Kansas City. Jacksonville. Houston. New York. Detroit. Cleveland.

And then Calgary came calling.

After signing with several NFL squads, quarterback Ricky Stanzi has made his way north of the border.

On the field Thursday morning for the Stampeders first rookie camp practice in advance of the 2017 season, the 6-foot-4, 228-lb. signal caller is fully embracing yet another new beginning in his professional football journey.

“It’s been fun, it really has – the coaching staff, the players, the city, the atmosphere, the game,” said Stanzi, as he walked off the turf at McMahon. “Everything has been new and refreshing at the same time. I truly feel like a rookie out here.”

Photo by Rob McMorris

Easing him through the transition thus far has been veteran QB and shoo-in starter Bo Levi Mitchell, who himself came to Canada to join the Red and White back in 2012.

“We’ve had plenty of meetings so far and we’ve been talking and he’s a great leader,” Stanzi praised of the CFL’s reigning Most Outstanding Player. “You can see how much ownership he takes in what he does and it’s fun to watch as a fellow quarterback because he’s really excelling at what he’s doing and he’s playing great football up here. It’s nice to watch tape and see a guy who helps you out as a player because you start to ask him questions and learn from him.”

A fifth-round selection in 2011 by the Kansas City Chiefs, the Mentor, Ohio, native spent two seasons in red and yellow before stints with five other NFL franchises.

It’s safe to stay Stanzi has seen his fair share of playbooks, but never before has he been tasked with simultaneously digesting the nuances of the Canadian game.

“Learning a new system is not the issue,” began the pivot who’s sporting a No. 12 jersey. “It’s learning a new system and almost a new game entirely because of the rule changes and the field dimensions and how things are presented up here. You can do some things up here that you can’t do in the NFL. There is a learning curve, but at the same time, I’m enjoying that.”

Photo by Rob McMorris

Much to his benefit, there was one former college teammate for Stanzi to consult who knows the intricacies of the league as well as what to expect in his newfound city. During Stanzi’s redshirt season, it was ex-Stampder and current Ottawa RedBlack Drew Tate under centre for the Iowa Hawkeyes.

“We spent one season at Iowa together so I got to see Drew work,” said Stanzi, who threw for over 7,000 yards and finished with a 26-9 record after taking over for Tate. “He had a tremendous Iowa career and he’s come up here and had a great career. I got in touch with him about where to live and stuff like that with Calgary life. So it has been fun to catch up with him and just see how he’s doing.”

Other valuable guidance Stanzi has received came via a slew of NFL gunslingers, including a pair of No.-1 overall draft picks.

“Back in Kansas City, I had Matt Cassel, Kyle Orton, Brady Quinn,” he listed. “I was there at the tail end (of my time with the Chiefs) when Alex Smith and Chase Daniel came in. Matt Stafford in Detroit was someone who I thought really stood out because of his arm talent and actual quarterback talent. His leadership and his attentiveness to the details and his work ethic were off the charts. I’ve been fortunate to be around a lot of guys who took their craft seriously and that’s something that you can learn from as a younger player.”