Canadian quarterback Nathan Rourke has put on a brave face since his return to the CFL but his mid-season reintroduction to the B.C. Lions was anything but seamless.
In a sitdown interview with Donnie and Dhali on Friday, the 26-year-old finally acknowledged what onlookers already knew. Namely that his rushed return and the continued presence of Vernon Adams Jr. created an awkward dynamic for the team last year, contributing to their late-season slump.
“It was certainly difficult. I think that the biggest challenge was less about coming back to the CFL as it was dealing with the uncertainty of the quarterback situation,” Rourke said. “That was tough on a lot of people, not just myself, but the locker room.”
Adams Jr. was the frontrunner for Most Outstanding Player at the mid-way point of the CFL season before suffering a knee injury that was expected to sideline him for several weeks. That opened the door for the Lions to bring back Rourke after a roller-coaster year in the NFL that included stops with four different teams. In so doing, the team made a definitive statement on their future by steamrolling the salary cap and signing him to a lucrative long-term deal to be the league’s highest-paid player.
The Victoria, B.C.-born pivot was thrown to the wolves on just two days of practice in Week 11, completing just eight-of-25 passes for 126 yards and two picks in a putrid debut against Winnipeg. While his play improved somewhat, he continued to look like a shell of his former self. That led to questions, both internal and external, about why Adams wasn’t being given back his starting job when he was healthy enough to play — especially considering that Rourke had been given his job back from Adams under virtually identical circumstances in 2022.
The Lions benched Rourke at halftime in Week 15, fueling further uncertainty, but elected to go back to him for three more starts. When Adams was eventually handed the reins for the regular-season finale and playoffs, veteran receiver Keon Hatcher indicated that the locker room always felt it was “VA’s team.” While both quarterbacks handled the situation with class and professionalism, it was impossible to hide the strain they were placed under.
“It’s hard. I think the timing was difficult, made it difficult for a lot of people,” Rourke admitted. “And I certainly put a lot of pressure on myself to try to get them out of a slump or whatever it might be, whatever I thought that I could do.”
Rourke went 3-5 over his eight starts, completing 136-of-209 passes (65.0 percent) for 1,781 yards, four touchdowns, and nine interceptions. He also ran 24 times for 213 yards and five majors. Though the dual-threat pivot inherited a team already on a three-game losing streak, he bore the brunt of public blame for the team’s disappointing 9-9 finish and failure to reach a home Grey Cup game.
That was a far cry from the phenom status he enjoyed in 2022 with B.C., when he connected on 255-of-324 passes (78.7 percent) for 3,349 yards, 25 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions despite being limited to just 10 games by a Lisfranc sprain. He also ran 39 times for 304 yards and seven scores en route to becoming the first QB to win Most Outstanding Canadian in more than four decades.
“I think that the league since ’22 has evolved. Teams are better, players are very good in this league, and it’s not something where you can just roll out of bed and beat the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, for example,” Rourke said. “I think that’s what’s been a huge motivator, though, for me this offseason, is trying to get better, back to that place where I know I can play, and I think the guys are ready to do that as well.”
The Lions have undergone big changes as a result of their 2024 collapse. Head coach Rick Campbell fell on the sword for his locker room faux pas and has been replaced by former quarterback Buck Pierce. Adams Jr. was predictably shipped to the Calgary Stampeders, leaving Rourke as the undisputed starter on a reworked contract.
The face of the franchise resides in the Lower Mainland full-time and has been putting in the work this offseason, training with teammates in town and becoming a visible presence at community events. He has confidence that with enough effort, he can return to form and help the team become contenders once again.
“This is a motivated group. There’s been a lot of change this offseason but the sting of last year, of not being able to fulfill what we thought our potential was, that’s still there for a lot of our guys. Anything less than the ultimate goal of winning the Grey Cup, to us, is missing the mark and so we’re motivated, ready to go. A lot of our guys are,” he said.
“At the end of the day, I’m looking forward to the opportunity to continue to improve as a player by having the opportunity to play with the B.C. Lions, an organization that I love. It’s near and dear to my heart and I’m excited about that.”
The B.C. Lions will open their 2025 regular season by hosting the Edmonton Elks at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on Saturday, June 7 with kickoff slated for 10:00 p.m. EDT.
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