Near the end of Tuesday's news conference announcing his signing with the Ottawa RedBlacks, Henry Burris stood up, grabbed the football on the table in front of him, and fired a 50-foot spiral over a throng of reporters and into the arms of assistant coach Leroy Blugh standing at the opposite end of the spacious meeting room.

It was his first completion as a member of the RedBlacks.

It won't be his last. The RedBlacks signed the 38-year-old future Hall of Famer to a three-year contract this week and GM Marcel Desjardins made it clear: "He is our starting quarterback."

If you're counting, that makes four quarterbacks on the RedBlacks roster. Another veteran, 34-year-old Kevin Glenn, was the projected starter before Burris became available last week when he was released by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

Burris said he and Glenn are friends and he's "sure he'll understand," but Burris said before signing with Ottawa he wanted assurance he would be the No. 1 quarterback.

"A key in the CFL is to have depth at quarterback," said RedBlacks coach Rick Campbell. "And to acquire as many good football players as we can regardless of position. This is another step in the right direction."

Burris said his decision came down to Ottawa and Winnipeg, and Tuesday he thanked the Blue Bombers for their interest but ultimately wanted to be a part of RedBlacks history.

"The opportunity to be a part of something fresh and new was something that my family and I, we just couldn't turn down that opportunity," he said. "To be able to leave your fingerprints, your footprint, on a growing organization that will be around for years and years and years to come and to know that we were a part of what started this, that's great as far as your legacy."

Burris said he spoke with former Ottawa Rough Riders coach Steve Goldman -- who coached him at Temple -- and quarterback Damon Allen, who touted the merits of playing in Ottawa. He and his wife Nicole have family in Maryland and Massachusetts, and Ottawa is close enough for them to visit. Their two sons, ages seven and four, also love hockey, Nicole said.

Sold.

"I know for me this will be my last contract," Burris said. "And the way we wanted to do was our way. To do it with the RedBlacks was definitely the way to go."

Terms of the deal were not released but Desjardins admitted it is a "sizeable" contract, but not out of line with others in the CFL. It is rumoured to be more than $300,000 a year. CFL teams operate under a $4.4 million salary cap.

Burris, a veteran of 15 CFL seasons, is of course not unfamiliar with playing in Ottawa. And despite past failures of CFL franchises in the capital, he's not worried this time.

"To me it's definitely going to be different," he said. "I remember the first time I played back in Ottawa there was something called Mardi Gras going on in the top deck, there were beads and drums being played ... it was pretty crazy and I'm pretty sure it won't be going on this time. Players across the league are talking about the serious intentions of the Ottawa franchise led by Mr. (Jeff) Hunt and the ownership group."

Burris, well-spoken and charismatic, becomes the smiling, gap-toothed face of the franchise. He is expected to play a leadership role with the younger players, but also be one of the best players on the field. Two years ago he had his best season statistically, and last year took Hamilton to the Grey Cup before losing to Saskatchewan.

"I have a lot in the tank, I can promise you that," he said. "I know there are going to be a lot of people going to be saying this team can't do this or can't do that. For me, that's like throwing logs on the fire. I look forward to the challenges. I still wasn't able get a Grey Cup championship this past year and I know we can definitely make that happen here. "

Maybe he can. Tuesday, we saw that he can at least still throw the ball, and not even break a lamp.