{"id":875317,"date":"2026-08-29T03:16:30","date_gmt":"2026-08-29T03:16:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/875317\/"},"modified":"2026-08-29T03:16:30","modified_gmt":"2026-08-29T03:16:30","slug":"zurkowsky-testing-nfl-waters-not-in-cards-alouettes-qb-davis-alexander-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/875317\/","title":{"rendered":"Zurkowsky: Testing NFL waters not in cards, Alouettes QB Davis Alexander says"},"content":{"rendered":"

B.C. quarterback Nathan Rourke, the CFL\u2019s reigning outstanding player, tried his luck in the NFL, but was largely unsuccessful.<\/p>\n

During the 2023 and \u201924 seasons, he was a member of the Jacksonville Jaguars, New England Patriots, New York Giants and Atlanta Falcons. While he played in exhibition games for the Jaguars, Rourke never attempted a regular-season pass before returning to the Lions, becoming the league\u2019s highest-paid player, earning more than $684,000.<\/p>\n

Anthony Calvillo<\/a>, the Alouettes\u2019 offensive coordinator and the leading passer in CFL history, worked out for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2003, but wasn\u2019t offered a contract. And Montreal receiver Tyson Philpot<\/a>, the league\u2019s leading receiver this season, also worked out for the Steelers after his rookie 2022 season \u2014 to no avail.<\/p>\n

With Als quarterback Davis Alexander<\/a> on a franchise record pace \u2014 he entered Friday night\u2019s game at Winnipeg having passed for 3,400 yards; Calvillo threw for 6,041 yards in 2004 \u2014 speculation has surfaced that he might try his luck in the NFL after the season.<\/p>\n

In an interview with The Gazette this week after practice, Alexander did his best to quell that speculation, confirming his commitment to the Als franchise that signed him in 2022. He did, however, offer a small caveat, noting his mind could be swayed should a barrel full of money enter the equation. Unless an NFL team offers a significant signing bonus, most CFL players attempting to make the jump are nothing more than training-camp fodder.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t have any intention of going to the NFL,\u201d Alexander stated. \u201cI have lots of stuff I\u2019d worry about before that. The competition would be a lot of fun, but part of it is loyalty.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome people say (the Als) could turn their back on you at any moment, but they\u2019ve been amazing to me. And there\u2019s something special here. I\u2019ve been here for five years and I love being here. That\u2019s part of it for sure. Maybe if I was in a different city or organization \u2026 I might think about it, but these are my guys.\u201d <\/p>\n

While there have been examples of smaller quarterbacks making it in the NFL, at 6-feet and 210 pounds, Alexander isn\u2019t big by NFL standards. In other words, a team \u2014 the Cleveland Browns? \u2014 would have to be serious about giving him an opportunity.<\/p>\n

\"AlouettesAlouettes\u2019 Davis Alexander attempts a pass during the fourth quarter against the Calgary Stampeders in Montreal on July 11. Tim Snow \/ Montreal Gazette<\/p>\n

And while the recurring hamstring issues that limited Alexander to seven games last season and affected his performance in the Als\u2019 Grey Cup loss to Saskatchewan<\/a> haven\u2019t surfaced again, most fans \u2014 and probably head coach Jason Maas \u2014 hold their breath on the few occasions Alexander decides to run. All it would take is one injury to him for the season to potentially implode.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m always trying to push myself to be the best,\u201d said Alexander, 27. \u201cI haven\u2019t played enough games for that to be (part of the) conversation. It\u2019s all about being consistent. So far, I have been. There\u2019s a long way to go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although in his fifth CFL season, Alexander only became the Als\u2019 full-time starter in 2025, backing up Trevor Harris as a rookie and then Cody Fajardo when the Als won the Grey Cup in 2023. Fajardo was traded to Edmonton after the 2024 season for McLeod Bethel-Thompson \u2014 a deal the Als lost.<\/p>\n

During the 2024 off-season, Alexander was signed to a three-year contract extension through 2027. The Als subsequently added a year to that deal. Alexander could earn up to $446,000 this season, according to a published report.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m content and happy to be here,\u201d he said. \u201cThe people in Montreal have been amazing to me and my family. I don\u2019t have any intention of leaving and have a lot more on my mind than the NFL. We know what our end goal is.\u201d<\/p>\n

You can come home again: Jim Popp\u2019s return to the CFL as Ottawa\u2019s senior adviser \u2014 after the long-overdue firing of Shawn Burke (vice-president of football operations and former general manager ) \u2014 was the big news this week as things continue to unravel with the winless Redblacks.<\/p>\n

Popp spent 21 seasons as the Als\u2019 GM, VP, director of football operations and player personnel \u2014 try fitting all that onto a business card \u2014 and also made frequent forays into the head coaching role, where he was less successful.<\/p>\n

After he was fired by former president Mark Weightman<\/a>, who was probably following owner Robert Wetenhall\u2019s orders, Popp went to Toronto as GM in 2017 for three seasons, winning a fifth Grey Cup with the Argonauts.<\/p>\n

While Popp has been out of the CFL since 2019, his strengths as an evaluator and discovering talent \u2014 other than at quarterback, where he was unable to find Calvillo\u2019s successor \u2014 can\u2019t be overlooked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to be back in the CFL,\u201d Popp told The Gazette. \u201cI never thought about leaving. It has always been that way.<\/p>\n

\t\tEditor\u2019s Picks\t<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was one of those things that felt good. It felt right. It also allowed me to come back to the CFL. Other than being in Montreal, I\u2019ve always been working on expansion or rebuilds. And you want to work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Popp and Mark Goudie, the CEO of the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group, spoke five years ago, before Burke was hired. While Popp has committed only until the end of the season, he said he would be open to a return in 2027. And with the Redblacks at 0-10 heading into Sunday night\u2019s home game against B.C., it\u2019s unlikely even Popp can turn this mess around in two months. <\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s go through the fall and get this thing going in the right direction,\u201d Popp said. \u201cLet\u2019s figure out what we want to do moving forward. They want to make sure they\u2019re doing the right thing. I understand that.<\/p>\n

\u201cMathematically, (Ottawa) has yet to be eliminated. There\u2019s hope. I like the challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n

And there will be even more hope next season, when CFL commissioner Stewart Johnston and the league\u2019s governors decided nine teams will continue playing 18 regular-season games only to eliminate one from playoff contention. <\/p>\n

Short yardage: Toronto rush-end Shawn Lemon, who no longer figured in the Als\u2019 2026 plans, has six sacks and one forced fumble at age 38 in only four games. The Als, conversely, only have 17 sacks through 10 games. The coaching staff would argue sacks aren\u2019t the central component of a defence, that putting pressure on the QB is more important. The Als are second in the CFL, allowing an average of 26.3 points per game \u2014 but a league-low 25.1 offensive points. \u2026<\/p>\n

A lack of discipline continues being a recurring issue with Montreal. In last week\u2019s victory against Ottawa, the Als were penalized 12 times for 90 yards. The Als are one of the CFL\u2019s most-penalized teams (83 in total for 704 yards). \u201cWe\u2019ve got to be better,\u201d Maas admitted. \u201cWe don\u2019t want to ever go into a game and lose that battle. It has to start. We talk about it and need to be better. Part of it is just playing. But why do offsides happen? You\u2019re not watching the ball. We have to be more disciplined.\u201d \u2026<\/p>\n

While Edmonton and Saskatchewan have garnered most of the attention in the West Division, watch out for B.C. The Lions (5-5) are on a four-game winning streak heading into Ottawa.<\/p>\n

hzurkowsky@postmedia.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"B.C. quarterback Nathan Rourke, the CFL\u2019s reigning outstanding player, tried his luck in the NFL, but was largely…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":875318,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194292],"tags":[49,48,2338],"class_list":["post-875317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-montreal","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-montreal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/875317","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=875317"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/875317\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/875318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=875317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=875317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=875317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}