It appears franchise quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell could be ready to play for the Calgary Stampeders when the team visits the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday.
“He’s trending towards being available,” head coach Dave Dickenson told the media in Calgary. “I just gotta make sure he can move around. We’ll let ’em both work like we’ve been doing, but good to see that. I was worried but I was glad that the news came back positive.”
Mitchell didn’t finish the club’s season-opener against the Montreal Alouettes on Thursday after suffering an ankle injury in the fourth quarter. He completed 61.8 percent of his passes for 199 yards, one touchdown, and one interception in a little over three quarters of work and rushed three times for 12 yards.
“I feel good,” said Mitchell. “I’ve been moving around, worked out on the last two days and felt strong. (I) got to move around out there on the walkthrough, so I’m pretty happy with the progress so far.”
Sitting out the final minutes of a critical game was difficult for the future Canadian Football Hall of Fame passer, but Mitchell believes it was wise to rest his ankle following an awkward tackle from Antonio Simmons.
“It was the right decision. That’s a tough one for me because obviously QBs, we dream of always being there at the end to lead that drive but I’m trying to grow in my years and be mature. I just didn’t think I’d be able to push off, make a move if the pocket broke down.”
Jake Maier came on in relief of Mitchell and completed four-of-five pass attempts for 57 yards. His second drive set-up a game-winning field goal from Rene Paredes with 45 seconds remaining to put the Stampeders up 30-27.
The UC Davis product is coming off a strong rookie season in which he completed 64.2 percent of his passes for 1,211 yards, five touchdowns, and three interceptions.
Mitchell has been a mainstay in Calgary for the past decade and last year became the eighteenth player in CFL history to reach the 30,000 passing yards mark. He went 7-4 as a starter in the regular season in 2021 despite suffering a broken leg, completing 64.9 percent of his passing for 2,594 yards, 10 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions.
The Stampeders are scheduled to visit the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday, June 18 at 6:30 p.m. ET.
