The Winnipeg Blue Bombers will be without star quarterback Zach Collaros when they take on the Ottawa Redblacks on Friday, but it doesn’t appear that the two-time Most Outstanding Player is happy with that decision.
Addressing the media on Thursday, head coach Mike O’Shea was frank when asked about his quarterback’s mood.
“Angry,” O’Shea replied. “He’s a competitor, that’s what competitors do. They don’t just take it with an, ‘Oh yeah, okay.’ They get angry, and they want to compete, and they want to be out there with their teammates. That’s the usual that you would expect from guys.”
Collaros sustained a thorax injury during his team’s recent matchup with the Calgary Stampeders, sitting out the entire second half. He completed eight-of-12 pass attempts for 55 yards and one interception prior to his exit, as the Bombers fell 22-19 in overtime.
The 35-year-old was unable to practice this week and will give way to backup Chris Streveler under centre. Though Collaros is officially listed as the third quarterback on the depth chart, O’Shea confirmed that was merely a formality and that the veteran will not even dress.
“He’s close. It’s just not the right move,” he said. “The temptation when a guy’s dressed is to run in there so I’ll take that temptation away from him.”
Collaros has been the catalyst for four straight Grey Cup appearances by the Bombers, winning the first two. He has thrown for 29,340 yards, 182 touchdowns, and 89 interceptions over his 12-year CFL career.
Despite his impressive resume, the Cincinnati product is off to a slow start to the 2024 season. He has completed 62.3 percent of his passes for 796 yards and four interceptions while Winnipeg has stumbled to a 0-4 start.
It is clear from his head coach’s answer that the Collaros would prefer to play himself out of the slump. However, O’Shea wouldn’t speculate as to whether his quarterback’s anger was a by-product of the injury itself or frustration over not being allowed to dress.
“I don’t know. It’s probably a question for him,” he shrugged. “I think it’s all-encompassing. When you’re angry, do you really discern between all the variables or are you just angry?”
Collaros isn’t the first Bomber to express some frustration about the handling of an injury this season. Star running back Brady Oliveira has spoken out publicly about his lack of touches on several occasions, openly disagreeing with the team’s decision to list him as a backup and restrict his reps in Week 3 as he rebounded from a knee injury.
The Canadian ball carrier could finally see a larger workload this week, as the move to the dual-threat Streveler could necessitate an extra emphasis on the ground game. However, O’Shea pushed back against any suggestion that the fan-favourite backup was lacking anything in the arm talent department or that he may not be as consistent as the man sitting out, pointing out that the NFL retread plays the game in a different way.
“I don’t know that you’d ever describe him as polished. I mean, his game is more polished but you don’t want him to be polished,” he mused. “You want him to be that rough and tumble, same guy he is. Certainly, he’s got all the skills to win a football game, to run a team.”
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers (0-4) will host the Ottawa Redblacks (2-1) on Friday, July 5 with kickoff slated for 8:30 p.m. EDT.
