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GM Ryan Rigmaiden: ‘Everybody wants to play with the best and Nathan’s not only the best in the league at quarterback — I think he’s the best player in the league’
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Published Jan 26, 2026 • 5 minute read
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Nathan Rourke celebrating with his B.C. Lions teammates last seasonArticle content
Having Nathan Rourke at quarterback certainly helps the sales pitch when you’re recruiting players, says B.C. Lions general manager Ryan Rigmaiden.
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The CFL opens free agency on Feb. 10, but Rigmaiden has already done a lot of heavy lifting when it comes to building up the roster for his second season as the Lions’ general manager.
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That includes inking middle linebacker Darnell Sankey to a one-year deal after he was released by the Montreal Alouettes, and agreeing to a two-year contact contract with defensive tackle Casey Sayles after he was cut loose by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
Sankey, 31, has been a CFL East Division all-star the past two seasons. Sayles, 30, received that honour this past year to go with his 2023 All-CFL team accolade.
B.C. has already signed extensions with 12 of their own pending free agents, including wide receiver Keon Hatcher and defensive lineman Jonah Tavai.
Rigmaiden says that having Rourke at the controls of the offence and leading the team is “huge” when it comes to getting players to buy in to where the Lions are headed. Rourke, 27, was awarded both the CFL’s George Reed Most Outstanding Player and the Most Outstanding Canadian honours at the end of last season.
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“You don’t win in this league without a quarterback. That’s just the reality of it,” Rigmaiden said. “Everybody wants to play with the best and Nathan’s not only the best in the league at quarterback — I think he’s the best player in the league.
“Everybody from afar respects his game, but when they start talking to him and getting to know him and they respect the man. That’s even better.”
Rigmaiden says the Lions still aim to get deals done with some of their own pending free agents before Feb. 10, and he mentioned specifically offensive tackle Jarell Broxton, running back James Butler and receiver Ayden Eberhardt.
The league website published a list of the top-30 pending free agents on Dec. 5, they slotted Broxton at the No. 14 and Butler at No. 20. They followed it up Friday with a top-five pending free agents who could still hit the open market, and Butler was the lone B.C. player in that group.
Butler, 30, ran for 1,213 yards this past season, which was third best in the CFL, and tied for tops in rushing touchdowns with 11.
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Broxton, 32, received All-CFL recognition and Pro Football Focus also graded him as the top player in pass protection. Eberhardt, 27, finished with 863 yards receiving, which was the third-best total on the Lions.
“Some of these guys are going to have to go to the window and see what their value is,” Rigmaiden said of B.C.’s remaining free-agent crew.
“I think every player wants to be back but it has to make sense. Some players are going to get higher offers from other teams. That’s just the reality of football. Do I want to come back and continue to build what we’ve been building here or do I want to chase some money on the open market? That’s a personal decision for each player.”
The addition of Sankey led to the Lions releasing Micah Awe, 32, who was last year’s starting middle linebacker, on Friday. He was one of B.C.’s key additions in free agency last February and inked a two-year deal then.
Awe led the CFL in tackles this past season with 117. Rigmaiden told the media during the CFL winter meetings in Calgary last week that Sankey was the starter in the middle and the club hadn’t made any decisions on Awe at that point. Rigmaiden pointed out then that Awe was capable of playing outside linebacker, but there was also younger players that the Lions were “very, very excited about.”
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“It hurt a ton to let him go. I think I signed him when he was coming into the league,” said Rigmaiden, pointing to when he was the Lions director of U.S. scouting and Awe initially signed with B.C. in 2017 out of Texas Tech. “I personally love him as a human being. I’ve got to know him over the years. This is worst part of this business. It was something we had to do because it was the best decision for the club.”
With Sankey, 3DownNation reports that the Alouettes are looking at a ratio change and putting a Canadian in the middle linebacker spot. General manager Danny Maciocia said in the press release announcing Sankey’s departure that the move was giving him a “head start on free agency.”
The Tiger-Cats, meanwhile, look to be changing their mix. They cut ties with Sayles and on Monday they announced they had released receiver Tim White, 31, who had recorded 1,000 yards receiving in each of the past four seasons. He was set to become a free agent on Feb. 10.
Sankey finished third in the league in tackles with 103. Sayles had 35 tackles and four sacks. Sankey is from San Jose and played collegiately at Sacramento State. Sayles is from Omaha and played collegiately at Ohio.
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“We wanted to make a couple of impact signings on the defensive side of the ball and we didn’t even had to wait for free agency to start,” Rigmaiden said. “You had two premium, elite talents who are at the top of their game. Not only that — they’re really, really good leaders and terrific for the locker room. Adding two guys like that is exactly what we needed for the defence to take the next step.
“And getting Sayles and Sankey ahead of time is an advantage because it clears up your picture.”
B.C. lost 24-21 to the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the West Division final. The Lions open the 2026 regular season with a trip to the Roughriders on June 13. Their first home game is June 27, when they host the Calgary Stampeders at the Apple Bowl in Kelowna. That will be the team’s home to start the season because of FIFA World Cup commitments at B.C. Place. The Lions’ first game back at B.C. Place is July 25, when the Toronto Argonauts provide the opposition.
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