Jake Burt, a 24-year-old tight end with ties to New England, was selected first overall Tuesday in the 2021 CFL Draft.
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League picked Burt, who signed with the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2020 after playing for Boston College.
Burt spent the 2020 NFL season on the Patriots' practice squad but was not offered a reserve/future contract ahead of the 2021 campaign.
"It's a business, I don't know the reasons exactly why, they don't call you and tell you," Burt recently told 3DownNation of the Patriots' decision. "For whatever reason they chose not to bring me back, it wasn't a cut, it just wasn't a re-signing. It was their decision, I respect that decision, I'm a professional and I can accept it."
Rather than continue to pursue a career in the NFL, Burt took his talents north of the border, where he was born before moving to the United States and growing up in the Boston area.
It's possible Burt, listed at 6-foot-3 and 260 pounds, could line up as a receiver or an H-back with his new team, as tight ends typically aren't used in the CFL.
Burt is the ninth Boston College player to be selected in the CFL draft and the first to go No. 1 overall, according to TSN. He signed a three-year deal with Hamilton.
