Winnipeg Blue Bombers lose Zach Collaros, season series to Stampeders (& 11 other thoughts)

It was ’90s night at Princess Auto Stadium on Friday night at the Winnipeg Blue Bombers celebrated by channeling the Jeff Reinebold era, losing 41-20 to the Calgary Stampeders in front of a sold-out crowd of 32,343. Below are my thoughts on the game.

Zach goes down

Zach Collaros left Friday’s game midway through the second quarter following a crushing blow from Calgary defensive end Clarence Hicks. The hit was clean but caused the quarterback’s helmet to bounce off the turf, making it an apparent head injury. He was able to jog off the field under his own steam but headed straight for the locker room and did not return. The team officially termed it an “upper body injury.”

The 36-year-old finished the game eight-of-eleven for 151 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions, the second of which occurred on the same play as his injury. Given his history of head injuries, it’s tough to predict when Collaros will return.

Collaros didn’t miss a game following a high hit in last year’s Labour Day Classic but head injuries are unpredictable. Knowing head coach Mike O’Shea, it’s unlikely we’ll get a meaningful update on Collaros anytime soon. He didn’t have an update postgame, nor did he update the status of injured returner Trey Vaval.

Chris Streveler struggled in relief of the veteran passer, competing 16-of-25 pass attempts for 136 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions.

The veteran backup led an impressive drive in the third quarter, which featured plenty of Brady Oliveira, but threw it away when he tried to force a touchdown pass to Kevens Clercius while rolling to his left. Canadian cornerback Adrian Greene jumped the route to make a diving interception, again taking points off the board.

“Obviously, you can’t throw picks in the red zone, so we’ve got to take care of the ball, especially in a close ball game like that — that’s on me,” said Streveler postgame. “I’ve gotta be better. I don’t think anyone played their best game tonight. We’re going to use this as motivation to work hard this week and be better.”

Streveler threw another interception early in the fourth quarter when he looked to Jerreth Sterns for a quick-hitter. The problem was that defensive back Damon Webb — who recorded a pick-six off Zach Collaros when these teams played two weeks ago — had read the play like a book and stepped in front of the receiver. He made the interception and returned it 18 yards for a touchdown.

The touchdown came with a little under a minute left to be played as Streveler rolled to his right and found Kody Case, who made his first career start, alone in the end zone.

Calgary’s defence was completely overhauled this offseason, featuring 11 of 12 new starters across the unit and a new coordinator in Bob Slowik. The results were spectacular through the team’s first five games as the Stampeders ranked first in points allowed per game, third in yards allowed per play, and tied for first in takeaways. They dominated again on Friday night and appear to be the CFL’s defence by a pretty decent margin.

“They’re good, they play within their system. They don’t do anything too complex, the guys just know how to play within their system. They’re not doing anything crazy and when you have guys doing that, they play really good football,” said Brady Oliveira, who rushed 15 times for 68 yards and caught five passes for 40 yards.

“You can tell they’re all communicating together and all on the same page, and that’s why they’re playing really well right now. So credit, credit to them. You know, they’re playing really good ball right

Where’s the D?

Winnipeg’s defence had a night to forget on Friday as Calgary quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. repeatedly lit them up for big gains.

On the final play of the first quarter, first-year starter Marquise Bridges got turned inside out by Tevin Jones, which led to a 35-yard gain. The drive eventually fizzled out after strong-side linebacker Redha Kramdi broke up a pass intended for Rhymes near the goal line but the explosion was enough to earn the Stampeders a field goal.

Damien Alford, the first overall pick in this year’s CFL draft, nabbed a 37-yard touchdown pass midway through the second quarter. Terrell Bonds provided solid coverage but the throw from Adams Jr. was perfect and Alford, who six-foot-six and 225 pounds, did a great job of high-pointing the ball.

Alford scored a second touchdown late in the third quarter from 42 yards out, only this one was uncontested. Bridges broke off his coverage, possibly thinking Alford was working back to the line of scrimmage to aid his scrambling quarterback. Instead, the rookie receiver was all alone in the end zone for the easiest touchdown of his young career.

The Stampeders didn’t even capitalize on all their opportunities for explosion plays. Midway through the first quarter, Dominique Rhymes was well behind coverage and would have had a touchdown had he not been overthrown, forcing him to dive for the ball. Though the play was initially deemed a catch and a 44-yard gain, it was ruled an incompletion following a successful challenge from Blue Bombers’ head coach Mike O’Shea.

“There were a couple (of explosion plays against the defence) that were just really goofy,” said O’Shea. “There’s really no explanation, except guys feel terrible that they messed something up. You could probably find a root cause for one, and then it might be a different cause for another. It’s not just communication. A couple of them were just poor plays.”

Winnipeg’s defence didn’t generate an explosion play of their own until late in the second quarter when Vernon Adams Jr. threw up a sky shot to Rhymes and Evan Holm, who’d dropped to the deep middle of the field, got under it for an interception. Holm almost had another pick shortly before halftime, though the ball was knocked down by Rhymes, who did an impressive impersonation of a defensive back on the play.

“The game plan was good and our coaches always put us in good position to win, but the players have gotta play and execute and we didn’t,” said Kramdi. “We’ve gotta work more, do more, ask the questions that make us have less miscommunication. It’s on the players.”

Adams Jr. finished the night 16-of-24 for 268 yards, three touchdowns, and one pick and should be considered the front-runner to be the West Division’s nominee for Most Outstanding Player.

Season series

It’s never too early to start thinking about playoff implications in the tough West Division and Friday’s loss has put the Blue Bombers in a tough spot.

Winnipeg not only sits four points behind the Stampeders but has officially lost the season series, meaning they’ll have to finish at least one point ahead of Calgary in order to host the West Final for a fifth straight year. Home field in the playoffs is important for any team — particularly one like the Blue Bombers, which draws rabid crowds and plays in tough late-fall weather conditions.

“I always expect us to play up to our level. There’s a lot of games in the season. It’s disappointing — I want to play better, everyone wants to play better,” said Streveler. “All you can do is take this, watch the tape tomorrow, learn from it, and be better moving forward. That’s all you can do.”

The Blue Bombers have one more meeting with the Stampeders this season, which is set for Saturday, August 9 at McMahon Stadium. Though the season series is lost, another head-to-head loss would make it all the more difficult for Winnipeg to try to claw back into the top spot in the standings.

No rush, no discipline

Winnipeg struggled to generate much pressure on Vernon Adams Jr., which is part of the reason why the team’s secondary got picked apart. Devin Adams recorded the team’s only sack, which came late in the first quarter. The Blue Bombers promoted edge rusher Jay Person from the practice roster this week but he didn’t make the stat sheet.

Defenders are usually more likely to penalties for roughing the passer when they’re struggling to generate pressure and their frustration grows accordingly. Cameron Lawson took a penalty for roughing the passer in the first quarter, then James Vaughters, who was playing his former team, took one in the second quarter.

Willie Jefferson felt the Blue Bombers did generate enough pressure on Vernon Adams Jr., though he admitted the lack of sacks was far from optimal.

“I felt like we got some good pressures and stuff like that. We got in his face, got him off his spot, got him moving around and things like that,” said Jefferson. “I don’t think he necessarily had any rushing yards as a quarterback. We tried to get to him. We had some good pressure, just couldn’t get home and put him down.”

Mike O’Shea seemed to agree with his star pass rusher.

“Vernon was very slippery, so we get pressure, and then he manages to spin around and escape. He’s always done that — he’s pretty good at it — and he made us pay a couple times with it. He is pretty slippery. You can get pressure, it’s just hard to bring him down.”

The six-time All-CFL selection was charged with spearing in the fourth quarter after using the crown of his helmet to strike the head of receiver Tevin Jones. He’ll likely be fined for the hit, which looked like something you’d see from the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1970s.

“That’s just bad timing, I guess,” said Jefferson regarding the hit. “I was going for the tackle. He was up, and then once I made the move to deliver the deliver the blow, he kind of ducked his head and the helmets just met.”

The Blue Bombers have been consistently been one of the league’s least-penalized teams during Mike O’Shea’s long tenure as head coach but took seven penalties for 83 yards on Friday night. In an key divisional game, that’s unacceptable.

O-line shuffle

Micah Vanterpool made his first career start at left tackle in place of the injured Stanley Bryant. The second-year blocker out of the University of Hawaii looked good in two starts at left guard this season but this was his first time protecting the blindside of Zach Collaros. The results on Friday night weren’t as strong.

On Winnipeg’s opening drive, defensive tackle Miles Brown twisted on second-and-three and nobody picked him up, allowing him to envelop Collaros for a sack. Brady Oliveira started the play in pass protection but had left on an outlet route by the time the twist occurred, meaning Vanterpool should likely have passed his man off to Wallace in order to block Brown. This didn’t happen.

Late in the first half, Vanterpool was beaten quickly off the edge by Clarence Hicks, who sacked Chris Streveler for a nine-yard loss. Vanterpool probably deserves a little bit of the benefit of the doubt — after preparing to block for Collaros all week, it’s possible Streveler took a deeper drop than the blocker was anticipating — but it was still a bad rep.

“We were excited to play this game, but we just didn’t execute,” said right guard Patrick Neufeld, who gave up a sack to defensive tackle Jaylon Hutchings. “(Calgary) did a great job on defence causing turnovers. System-wise, they did a great job of taking away what would do well, so hats off to them. It’s going to be a tough film session tomorrow, but the sun will come up, we’ll learn from it as best we can, and take it to heart and move on.”

If Brown’s name sounds familiar to fans in Winnipeg, that’s because he was the Saskatchewan defender who delivered a high hit on Collaros in last year’s Labour Day Classic and a low hit on Chris Streveler during the Banjo Bowl. Fortunately, there were no illegal hits on Friday night.

We love you, Milt

Milt Stegall made his return to the CFL on TSN this week after an absence that followed the sudden passing of his eldest son, Chase. The 55-year-old’s return coincided with the panel’s trip to Winnipeg, giving fans in Bomberland the chance to offer their love and support for Stegall in person.

Fans in Winnipeg were clearly thrilled to offer their support for Stegall following the devastating loss of his son, offering him a standing ovation that lasted well over a minute. Had the ovation not been halted for the singing of ‘O Canada,’ it would likely have lasted several more minutes, seemingly growing louder every few seconds.

Winnipeg welcomes Milt Stegall back home. What a moment.#Bombers | #ForTheW | #Winnipeg | #CFL pic.twitter.com/Oi4SAtAx9P

— John Hodge (@JohnDHodge) July 19, 2025

Stegall took to social media after the ovation to call it “the most unforgettable moment” he’s experienced in Winnipeg, which is saying a lot given everything he’s accomplished.

It would be difficult to overstate how beloved Stegall is in this city. If he ran for mayor, he’d win in a landslide. When he eats at local restaurants, it’s probably rare that he has to pay.

I chatted with Stegall for a few minutes before the game on Friday night. Considering the unimaginable circumstances, he seems to be doing very well, approaching each day with grace, humility, and a commitment to having fun. The Hall of Fame receiver did interviews this week with local reporters Paul Friesen and Jeff Hamilton, both of which are well worth your time. The articles can be found here and here.

Kody’s on the Case

The Blue Bombers tapped second-year target Kody Case — not high-priced free-agent addition Dillon Mitchell — to start in place of Dalton Schoen, who landed on the six-game injured list with a knee ailment this week.

The five-foot-ten, 178-pound native of Lake City, Iowa had a rough start to the game as he slipped on his first target, which came late in the first quarter. With no receiver to catch it, the ball sailed into the waiting arms of Sheldon Arnold II. The Blue Bombers were well within field goal range at the time, so the turnover took points off the board.

Case finished the game with two catches for 10 yards and one touchdown, which came in the final minute of the game. His best play came on a fly sweep midway through the third quarter when he showed impressive speed to get around the edge for a 19-yard gain.

The team indicated this week that Mitchell is better-suited to playing wideout — not in the slot, where Case slotted (pun intended) in for Schoen. It should be noted, however, that Mitchell started 14 games as slotback of his three seasons in Edmonton, including the last nine games of the 2023 season. The guy must know how to waggle.

Though it ultimately came in vain, Nic Demski set a new career-high in single-game receiving yardage as he notched seven catches for 146 yard and one touchdown. The Blue Bombers needed someone to step up in place of the injured Dalton Schoen and Demski was the only player on offence who appeared to elevate his game.

“You can’t really think too much about it,” said Demski. “Obviously, it would have been better (to hit a personal best) under different circumstances, but it’s nice to get the trust from the quarterbacks and from (offensive coordinator Jason Hogan) to get the ball thrown my way.”

Dropping bombs

Sergio Castillo went two-for-two on his field goal attempts, including a 58-yard attempt he nailed in the first quarter with minimal wind at his back. The field goal as the longest attempted or made by any player in the CFL so far this season.

Biggie’s back

Adam Bighill also got a warm reception in his return to Princess Auto Stadium. Though the veteran linebacker wasn’t dressed — he’s still working back from the torn ACL he suffered in last year’s Labour Day Classic — he was on Calgary’s sideline helping coach up his teammates when he was shown on the video boards partway through the first quarter.

The future first-ballot Hall of Fame inductee already has a budding off-field career in finance but he would be a heck of a coach, should he choose to stay in football once his playing days are done.

Selling out

The Blue Bombers hosted an eighth-straight sellout on Friday night, a streak that dates back to Week 12 of last year. Given how Winnipeg’s crowds seem to grow as the season progresses — which is interesting, given how the weather shifts — it wouldn’t be a surprise if they sold out the entire year, which would be a first in franchise history.

With that said, the crowd voiced its displeasure late as audible boos rained down from the stands. Streveler claimed not to have heard them, saying he was locked in on his job. O’Shea claimed not to hear the booing either, though he noticed how many fans left before the final whistle.

“I just noticed that they were gone early, which is not a great night for them,” said O’Shea. “Obviously, we want to do better for our for our crowd. They do great for us.”

“I think the fans are going to stick — they’ve been doing a good job selling out,” said Demski. “We haven’t lost many games at home, so I think they’re gonna be on our side. They know we bring good football. At the end of the day, I guess my message to them is just stick by us, we’re gonna get this thing figured out and we’re sorry.”

According to the Ticketmaster seat map, there are only around 1,500 tickets remaining for this year’s Grey Cup. If you’re planning on buying one, don’t dawdle.

Next up

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers (3-2) will visit the Toronto Argonauts (1-5) on Saturday, July 26 with kickoff set for 7:00 p.m. EDT. I’ll be at BMO Field to cover the game live, so stay tuned to 3DownNation for full pre and postgame coverage from the stadium.

Though he was originally projected to return to the lineup by now, Chad Kelly wasn’t even in Toronto for their full practice week as he reportedly returned home to Buffalo, N.Y. to continue his rehabilitation from the fractured leg he suffered in last year’s East Final. If he’s unable to play, it appears Nick Arbuckle, who beat the Blue Bombers in last year’s Grey Cup, will make a seventh straight start.