Morning Coffee: Rourke’s return leads to notable changes in CFL betting markets
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Nathan Rourke has unfinished business with the BC Lions.
His long-awaited CFL comeback sparked a frenzy on Tuesday, with both fans and critics buzzing about whether he can turn back the clock and deliver the type of magic that made him a star in the league.
The Lions announced Rourke’s return on Tuesday with a three-year contract that will make him the highest-paid player in the CFL in 2025 and 2026.
Rourke is expected to practise with the team later today.
With Vernon Adams Jr. injured and BC set to host the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Sunday, there’s a good chance that Rourke will make his season debut this weekend.
The return of the 2022 CFL Most Outstanding Player has already led to a major shake-up in FanDuel’s CFL markets.
This is the Morning Coffee for Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024.
Rourke’s return leads to notable changes in CFL betting markets
Rourke stepped away from the CFL at the height of his game after the 2022 season.
Now fans are eager to see if he can reclaim his throne as the best quarterback in the league and lead the Lions to a Grey Cup championship.
Rourke’s return has already led to the traders at FanDuel making some major adjustments to their futures markets.
BC’s odds to win the Grey Cup were cut from +340 to +185 as they went from the second choice to the favourite to win it all this season following the news that Rourke had signed on Tuesday.
The Montreal Alouettes, who had emerged as the Grey Cup favourite at FanDuel, had their odds to win it all adjusted from +170 to +210 in a corresponding move.
Lions’ head coach Rick Campbell made it clear in a team release that the addition of Rourke will not lead to incumbent Adams being traded.
Adams was the pre-season favourite to win the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player at FanDuel.
He remained the top choice in that market after leading BC to a hot start with 2,469 passing yards and 14 touchdowns before getting sidelined with a knee injury in a Week 9 loss to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
The Lions have lost three in a row, and with Adams out, it’s clear they were desperate for help at quarterback.
Enter Rourke, who FanDuel installed as the second choice to win the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player award at +340.
Rourke hasn’t played a game yet, but his odds to win MOP have already been cut to +230 in the past 24 hours.
Montreal Alouettes QB Cody Fajardo is now the favourite to win MOP at -120 at FanDuel. Adams dropped from the favourite to the third choice at +350.
No other player has shorter than 40-to-1 odds to win the CFL MOP at FanDuel this season.
As for this week, the Lions remain the underdog for Sunday’s game against the visiting Blue Bombers, although the spread for that game has ticked down from Winnipeg -2.5 to -1.5 at FanDuel.
Meanwhile, the total has climbed from 46.5 to 49.5 over the past 24 hours, with the expectation that Rourke will provide the spark for the BC offence that Jake Dolegala wasn’t able to give them in place of the injured Adams.
Expectations are extremely high for the 26-year-old Victoria, B.C. native as he prepares for his second CFL stint.
It will be very interesting to see what Rourke will bring to the league this time around.
If the early indications are correct, we could get our first look at Rourke at quarterback for the Lions against Zach Collaros and the Bombers on Sunday Night Football.