Former Auburn QB Payton Thorne departs Winnipeg Blue Bombers, added to suspended list

Photo: Auburn Athletics

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have placed American quarterback Payton Thorne on the suspended list after he elected to leave the team.

According to the team’s in-house writer, Ed Tait, Thorne did not practice on Wednesday despite being at the facility. He has since returned home.

“We had a great conversation this morning. He’s a great kid, ” head coach Mike O’Shea told the media. “He’s really smart and I’m sure he’s got a future in football still. This is what he had to do.”

Thorne was one of four players vying for the Bombers’ backup quarterback position in training camp. Incumbent Terry Wilson, Canadian rookie Taylor Elgersma, and former UFL MVP Bryce Perkins remain on the roster. O’Shea said he did not believe the departure was due to Thorne falling behind in the competition and indicated that he doesn’t believe Thorne is done with football.

“I don’t know about that. He’s not afraid of competition or anything like that,” he said. “It’s hard to tell (where he ranked in the competition). We were going to play everybody and see where it all shakes out.”

“You’re disappointed because you want to run an organization where nobody ever leaves. They all want to stay all the time. But I also am genuinely excited if somebody has things figured out enough that this is the decision they make, because it’s not an easy decision. And there are guys that I disagree with, that I say, ‘I don’t think you’re doing the right thing,’ but they are all individual conversations. You can’t lump them all in together. Every year it happens and every year you navigate those conversations based on who the guy is and what he’s saying.”

As long as he remains on the suspended list, Winnipeg retains Thorne’s rights.

Thorne spent the 2023 and 2024 seasons at Auburn University. He completed 62.0 percent of his passes for 4,468 yards, 37 touchdowns, and 19 interceptions, rushed for 798 yards and five scores, and went 10-12 as a starter.

The six-foot-two, 210-pound passer started his collegiate career at Michigan State University in 2019 and spent four years with the program, completing 60.9 percent of his passes for 6,493 yards, 49 touchdowns, and 24 interceptions. He went 16-10 as a starter and rushed for 270 yards and six scores.

The native of Naperville, Ill., signed with the Cincinnati Bengals after going unselected in the 2025 NFL Draft. He completed four-of-seven passes for 41 yards during the preseason but was released at the conclusion of training camp.