The Buffalo Bills have promoted Canadian scout Curtis Rukavina to co-director of pro scouting.
The 34-year-old previously held the title of assistant director of pro scouting and was in charge of the team’s approach to free agency. He will share his new title with Chris Marrow, who previously worked for the B.C. Lions.
A native of Mississauga, Ont., Rukavina played at Erie Community College for two years and transferred to the University of Guelph for the final seasons of his eligibility. After graduating, Rukavina was coaching at Guelph in 2014 when an opportunity came about with the Toronto Argonauts.
In February 2016, Rukavina was promoted to director of player personnel for the Argos. Rukavina was clearly fast-tracking, he had been in the CFL for a year and a half and already earned lots of responsibility from four-time Grey Cup champion football man, Jim Barker.
As Rukavina was moving up quickly in Toronto’s front office, he was doing the same in the minds of scouting connections he had developed in the NFL. After the 2017 NFL draft, Buffalo let go of most of their scouting staff, which created openings, and Brandon Beane hired Rukavina the same month he was appointed GM.
Rukavina grew up a Bills fan, living an hour and a half away from where the team played, his family had season tickets for many years. The Erie Community College Kats, where he played collegiately for two years, shares a parking lot with the Bills’ home stadium.
The Bills went 13-3 in 2022 and won the AFC East for a third consecutive season. Buffalo made it to the Divisional round of the playoffs, but lost to the Cincinnati Bengals 27-10.
The Bills are currently valued at +900 to win the Super Bowl in 2023, according to most Ontario sports books.
