Menu
November 13, 2019

Western Final | QB Status Update

Zach Collaros stood staring into a wall of reporters, with a dozen microphones jammed near his face and four different television cameras capturing the entire scene.

No doubt the Collaros return to Regina for the Western Final as the quarterback of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers is a heckuva story, given he opened up the 2019 Canadian Football League season taking the first snap for the Saskatchewan Roughriders before being injured, then traded to Toronto and flipped here to Manitoba at the trade deadline.

But as delicious as the tale is for the Bombers and their faithful – actually, anyone who is a fan of the three-down game – the veteran quarterback wasn’t about to be pulled into any narrative about the irony of the situation, the possible revenge factor, or say anything that might end up on a bulletin board or trending on Twitter.

Yes, it turns there’s poise in the pocket and there’s veteran savvy out of it, too.

“Things happen,” began Collaros in his media session after practice Wednesday. “If there’s anything I’ve learned in this league it’s things can change quickly and this is where I find myself now and it’s a great opportunity for us.”

He did concede later, “I don’t think I’d be human if I didn’t say there was more motivation, that’s for sure.”

An intriguing scene was unfolding 572.8 kilometres to the west, meanwhile, as the Riders returned from their bye week to begin their first official practice in advance of the Western Final with all eyes fixated on Cody Fajardo.

The Riders’ starting QB missed their final regular season game with an oblique injury, and after not participating in a couple of practices last week, was throwing lightly today with the media reports, naturally, coming fast and furious with every little Fajardo development.

 

 

Fajardo told reporters afterward he felt pretty good, “as good as I think it would feel at this point. It’s not going to be 100 %. That’s what I’ve got to know going into this game.

“There’s going to be a little something in there, but at the end of the day it’s adrenaline and like I said all week long, it’s playoffs and I’ve got to walk this fine line between getting myself ready for the game and not over-working it because if you overwork and regress, then you find yourself in a tough situation.

“We’ve got a great gameplan going into this week and everything felt pretty normal and pretty good today.”

The QB watch just provides another layer to a Western Final matchup that naturally sells itself. Look, Bombers vs. Riders means something in September and October and so it most certainly doubles and triples down on that with a trip to the Grey Cup now at stake.

“It’s a big-time rivalry, obviously, between Labour Day and the Banjo Bowl,” said Collaros. “So there’s that, factored in with it being the West Final. It’s a game of pretty big magnitude but, again, we have to treat it like every other game… do our best, execute our gameplan and let the chips fall where they may.”

Collaros also deftly sidestepped a question about going back to Regina for the first time with a trip to the Grey Cup in play.

“I don’t think it would mean any more or less than any of my teammates, right?” he said. “That’s the ultimate goal when you start every single season, to get to the Grey Cup and win it. We’re excited for this challenge, this opportunity.

“We need to have a great week of prep. We had a good day today and we need to carry that in to tomorrow.”

For those who may be wondering if Collaros is sounding a bit cyborg-ish with his answers, again, he is being more careful than anything. Plus, he’s not the only Bomber heading into Regina with some juicy storylines following them.

“I know that he’s excited about this opportunity,” Andrew Harris said of Collaros. “Any time you get an opportunity to go play against an old team it’s a big one for you.

“He can downplay it all he wants, but I know that he’s excited about this. We all are, though, so we’re going to rally around him and support him and be there and understand their fans will probably be talking, not only at him, but at myself and everyone else… it’s just a great environment to be a part of and we’re all excited to go in there together.”