Dru Brown will make his second straight start for the Blue Bombers Sunday night in Ottawa; photos by Smart Rosales
It isn’t simply a delicious and tasty subplot; it has the potential to be a truly memorable culinary experience served by a master chef from a three-star Michelin restaurant.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers made official today what has been speculated all week: Dru Brown will start at quarterback Sunday night in Ottawa against the very team that traded him to Manitoba 24 days ago.
It will be Brown’s second straight start for the club after last week’s win over the Toronto Argonauts, a game in which the veteran pivot competed 81 percent of his passes (25-of-31) for 339 yards with one TD against one interception while filling in for Zach Collaros, who suffered a neck injury against Hamilton Tiger-Cats on July 5th — a game in which Taylor Elgersma came off the bench and was behind centre for the victory.
The Blue Bombers had a closed practice on Friday, and it was during head coach Mike O’Shea’s media availability later in the afternoon that he confirmed Collaros had not practised and would not play on Sunday.
Asked for his feelings on Collaros not being able to suit up for a second straight game, O’Shea said: “Any time somebody misses out on something they love to do, it’s got to be tough for them.”
None of the Blue Bombers quarterbacks were made available to the media on Friday — that’s common practice two days out from kickoff — but the Brown-returns-to-Ottawa storyline surely will have fans positively salivating.
It’s an angle he and O’Shea downplayed earlier in the week, but which will only get louder through the weekend. And when it was suggested again on Friday that it will be a cool story, O’Shea shrugged and said: “It’s one of those things that the media has to cover.”
As to Brown’s ability to manage the hype, the pressure and the extra spotlight that will come on Sunday, he added: “I’ve said it a couple times already — his emotional intelligence is extremely high. I don’t ever really worry about highs and lows with that guy.”
Brown, who signed with the Blue Bombers in 2020 and made his debut with the club in 2021, was the RedBlacks starter for 2024-25. He also got a vote of confidence during Ottawa’s regime change this offseason with Ryan Dindwiddie coming aboard as GM and head coach.
That changed sometime over the winter and through the course of training camp with Dinwiddie then naming veteran Jake Maier as the RedBlacks starter after one preseason game. Brown then asked for his release, which ultimately led to the deal with the Blue Bombers.
And with Ottawa having struggled to a 0-5 start and Brown leading the Blue Bombers to a victory in his first start since his return, well, that’s lit ablaze the story like a fuel tanker crashing into a three-alarm house fire.
“I think any game, (Brown’s) going to want to play well, but especially this game,” Dinwiddie told reporters this week in Ottawa. “He’s probably got an axe to grind with it. But that’s not in our control. Defensively, whoever is in there, Zach or Dru, we’ve got to have a good performance.
“We wanted to keep Dru around, and it didn’t work out. So, he got a chance to go to Winnipeg, and we got McLeod (Bethel-Thompson) in here, the veteran backup guy. But we still believe in Jake.”
Just as the Blue Bombers believe in Brown, who is now 3-1 in his four career starts in Winnipeg colours, including three games with over 300 passing yards.
Asked by CJOB’s Derek Taylor if he was ‘rooting for a Dru Brown revenge game’ on Sunday, veteran receiver Nic Demski’s face broke into a wide grin.
“I think this whole team is,” Demski said. “Everybody knows what the situation is. It’s pro football but, at the end of the day, everybody has a personal relationship with Dru since he’s been here before.
“Everybody knows how hard he works and how much preparation he puts into this. He’s putting on blue and gold so, of course, everybody wants him to have a good game.”
Keep your eyes peeled on the Blue Bombers social media accounts and bluebombers.com for more following Saturday’s media availability in Ottawa.
OUCH REPORT: Friday’s injury report officially lists Collaros as out with both Demski and RB Brady Oliveira listed as questionable. The official depth chart will be released Saturday morning.
Injury Report: July 17, 2026 #ForTheW | @DoctorsManitoba pic.twitter.com/imZFqn5vHY
— Winnipeg Blue Bombers (@Wpg_BlueBombers) July 17, 2026
ICWMI: In case we missed it… confirmed by the CFL today after we made the inquiry: Trey Vaval’s 332 yards in kick returns last week — six punt returns for 79, three kickoffs for 101 and two missed field goal returns for 152 yards, including a new franchise record 129-yarder — is a new Blue Bombers record.
Vaval’s 332 combined kick-return yardage eclipsed the 322 Eric Blount had in a game in 1998 and the 321 yards Albert Johnson III had in 2000. That 332-yard total, FYI, is also the ninth best in CFL history.
