Ottawa Redblacks fire vice president of football ops Shawn Burke

Photo courtesy: Bob Butrym/RFB Sport Photography

The Ottawa Redblacks have parted ways with vice-president of football operations Shawn Burke.

The Redblacks were defeated by the Montreal Alouettes on Thursday in a 46-16 blowout, dropping them to 0-10 on the season. That extended the franchise’s active losing streak to 16 consecutive games, the longest in modern CFL history. Through five seasons in Ottawa, Burke has posted a 21-60-1 record.

“This is a difficult decision because I have a lot of respect for Shawn,” Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group CEO Mark Goudie said in a statement. “Nobody can question how hard he has worked or how much he cares about the Redblacks. Shawn has embraced this organization and this community, and he has given an enormous amount of himself to the job. I am very grateful to him for that commitment.”

“At the same time, our football results have not been good enough. Ultimately, I have a responsibility to make changes when I believe we need a different approach, and I have concluded that a change in our football leadership is necessary.”

“Shawn has been a dedicated member of the Redblacks organization over the past five seasons.  I want to thank him for the professionalism, hard work and commitment he brought to the role, and I wish him and his family the very best.”

Burke was originally hired as general manager by the Redblacks in December 2021 after they moved on from their inaugural general manager, Marcel Desjardins. He posted consecutive 4-14 seasons in his first two years at the helm, as Ottawa was rocked by injuries to franchise quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, but the organization returned to the playoffs with a 9-8-1 record in 2024.

The native of Guelph, Ont., was quietly signed to a contract extension prior to the 2025 season. However, the team on the field failed to live up to expectations, finishing 4-14 yet again. That resulted in the firing of head coach Bob Dyce and the hiring of Ryan Dinwiddie to serve as both head coach and GM, which moved Burke into the vice-president role. That came with a further contract extension through 2027.

Burke had a track record of success prior to his time in Ottawa. The Durham College graduate began as director of community relations with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 2007 and rapidly rose through the ranks to become assistant general manager. He later served as senior director of player personnel and co-manager of football operations from 2019 to 2021, as the Ticats advanced to back-to-back Grey Cup games.

This is the second major organizational change made by the Redblacks this week, after team president Adrian Sciarra stepped down on Monday. In an interview with 3DownNation the following day, Goudie stated that no other changes were imminent.

OSEG will provide a further update on the Redblacks’ football operations structure in the near future.

The Redblacks (0-10) are slated to return to action on Sunday, August 30, when they host the B.C. Lions.