Game Day HQ | Blue Bombers vs. Elks

There is Justin Rankin to stop and Cody Fajardo to contain. It is also an early-season Canadian Football League showdown between a perennial powerhouse in the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the resurgent Edmonton Elks.

And yet, the topic du hier as the Blue Bombers wrapped up final preparations for tonight’s home date with the Elks was, not surprisingly, the deal swung late Tuesday afternoon with the Ottawa RedBlacks that brought quarterback Dru Brown back to Winnipeg for draft picks.

“We made our team better. We added a young football junkie who loves the game, has been in this building before so we know him very well,” said head coach Mike O’Shea of landing Brown during his pre-game media session. “He’s been in (offensive coordinator) Tommy’s system before so he knows that very well. You add that kind of experience, it’s positive. Any time you get an opportunity to add more experience to your roster you have to seriously look at it.

“Good character. Competitive guy. High, high football IQ. When he was here before he and Zach (Collaros) worked really well together, like Taylor (Elgersma) and Zach are working well. I think that quarterback room is going to be a great room to be in. The exchange of ideas and the understanding of Canadian offences and defences is very, very high.”

The Blue Bombers made the deal official late Tuesday afternoon and in landing Brown the club bolsters their QB room with a player with 27 starts to his name (12-14-1) who is familiar with the offensive system. The move had Bomberland buzzing, both with the fan base and inside the locker room.

“I know Dru wanted to be back here, for sure. I’m very fired up to have him back. He’s one of my closest friends,” said Collaros. “Great player to add to our room, on and off the field. He gives a lot of great insight into the game planning part of it and the whole strategy thing. I’m just excited to have my friend back.”

Added Brady Oliveira:

“I’m pretty ecstatic about it. Dru was one of my guys when he was here. We were pretty tight. So, to have him back is going to be good. Second to that is he’s a good quarterback and he’ll bring a lot of knowledge now with him being in Ottawa as the starter. He’ll just be a really good part of the locker room.

“… as a football player, he’s like a football junkie. The guy loves football. Eats, breathes, sleeps football and at the quarterback position — any position, but especially the quarterback position — it’s so vital for them to have a strong football IQ and, again, live, eat, breathe football. They’re at the helm, they’re the leader of the offence and they’ve got to go out there and make sure they execute and make sure everyone is on the same page. That’s the plus for him as a football player.

“More importantly, though, because we’re more than just football players, him as a person is just a good dude and a guy that you can really count on.”

O’Shea said Brown was ‘in transit’ and that’s why he isn’t on the roster for tonight’s game against the Elks. That leaves Taylor Elgersma and Bryce Perkins as the two pivots behind Collaros on the depth chart. The head coach has spoken to Elgersma and Perkins and said this when asked specifically how this impacts Elgersma, who is in his rookie season: “He’s got a tremendously bright future. This doesn’t change that; he’s got a bright future.”

Collaros, when asked if he felt ‘a responsibility to speak to Taylor’ about how landing Brown impacts him: “I don’t know about the responsibility, but I really like Taylor. I really like Bryce, too, and I spoke to both of those guys. Bryce knows. He’s been in it for a long time. It’s part of the business and you’re just trying to add depth, add value, at every spot all the time. They both understand that. Both those guys have a bright future as well.

“It’s cliché, but all you can do is control what you can control and they understand that.”

Elgersma, meanwhile, has shown so much promise since joining the club and spoke maturely on Wednesday about how Brown’s impending arrival impacts him.

“I see this as an opportunity where I can compete, grow and continue to get better,” Elgersma said. “As an athlete you always have to respond well and that’s what my job is in this: show up, be the same guy in the building every single day and compete to the highest level every day to get better. That’s what my focus has always been on, so this is just another opportunity for me to focus back on that.

“I have confidence in myself. I trust our staff and I trust our staff. I’m just going to work hard and focus on being better every single day and competing at the highest level.

“I’ve heard nothing but good things about him. I know he’s been here before and had success here so for our team it’s another good add for us to continue building toward a Grey Cup and that’s why goal is for us as well — to win a Grey Cup.”

ICYMI, here is our Game Preview:

Game Preview | #3: Blue Bombers vs. Elks

And here are more notes and quotes in this week’s edition of GAME DAY HQ…

BEEN THERE

One more on the Brown trade and how it impacts a promising prospect like Elgersma, in particular…

Oliveira has been there, as folks in this town know, having been drafted by the team and then serving as the understudy to Andrew Harris before stepping into the role. Waiting isn’t easy, but he did have some sage advice for Winnipeg’s young QB

“As a competitor… I look back years ago and I was in that same position. It was tough,” he said. “I remember there were lots of tough days coming in here. You were so eager and so hungry to want it now. You have to take a step back, humble yourself a little bit and say, ‘Hey, this is a great opportunity to learn and grow and be behind arguably one of the best quarterbacks to play this game.’

“For me, I was behind one of the best running backs to ever play this game and now fast forward and you see how my career has been shaping out… I think it’s pretty good. A lot of that, obviously, comes from my coaches but from learning from Andrew.

“For Taylor, my advice — and we’ve had conversations about this — is just be patient but understand when your opportunity does come you need to be ready and you have to seize it because you don’t know how many you’re going to get at the professional level. He’ll be ready.”

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• Collaros is now just 297 yards shy of passing Khari Jones for second place on the Blue Bombers all-time passing yardage list. He is at 19,879, with Jones at 20,175. Dieter Brock ranks first at 29,623.
• The Blue Bombers are 16-3 following a bye week since 2018, but we’re just 1-2 in those scenarios a year ago.
• The Elks are looking to start a season 3-0 for the first time since 2017 when they opened on a 7-0 run before finishing 12-6.
• Edmonton QB Cody Fajardo has 49 career rushing TDs and 99 passing scores. Only eight players in CFL history have had 100 passing TDs and 50 career rushing TDs — Damon Allen, Matt Dunigan, Henry Burris, Doug Flutie, Tracy Ham, Kerry Joselph, Michael Reilly and Russ Jackson.

CHECK THIS OUT

Our guest this week on Handled Internally — recorded before the Brown trade, FYI — was Elgersma. You can watch it here: