With Monday’s news that Ottawa Redblacks QB Henry Burris plans to announce his retirement this week comes the end of an era.

Burris played in 18 seasons in the CFL, starting or playing significant snaps in 15 of them. But for two and a half seasons early in his career when Burris was playing in the NFL and Europe, the 41-year-old has been a summer to fall fixture for CFL fans the past 20 years.

And what a way to go out, on top, securing the Redblacks’ first ever Grey Cup and being named the game’s MVP after overcoming a pregame knee injury in the process.

All that’s left to do now is debate Smilin’ Hank’s standing in CFL history. Burris is an undoubted Hall of Famer but where amongst the greatest quarterbacks to ever play the three-down game does he place?

A closer look at Henry Burris’ career numbers:

Burris finishes with 63,369 career passing yards, which ranks third all-time behind only Anthony Calvillo (79,816) and Damon Allen (72,381). His touchdown totals are also third on the all-time list; once again behind Calvillo (455) and Allen (394) with 373.

Had Burris stayed in the CFL rather than jump to the NFL and subsequently Europe in the early 2000s, his passing yards could have been much closer to Allen’s while his touchdown totals almost assuredly would have passed Allen’s, and maybe even challenged Calvillo’s.  

*The Argos’ Ricky Ray is the only active quarterback in shouting distance of Burris’ totals, with 54,883 passing yards and 298 touchdown passes.

*While Burris spent his first year south of the border on the Packers practice roster, he appeared in five games with one start for the Bears in 2002. He finished with 207 passing yards and three touchdowns to five interceptions on 35.3 percent passing.

Other notable totals for Burris include wins, his 118 rank fourth all-time behind Calvillo, Allen, and Ron Lancaster; completions, his 4,649 finish fourth all-time; and completion percentage, his 62.4 career mark is 13th all-time.

Burris also walks away from the game with a full trophy cabinet. The Temple product is a two-time Most Outstanding Player, winning the honour in 2010 and 2015, two-time CFL All-Star (2010 and 2015), and two-time Grey Cup MVP (2008 and 2016). And Burris actually finishes with three Grey Cup rings, earning one as a backup with the 2008 Calgary Stampeders.

The majority of Burris’ accomplishments come with the Stampeders, but he’s put up big numbers and accomplishments with the Redblacks, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, and Saskatchewan Roughriders as well. Burris finished less than 1,000 passing yards with the Roughriders away from joining Allen as the only player to surpass 10,000 with four different teams.

One thing he does have Allen beat in, Burris became the oldest player to navigate a team to a Grey Cup win this past fall, about two months Allen’s senior when he won his last championship with the Argos in 2004.

That win also put to bed any still-lingering notions of Good Hank vs Bad Hank.

“Walking out as the reigning Grey Cup MVP, this ends the Good Hank/Bad Hank,” TSN Senior Correspondent Gary Lawless said. “That is not Henry Burris’ epitaph. He looked the doubters in the eye and he silenced them.”

With his major questions answered and numbers near the top of all-time lists, Burris is free to take his rightful spot in CFL history.