Adrian McPherson could be headed back to the CFL in Kevin Glenn’s old Calgary role

The Calgary Stampeders lost veteran quarterback Kevin Glenn to the Ottawa Redblacks in last month's expansion draft, but they may have already found his replacement. Dan Ralph of The Canadian Press reported Monday that according to an anonymous CFL source, the Stampeders have signed Adrian McPherson. McPherson played with the Montreal Alouettes from 2008-2012, mostly serving as Anthony Calvillo's backup, before heading to the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League this past year. If he's ready to come back to the CFL and okay with likely serving in a backup role (Calgary already has promising quarterbacks Drew Tate and Bo Levi Mitchell on the roster), he might be a solid addition for the Stampeders.

It's not clear who the Stamps will start this coming season, as Tate's more proven but carries major injury concerns, while Mitchell still hasn't played much in the CFL but has shown great promise, and Glenn was the team's starter to end the year. McPherson could even theoretically contend for the starting role, but he'd seem unlikely to win it; Calgary tends to run an offence that emphasizes completion percentage, and McPherson's CFL career mark of 59.7 per cent is a long ways behind those of Tate (68 per cent) and Mitchell (67.9 per cent). However, McPherson can't be ruled out; he impressed in occasional starting and relief stints in Montreal, and he's terrific with his legs, as he showed in the AFL this past year, setting a league record for
single-season rushing touchdowns by a quarterback. He's also only 30, so while Tate (29) and Mitchell (23) may have youth on their side, it's not like he's on his last legs. Still, McPherson's coming in to compete for the starting job at best, and it's most likely he'll wind up as a backup, at least out of the gate.

That isn't a bad thing, though, as we've seen over the past couple of years. Glenn started both 2012 and 2013 as a backup for the Stampeders, but was their starter by the end of both seasons thanks to injuries (and sometimes inconsistent play) by Tate, and he proved the value of having an experienced hand there who can both help develop younger quarterbacks and step in himself if required. Bringing in McPherson could be an attempt to fill that slot. Glenn's CFL resume is much more prolific than McPherson's, of course, as the latter has rarely started, but McPherson might well fill Glenn's role with the Stampeders as an experienced CFL quarterback who can step in and start in a pinch. (Tate's also experienced, but is injury-prone; Mitchell's still relatively unproven.) That could be important. McPherson isn't Glenn, of course; he's much more of a rushing threat, and a player who's put up impressive numbers throughout NCAA and AFL stints (even if his journey's taken plenty of odd turns along the way, including a court case over check forging and betting on games while at Florida State, a lawsuit against the Tennessee Titans over an injury caused by their mascot and a season-ending hyperextended knee in the AFL last season), but a guy who hasn't yet shown he can be a consistent passer at the CFL level. However, he has plenty of CFL experience, and he could put that to good use in Calgary. We'll see how the Stamps plan to use him, if he's content to sit and wait for a chance the way Glenn did, and if he can make the most of a chance to start if he ever gets one.