The BC Lions announced Thursday that they have released American offensive lineman Dejon Allen.
Allen, 32, made five starts for the Lions this season at right tackle and has appeared in 10 games with BC over the past two years - missing significant time in 2025 due to injury.
The two-time All-CFL player (2023, 2024) spent the past two seasons with the Lions after coming over in a trade with the Toronto Argonauts that saw national linebacker Ryder Varga and a 2026 second-round draft pick moved to Toronto.
As TSN’s Farhan Lalji notes, this move happened late in the week with the Lions set to take on the Argonauts on Saturday. Lalji expects that Joshua Donovan will start at right tackle with Allen no longer an option.
Pressure on the quarterback has been a problem for the Lions throughout the year - reigning Most Outstanding Canadian and Most Outstanding Player Nathan Rourke has taken 11 sacks through five games this year, and suffered a shoulder injury on a sack on the second play of the game in the team’s 19-17 loss to the Edmonton Elks in Week 7.
Rourke is now expected to miss extended time with the shoulder issue, and the Lions will need to improve quickly to dig their way out of a 1-4 hole and into playoff contention.
Allen has appeared in 73 career CFL games over six seasons in the CFL, and is a two-time Grey Cup champion (both with the Argonauts).
