{"id":501398,"date":"2026-02-26T19:05:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T19:05:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/501398\/"},"modified":"2026-02-26T19:05:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T19:05:09","slug":"new-b-c-lion-darnell-sankey-wonders-what-more-he-could-have-done-after-release-from-montreal-alouettes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/501398\/","title":{"rendered":"New B.C. Lion Darnell Sankey wonders what more he could have done after release from Montreal Alouettes"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Photo: Pascal Ratthe\/Montreal Alouettes<\/p>\n

Darnell Sankey put together an impeccable resume over two and a half seasons with the Montreal Alouettes, earning consecutive all-star selections while spurring the team to three straight Eastern Finals and a pair of Grey Cup appearances.<\/p>\n

However, those accomplishments weren\u2019t enough to make the veteran middle linebacker worth keeping<\/a> in the eyes of the organization, prompting his release in December. Now settled with a new team in the B.C. Lions<\/a>, Sankey has been left wondering what more he could have done to stick around.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a little bittersweet. I wouldn\u2019t even say sweet, it\u2019s kind of bitter \u2014 I don\u2019t even know if that\u2019s really the right word. I\u2019ve been released before in my career, multiple times, never in the CFL, but I\u2019ve been released in the NFL a whole lot of times. I felt like this was different,\u201d he admitted to 3DownNation.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just kind of felt like when you lead a defence to two Grey Cups, I don\u2019t really know what else (you can do). I guess we could have gone to all three, that\u2019s the only alternative. I guess we could have won the one we were in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sankey was an East Division All-CFL selection for the second straight season in 2025, making 99 tackles and two sacks. He added 13 more tackles and an interception across three playoff games, as the Alouettes came up just short against Saskatchewan in the 112th Grey Cup.<\/p>\n

Despite his continued success on the field, he had an inkling that his time in Montreal might be coming to a close. The Alouettes drafted local product Geoffrey Cantin-Arku in the first round of the 2024 CFL Draft and ensured he played a package role early in his career, foreshadowing a future ratio change at the position<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt like they kind of had a plan. They had a plan that they were wanting to do, I had heard from little birdies throughout my time there. They were thinking about the route they wanted to go. I won\u2019t get into that and personal stuff, I\u2019m not going to air out laundry. That\u2019s not the type of man I am. But I think it was something that was in the works, so I was never really, truly surprised,\u201d Sankey said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like they had something they wanted to do for a while now. I think I just made it really hard for them to do it. I feel like they already had something in the works and that\u2019s that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now entering his 10th professional season, the 31-year-old joked that he is pretty \u201chard to fool\u201d at this stage of his career. He has also earned enough respect from coaches and front office decision-makers to ask about his future point-blank, which he took the liberty of doing after the season.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were some things that were transpiring in the year that just kind of made me scratch my head a little bit. After the season, during some negotiations, I just felt like something was maybe a little bit off,\u201d Sankey explained. \u201cThey had told me their plans, and I just said, hey, let\u2019s go ahead and keep it moving if that\u2019s what you\u2019re gonna do. I respect you guys, and they respect me. And I said, if that\u2019s the route you guys want to go, then let me go so I can go somewhere else. And they did that.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a result, Sankey hit the market two months before the start of CFL free agency, becoming the first major domino of the offseason. While he may not have been surprised by his release from Montreal, the general managers who were blowing up his phone certainly were.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was kind of the same talk from what I heard, a bunch of the same questions. \u2018What were they thinking?\u2019 And I didn\u2019t have an answer, because on my end, I don\u2019t really know,\u201d he recalled. \u201cI\u2019ve been playing great. I\u2019ve only been getting better every single year. Production speaks, and the defence that I\u2019m leading speaks. I feel like it was definitely a shock from when I was talking to other GMs and other coaches, and I didn\u2019t really have an answer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sankey declined to reveal how many teams expressed interest in his services, stating only that it was \u201cenough to make (him) comfortable.\u201d He suggests the list may have included a couple of teams fans would consider surprises based on their incumbent linebackers, though he contends that his self-proclaimed status as the best in the league would make him an upgrade for anyone.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, his decision came down to where he felt the most respected and valued. B.C. Lions general manager Ryan Rigmaiden had actively pursued Sankey when he became available mid-way through the 2023 season, but the franchise lost out to Montreal in the sweepstakes. This time around, he wouldn\u2019t be denied.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs soon as I hit free agency, Rigmaiden was the very first person to call me. Right within the minute that it came out that we officially agreed to part ways, I guess you could say that he was the first person to hit me up,\u201d Sankey recounted. \u201cHe just said, \u2018Hey, I love what I see on tape. We\u2019ve been wanting you here for a while now. You made a decision, you went to Montreal. You had a great run there. We don\u2019t know what they were thinking in releasing you, but we want you right now.\u2019 And that was really it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eight days after he left the Alouettes, the Sacramento State product returned to the West Coast and officially signed with the Lions. The team released reigning CFL tackle leader Micah Awe<\/a> in order to clear the way for a new leader in the middle of their defence, believing Sankey to be the physical tone-setter that they\u2019ve been missing<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Early on in his tenure with Montreal, the six-foot-one, 245-pound bruiser stole headlines when he vowed that the Alouettes would not lose another game that season<\/a>. That declaration spurred the team to an undefeated finish in 2023, resulting in a Grey Cup title. Now, he is offering a similarly ambitious prediction for his new team.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know if you want to consider it bold, but I know we\u2019re going to be the best defence in the CFL. I know that\u2019s the thing that we\u2019re going to do,\u201d Sankey vowed. \u201cWe\u2019re here to do our thing, and we\u2019re here to bring wins to this organization, and the goal is to win a Grey Cup. Anything shorter than that is a failure, really, because none of us come to work every single day to lose.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s hard to not respect that. It\u2019s not me being arrogant. I\u2019m not being cocky. No, I\u2019m just confident in what I bring to the table. I\u2019m confident that there\u2019s no one out there that\u2019s like me. We can go watch the tape, and everything\u2019s out there for the world to see. The accolades are there, the resume is there, and the defences I\u2019ve been on, we\u2019ve been at the top every year.\u201d<\/p>\n

He won\u2019t have an opportunity to test the mettle of that unit against his former team until Week 14, when the Lions travel to Montreal on Friday, September 4. The Alouettes return the favour and visit B.C. the following week, playing in Vancouver for the second half of the home-and-home on Saturday, September 12.<\/p>\n

Sankey has only positive things to say about the relationships he built in Montreal and insists he won\u2019t be motivated to stick it to the organization that deemed him expendable.<\/p>\n

\u201cMan, I don\u2019t care about that. I\u2019m motivated by wins and championships. I won a Grey Cup with the city. I had a great time there. How it ended is how it ended. It\u2019s a business. I don\u2019t let that get under my skin anymore,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think when I was younger, obviously, you kind of have a little bit of something to say. But I don\u2019t care, I\u2019m on to the next right now. My focus is on the B.C. Lions and this team, so I don\u2019t even think about that anymore. When I play them, maybe I\u2019ll say something different. But as of right now, I don\u2019t even think about that. They\u2019re not even until mid-year anyway. We\u2019ve got a lot of football to play. We\u2019ve still got over three months until the first preseason game. That\u2019s not on my mind.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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