Patriots Daily

Patriots Football Daily: Pats QB Chimes in on CFL Scandal

Published

9 months ago

April 13, 2024

New England Patriots quarterback Nathan Rourke (13) in the first half of an NFL football game in Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, Dec. 24, 2023, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

North of the border, there has been some controversy in the Canadian Football League. Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly is at the center of it. The former Ole Miss and NFL QB (Broncos, Colts) joined the CFL in 2022. He has since been named in a wrongful dismissal lawsuit by a former member of the Argonauts training staff. New England Patriots quarterback Nathan Rourke voiced his displeasure with the handling of the situation.

According to journalist Justin Dunk, “The lawsuit filed by a former strength and conditioning coach against Chad Kelly and the Argonauts includes new sexual harassment claims.”

Another journalist covering the situation, Arash Madani, states, “A number of staff voiced concern with how the commissioner and senior staff have handled the Kelly matter. In response, a dismissive, flippant memo was then sent internally. Subsequently, some female league office staff resigned.”

Although Kelly’s NFL career was unremarkable, he has been sensational for Toronto. He led the Argonauts to the 2022 Grey Cup title and won the 2023 CFL Most Outstanding Player Award.

Nathan Rourke’s Response

Patriots quarterback Nathan Rourke is a native of Canada and a former CFL player himself. He took to social media to voice his displeasure with how the situation has been handled. Rourke released a statement from his personal account on X.

“I’m disappointed with the lack of urgency expressed by both the @CFL and the @TorontoArgos. This issue must be viewed with the utmost seriousness and concern for the truth. What example are we setting for boys and girls across Canada if we can’t practice what we preach? #BeMORE“

I’m disappointed with the lack of urgency expressed by both the @CFL and the @TorontoArgos. This issue must be viewed with the utmost seriousness and concern for the truth. What example are we setting for boys and girls across Canada if we can't practice what we preach? #BeMORE https://t.co/CTPQLXjKHp

— Nathan Rourke (@nathan_rourke) April 11, 2024

It is nice to see football players holding others accountable in such a situation. It is too early to know the validity of the claims against Chad Kelly, but they should be taken seriously. There is no place in sports for the behavior that Kelly is being accused of here. Teams and leagues need to fully investigate these cases before jumping to conclusions. And a “dismissive, flippant memo” is beyond unacceptable.

Perhaps the CFL learned from the NFL that the bigger the star, the more motivation there is to sweep such allegations under the rug and move on. Nice to see Nathan Rourke as a voice of reason.

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Football Fun Fact of the Day

The New England Patriots have had five players listed at 350 pounds or more play for them (though the actual total is higher). Those players, listed by weight:

370 – Trent Brown
365 – Ted Washington
350 – Alan Branch, Derrick Fletcher, Mike Onwenu