The Jacksonville Jaguars have signed Canadian quarterback Nathan Rourke to the active roster for Sunday's game against the Cleveland Browns, the team announced.
The Jaguars are bringing Rourke back into the fold in case starting quarterback Trevor Lawrence is unable to play with a high-ankle sprain.
Head coach Doug Pedersen was uncertain if Rourke would dress without knowing the status of his quarterbacks.
“Nathan’s obviously on (the) practice squad, so you can’t bring him up on an activation or an elevation, he’d have to come to the 53 in order to be your 49th guy, like we did for New Orleans,” Pederson told reporters ahead of practice on Friday. “Today’s a big day for us. We’ve got to get through today and we’ll make those decisions probably before we leave tomorrow.”
Backup quarterback C.J. Beathard was also a limited participant in practice with a shoulder injury.
This is the second time Rourke will join the active roster after Jacksonville elevated the Victora, B.C., native in October when Lawrence was dealing with a knee injury.
Rourke was then placed on waivers in order to send him back to the practice squad.
The six-foot-one, 210-pound Rourke signed with Jacksonville as a free agent Jan. 6 after two seasons with the CFL’s B.C. Lions. He completed 23-of-35 passes for 348 yards and a TD during the Jaguars’ pre-season schedule.
Rourke was the CFL’s top Canadian in 2022, completing 255-of-324 passes (78.7 per cent) for 3,349 yards with 25 TDs and 10 interceptions in 10 regular-season starts. The former Ohio star also ran 39 times for 304 yards (7.8-yard average) and seven touchdowns.
At Ohio in 2017-19, Rourke threw for 7,457 yards and 60 touchdowns while leading the Bobcats to three consecutive bowl victories. Twice he received the Jon Cornish Trophy (2017-18) as the top Canadian football player in the NCAA ranks.
The Lions selected Rourke in the second round, No. 15 overall, at the 2020 CFL draft. He began his pro career in Canada the following year as the league didn’t hold a 2020 season because of the global pandemic.
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