NFL Interest in Rourke

[PigSkin_53]

https://3downnation.com/2022/06/27/cana ... el-people/

Unless young Rourke wishes to wind up among the likes of Jesses Palmer a third string Qb on the Giants roster, seeing little to no playing time, (eventually succumbing to celebrity stardom for "The Bachelor"), he should think twice about letting the NFL ruin his career with odious amounts of fiat currency, in what he would otherwise have the potential to become, the greatest Canadian QB since Russ Jackson!

Maybe greater!

[DanoT]

The NFL still puts more weight on how high a draft pick or if a player was drafted at all by the NFL vs how well he plays in the CFL. Mitchell, Reilly, Calvillo are fairly recent examples of top notch CFL QBs who the NFL didn't go after.

[B.C.FAN]

The Lions have the cap room to sign Rourke to a multi-year extension that would pay him
fairly and cement his future as an elite CFL QB. Right now, they’re exploiting him with a bargain rookie contract that was signed in the expectation he would back up Michael Reilly.

[cromartie]

He's an NFL backup in the mode of Logan Woodside. He'd do well to be a CFL lifer and the BC Lions would do well to do everything they can to make that possible for as long as possible.

[maxlion]

The Lions have the cap room to sign Rourke to a multi-year extension that would pay him
fairly and cement his future as an elite CFL QB. Right now, they’re exploiting him with a bargain rookie contract that was signed in the expectation he would back up Michael Reilly.

My understanding is that the CBA determines the length and maximum salary of National rookie contracts. Under the 2019 CBA, Nationals must sign a 2+1 contract. The third (option) year salary cannot exceed 10% more than the second year salary. So even if the Lions wanted to sign Rourke to a lucrative extension, the CBA prohibits this. Unless this has changed under the new CBA, the earliest an extension could start is the 2024 season.

Also, I read somewhere that the new CBA allows National players to escape the rookie minimums by spending a certain amount of time in the NFL. So Rourke could go the NFL after this season and come back after a year or two and be free to sign for whatever teams will offer.

The best scenario would be lock up Rourke with a longer term contract at market value. However, given the restrictions in the CBA, he would likely be much better off getting a release after this season to explore NFL options.

[B.C.FAN]

The Lions have the cap room to sign Rourke to a multi-year extension that would pay him
fairly and cement his future as an elite CFL QB. Right now, they’re exploiting him with a bargain rookie contract that was signed in the expectation he would back up Michael Reilly.

My understanding is that the CBA determines the length and maximum salary of National rookie contracts. Under the 2019 CBA, Nationals must sign a 2+1 contract. The third (option) year salary cannot exceed 10% more than the second year salary. So even if the Lions wanted to sign Rourke to a lucrative extension, the CBA prohibits this. Unless this has changed under the new CBA, the earliest an extension could start is the 2024 season.

Also, I read somewhere that the new CBA allows National players to escape the rookie minimums by spending a certain amount of time in the NFL. So Rourke could go the NFL after this season and come back after a year or two and be free to sign for whatever teams will offer.

The best scenario would be lock up Rourke with a longer term contract at market value. However, given the restrictions in the CBA, he would likely be much better off getting a release after this season to explore NFL options.

Interesting. The CBA stipulates that draft picks must sign a 2+1 contract within the salary grid but I don’t know that it prohibits them from signing an extension before the first contract expires. Teams routinely sign valued players to extensions that replace their existing contracts.

[Hambone]

The Lions have the cap room to sign Rourke to a multi-year extension that would pay him
fairly and cement his future as an elite CFL QB. Right now, they’re exploiting him with a bargain rookie contract that was signed in the expectation he would back up Michael Reilly.

My understanding is that the CBA determines the length and maximum salary of National rookie contracts. Under the 2019 CBA, Nationals must sign a 2+1 contract. The third (option) year salary cannot exceed 10% more than the second year salary. So even if the Lions wanted to sign Rourke to a lucrative extension, the CBA prohibits this. Unless this has changed under the new CBA, the earliest an extension could start is the 2024 season.

Also, I read somewhere that the new CBA allows National players to escape the rookie minimums by spending a certain amount of time in the NFL. So Rourke could go the NFL after this season and come back after a year or two and be free to sign for whatever teams will offer.

The best scenario would be lock up Rourke with a longer term contract at market value. However, given the restrictions in the CBA, he would likely be much better off getting a release after this season to explore NFL options.

Interesting. The CBA stipulates that draft picks must sign a 2+1 contract within the salary grid but I don’t know that it prohibits them from signing an extension before the first contract expires. Teams routinely sign valued players to extensions that replace their existing contracts.

Maxlion's take is exactly the way I interpreted the CBA. Jordan Williams is in the exact same boat. By trying to keep entry level salaries for drafted players down the CBA is if anything encouraging players like Rourke to move on quickly. He would totally be free to jump after this year with even a PR spot paying him something like 2-1/2 times his CFL salary. Personally I think he'd stay in BC for 2023 in an effort to strengthen his resume to in turn put himself in position for better opportunities, situations and importantly signing bonus money.

DanoT mentioned the likes of Reilly, BLM and AC not being pursued by NFL clubs. Bo was getting significant overtures. In the end he opted to stay in Calgary because the situation offered wasn't right and probably there was a money factor. QBs are in a different position compared to other players. Most of the DBs, LBs etc who head south are making under $100K and surrendering a CFL earnings potential of maybe $150K if they turn into all-star calibre players. By the time they prove that they're too old to draw NFL interest. QBs on the other hand, if good enough for NFL interest, could be giving upwards of $500K for that shot.

[SammyGreene]

It’s funny that after Saturday’s performance the NFL interest was what started jumping out at me and I know Farhan is on that page too before JC’s story came out. Lions are in a real tough spot if they can’t offer him a huge pay raise in his 2023 option year and he is free to sign down south weighing it against one more year of his $70,000 rookie salary.

[cromartie]

I think BLM is going to look to stay in Canada after he retires. Not a big fan of what the US is turning into, IIRC.

As for Rourke. The CFL would do well to adjust the CBA so that guys like Rourke are encouraged to stay. I realize we walk a fine line between a tightly cost controlled league in light of the monetary ceiling of profitability and what happened to the league in the mid 1990s when guy were just handed money hand over fist because of US franchises and the marquee exception but if you want to fight some perceptions of the league, he's a guy you want to keep around for a long, long time assuming he plays to his current trajectory.

Because he doesn't have a really high NFL ceiling and having him as the next back up in Tennessee or Atlanta doesn't do anyone any favors.

[DanoT]

An undrafted free agent who has a stellar season in the CFL does not trump being a high NFL draft pick, imo and the opinion of many scouts and NFL GMs, so assuming that Rourke continues his stellar play, next season in the NFL would be as a backup initially for Rourke.

Rourke would be best off, imo, establishing an above average career in the CFL and then after 3 or 4 CFL years look at securing a staring role in the NFL. At 24 y.o. he is better off getting lots of playing time in the CFL before going south.

[Hambone]

An undrafted free agent who has a stellar season in the CFL does not trump being a high NFL draft pick, imo and the opinion of many scouts and NFL GMs, so assuming that Rourke continues his stellar play, next season in the NFL would be as a backup initially for Rourke.

Rourke would be best off, imo, establishing an above average career in the CFL and then after 3 or 4 CFL years look at securing a staring role in the NFL. At 24 y.o. he is better off getting lots of playing time in the CFL before going south.

If he were to be offered an opportunity after this season, continued stellar play permitting, I think it would be to compete for a ceiling of #3. A lot of teams only dress 2 so effectively a PR spot. IMO if he stays here and follows the play of his first 3 games with strong play for the rest of 2022 and the same in 2023 THEN he might get offered a situation for something more prominent than #3/PR upside. By then, assuming he's proven himself to be a legit CFL elite QB, BC might be able to offer him 400K or 500K reasons to consider staying where he is.

[Ravi]

An undrafted free agent who has a stellar season in the CFL does not trump being a high NFL draft pick, imo and the opinion of many scouts and NFL GMs, so assuming that Rourke continues his stellar play, next season in the NFL would be as a backup initially for Rourke.

Rourke would be best off, imo, establishing an above average career in the CFL and then after 3 or 4 CFL years look at securing a staring role in the NFL. At 24 y.o. he is better off getting lots of playing time in the CFL before going south.

Casey Printers could be a cautionary tale for Rourke while Warren Moon could be an excellent example to try to follow.

[Dusty]

I'm not going to spend a bunch of energy getting fussed about Rourke being poached by the NFL. I'm going to enjoy having a QB that is young, mobile, makes his reads quickly, throws the ball out fast and is mature.

It's what we have been calling for over the past many seasons and I'm not getting my knickers in a knot about it ending....I'm enjoying the "now"!!

[Hambone]

I'm not going to spend a bunch of energy getting fussed about Rourke being poached by the NFL. I'm going to enjoy having a QB that is young, mobile, makes his reads quickly, throws the ball out fast and is mature.

It's what we have been calling for over the past many seasons and I'm not getting my knickers in a knot about it ending....I'm enjoying the "now"!!

Stressing over things like this that we have zero control over is what we fans do best Dusty.

We all have a bit of Chicken Little in us albeit usually to predict the sky will fall as opposed to crying that it is falling. It's kind of like the weather. We can worry about it but there's not a damned thing we can do about it. I thought Cottoy would be working under an NFL contract by now but that hasn't happened. In the meantime let's enjoy the ride and hope it's a long one!

[Coast Mountain Lion]

Casey Printers could be a cautionary tale for Rourke while Warren Moon could be an excellent example to try to follow.

Ricky Ray, Henry Burris, Dave Dickenson. Though each of those had somewhat better success when they came back north than Casey did. But none of them barely even got to practice down there.