Zach Collaros took first-team reps with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Tuesday after suffering an injury in last week’s loss to the Calgary Stampeders.
The native of Steubenville, Ohio declined to specify the nature of the ailment after practice, though it was listed as a neck injury on the team’s official report. He didn’t offer any other details of the injury, other than to say it was determined he shouldn’t reenter the game after undergoing evaluation from medical staff.
The veteran quarterback threw for 151 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions before the midway point of the second quarter when he took a hit from defensive lineman Clarence Hicks, which caused his helmet to bounce off the turf. The 36-year-old stayed down momentarily before leaving the field under his own power and walking straight to the locker room. The team officially termed it an “upper body” injury and he did not return.
Though Collaros said the hit from Hicks looked “pretty clean” when he watched it back on video, he also felt it “seemed late.”
“There’s just not a lot of consistency (in how hits on the quarterbacks are officiated in the CFL), I think that’s the frustrating part,” said Collaros. “There’s ways to mitigate those hits from happening. I think they’d have to be drastic and I don’t think that the league or the (CFL Players’) Association are ready to do those kind of things.”
The veteran quarterback didn’t specify how he would like hits on the quarterbacks to be mitigated, though it seems likely he was referring to increased fines or suspensions.
It’s unclear if head coach Mike O’Shea agreed with his franchise quarterback’s opinion that the hit was late.
“Late or not, I didn’t think we were going to win a challenge,” he said.
The Blue Bombers trailed the Stampeders by a score of 17-13 when Collaros left the game, which ended in a lopsided 41-20 win for the visitors at Princess Auto Stadium.
Collaros has thrown for 952 yards, seven touchdowns, and six interceptions over four starts this season, posting a 2-2 record. He missed Winnipeg’s season-opener due to a one-game suspension he was levied after failing to respond to correspondence from the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sports (CCES) this offseason.
The Blue Bombers and Argonauts will meet this weekend for the first time since the 111th Grey Cup in Vancouver, which the Boatmen won 41-24.
Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw for 252 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions to be named the game’s Most Valuable Player, while Collaros threw for 202 yards and four interceptions. Three of those picks came after Collaros suffered a laceration to his finger, which needed to be frozen, stitched, and protected by a glove.
“(Toronto is) a different team (since the Grey Cup), a lot of new guys, new faces,” said Collaros. “Bringing (defensive lineman Anthony) Lanier II over from Saskatchewan, I think has been a good move for them.”
“They play a system where it’s not overly complicated for the players. It allows them to play fast and they do good job with it. I know the record is what it is, but watching them on tape, they’re a group that flies around and make things difficult for the quarterback.”
Arbuckle has started all six games for the Argonauts so far this season, throwing for 1,691 yards, nine touchdowns, and eight interceptions. Chad Kelly, the team’s franchise quarterback, has yet to play this season due to a fractured leg he suffered during last year’s East Final against the Montreal Alouettes.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers (3-2) will visit the Toronto Argonauts (1-5) at BMO Field on Saturday, July 26 with kickoff slated for 7:00 p.m. EDT. The Blue Bombers are coming off a 41-20 loss to the Calgary Stampeders, while the Argonauts gave up a fourth-quarter lead to narrowly lose to the Montreal Alouettes.
The weather forecast calls for a high of 27 degrees and mostly sunny conditions. The game will be broadcast on TSN and CTV in Canada, CBS Sports Network in the United States, and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune-in on 680 CJOB in Winnipeg and TSN 1050 in Toronto.
John Hodge is a longtime Canadian football reporter, insider, and podcaster for 3DownNation. Based in Winnipeg, Hodge is also a freelance television and radio broadcaster and curling reporter for Rock Channel.
