm CST by Sam Robinson

We are less than 24 hours from the deadline for NFL teams to trim their rosters to 53 players. Here are the latest moves teams have made as they pare their squads down toward the in-season limit:

Baltimore Ravens

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

  • Released from IR via injury settlement: DB Tino Ellis

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

NFL Reserve/Futures Deals: 1/15/23

January 15th, 2023 at 6:56pm CST by Adam La Rose

Today’s lone reserve/futures deal in the NFL:

Jacksonville Jaguars

Rourke has been a popular workout candidate in recent weeks, visiting several teams amidst interest from more than a dozen NFL clubs. The CFL star has arrived at a decision after that time, though, announcing (on Twitter) that he is signing a three-year reserve deal with the Jaguars.

Rourke put up impressive numbers at college with the Ohio Bobcats, and placed himself firmly on the NFL radar with his play this season with the BC Lions. He threw for a league-record 78.7% completion percentage in 2022, recording a 25:10 touchdown-to-interception ratio and adding seven touchdowns on the ground. The 24-year-old earned Most Outstanding Canadian honors despite missing considerable time through injury as a result, and he will now be positioned to compete as a backup to Trevor Lawrence in the offseason. His time spent in the spring with head coach Doug Pederson – well-known for his work in developing QBs – could be enough for him to land a 53-man roster spot in the fall.

Cardinals, Chargers, Vikings Work Out QB Nathan Rourke

December 25th, 2022 at 1:02pm CST by Ely Allen

The free agency tour has continued for Canadian Football League quarterback Nathan Rourke. The 24-year-old’s BC Lions were knocked out of the CFL playoffs a little over a month ago and Rourke has been in communication with NFL teams ever since.

Rourke played three years of college ball at Ohio after transferring from Fort Scott Community College. As a starter for all three years, Rourke was one of the country’s most electric dual-threat quarterbacks. He improved each year as a passer, finishing with a career total of 7,457 yards, 60 touchdowns, and 20 interceptions. His consistency as a runner was uncanny. In 2017, 2018, and 2019, Rourke ran the ball 137, 134, and 154 times, respectively, for 912, 860, and 867 yards, respectively. Over the three seasons he ran for 2,034 yards and 49 touchdowns. That’s 9,511 yards of total offense and 111 total touchdowns, when you include the two receiving touchdowns he had as a Bobcat.

Rourke went undrafted by the NFL but was the highest drafted quarterback for the CFL in almost 20 years. A rough first season in British Columbia saw Rourke serve mainly as a backup, only starting two games, and making some mistakes early in his career. He only threw three touchdowns to five interceptions, although he was able to add five touchdowns on the ground, as well. In his second year with the team, during the league’s 2022 season, Rourke became a full-time starter. In nine starts, Rourke completed 78.7% of his passes for 3,349 yards while throwing 25 touchdowns to 10 interceptions. He also added 304 yards and seven touchdowns with his legs.

Rourke’s initial few visits following his CFL playoff exit saw him meet with Las Vegas, Jacksonville, and Denver. Since then, Rourke has continued his tour. On Monday of this week, Rourke worked out with the Vikings, according to Justin Dunk of 3downnation.com, and followed that up with a Tuesday work out with the Cardinals. Additionally, Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 reported a workout with the Chargers.

This continues a trend from his first few visits. All the teams that Rourke has visited are fairly settled in with starting quarterbacks. Besides the Vikings, all the other teams are even in relatively young deals with their starting quarterbacks. This seems to insinuate that teams are looking at Rourke primarily in a backup role. Given the recent success of XFL quarterbacks who went from backups to eventual starters, like Commanders quarterback Taylor Heinicke and Panthers quarterback P.J. Walker, Rourke could be in search of a perfect fit that could set him up for success in the future.

This could open the door for teams in the league to continue looking for players at positions as important as quarterback outside of the traditional talent pools of the college draft and free agency. Regardless, the intrigue created by Rourke remains as teams continue to kick the tires of the mobile, young quarterback.

Workout Rumors: Rourke, Davidson

December 9th, 2022 at 6:46pm CST by Ely Allen

Canadian Football League quarterback Nathan Rourke is in the midst of a bit of a free agency tour, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Shortly after Rourke’s BC Lions were knocked out of the playoffs in mid-November, the 24-year-old announced that he was in communication with a number of NFL teams in regard to scheduling workouts.

Rourke played three years of college ball at Ohio after transferring from Fort Scott Community College. As a starter for all three years, Rourke was one of the country’s most electric dual-threat quarterbacks. He improved each year as a passer, finishing with a career total of 7,457 yards, 60 touchdowns, and 20 interceptions. His consistency as a runner is uncanny. In 2017, 2018, and 2019, Rourke ran the ball 137, 134, and 154 times respectively, for 912, 860, and 867 yards respectively. Over the three seasons he ran for 2,034 yards and 49 touchdowns. That’s 9,511 yards of total offense and 111 total touchdowns, when you include the two receiving touchdowns he had as a Bobcat.

Rourke went undrafted by the NFL but was the highest drafted quarterback for the CFL in almost 20 years. A rough first season in British Columbia saw Rourke serve mainly as a backup, only starting two games, and making some mistakes early in his career. He only threw three touchdowns to five interceptions, although he was able to add five touchdowns on the ground, as well. In his second year with the team, during the league’s 2022 season, Rourke became a full-time starter. In nine starts, Rourke completed 78.7-percent of his passes for 3,349 yards while throwing 25 touchdowns to 10 interceptions. He also added 304 yards and seven touchdowns with his legs.

After the Lions’ season ended with a third loss in four matchups this year against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, a few NFL teams reached out to the athletic quarterback. Rourke reportedly met with the Raiders last week, the Jaguars on Monday, and the Broncos on Tuesday.

Seeing as all three of those teams are set with starting quarterbacks on fairly recent deals, it’s worth point out that Rourke did audition for the Giants at wide receiver just prior to the CFL’s 2021 season. It’s also worth pointing out that the XFL has produced some NFL quarterbacks with limited success lately. Both Commanders backup quarterback Taylor Heinicke and Panthers backup quarterback P.J. Walker have earned playing time with their respective squads. Heinicke, who started most of the 2021 NFL season for Washington, took over the starting job this year for an injured Carson Wentz and has gone on to win five of his seven starts for the team. Walker took over the starting job for an injured Baker Mayfield before suffering an injury of his own.

This opens the door for the league to look outside of the traditional talent pools for a player as important as the backup quarterback. To say Rourke would be an upgrade over Jarrett Stidham, C.J. Beathard, or Brett Rypien is no guarantee, but it may be worth taking a look at the mobile, young quarterback.

Here’s another workout rumor about a very recent second-round pick who was recently released:

  • Former Falcons defensive lineman Marlon Davidson visited the 49ers this week, according to Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network. Through two and a half seasons in the league, Davidson has played in 19 games, only starting one. He’s only recorded one sack but has a fumble recovery and a 3-yard pick six off of Tom Brady to his ledger. Davidson has yet to play this season after being placed on injured reserve following arthroscopic knee surgery and was released in late October. Securing a visit with San Francisco may indicate that he’s healthy enough to find his way back to the field now.

NFL Workouts: Rourke, Scarlett

November 18th, 2022 at 9:57pm CST by Adam La Rose

A notable name from north of the border will begin NFL workouts next week. Nathan Rourke, the standout quarterback of the British Columbia Lions, has multiple visits set up, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link).

The 24-year-old had a highly productive career at Ohio University, where he threw for 7,457 yards and 60 touchdowns in three seasons. He displayed a dual-threat skillset as well, adding 2,634 yards and 49 touchdowns on the ground. That set the stage for his impressive first season as the Lions’ starter in 2022.

Taking on the No. 1 role for his hometown team, Rourke set an all-time CFL record for completion percentage in a season (78.7%) while leading the team to an 8-1 record to begin the year. A foot injury stalled his campaign, limiting him to just 10 regular season contests, though he did return in time for the playoffs. Overall, the 6-2, 210-pounder finished the year with 3,349 passing yards, 25 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He rushed for 304 yards and another seven touchdowns, leading to Most Outstanding Canadian honors at this week’s league awards ceremony.

Veteran CFL reporter Farhan Lalji notes that Rourke will begin workouts on Nov. 21, and that more than two dozen NFL teams have expressed interest in him. His ongoing recovery to full health will require a follow-up surgery and prevent him for participating in certain drills, however (Twitter links). Rourke will be seeking an opportunity to compete for an NFL backup role during the spring.

While he attempts to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Warren Moon, Joe Theismann and Doug Flutie in making the CFL-to-NFL jump, here is one other workout note from the NFL this week:

  • Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes that veteran linebacker Brennan Scarlett will be visiting the Dolphins for a workout, one which could result in a practice squad deal. The 29-year-old played 13 games for Miami last year, after spending five seasons in Houston. He primarily played on special teams, and originally re-signed with the Dolphins this offseason before being released with an injury settlement in September. Now healthy, he could provide depth in the front seven as Miami enters the second half of the campaign.