Shortly after he was cut by the FalconsQuarterback Nathan Rourke returned to Canada, signing what would be a shoestring by NFL quarterback standards but is the most lucrative deal in the Canadian Football League.

In addition to a partial salary for finishing this season with the British Columbia Lions, Rourke will get 749,200 Canadian dollars in 2025 and 809,000 Canadian dollars in 2026, according to 3DownNation.com. That’s just under $600,000 USD for 2025 and just over $600,000 for 2026.

Rourke, a British Columbia native, won the CFL’s Most Outstanding Canadian award when he last played for the BC Lions in 2022, making him a popular figure among Canadian football fans. So it’s no surprise that $200,000 of his contract will come from marketing money, which doesn’t count against the CFL’s salary cap.

After winning the Most Outstanding Canadian award, Rourke decided to try his luck in the NFL, spending time with the Jaguars, Patriots, Giants and Falcons without ever playing in a game. The CFL doesn’t pay nearly as well as the NFL, but after being cut by four teams, the security of a job with a team he knows will invest in him is a big plus for Rourke.