Mike O’Shea: Zach Collaros ‘working’ to return for Winnipeg Blue Bombers

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It remains unclear when Zach Collaros will return to the field for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, according to head coach Mike O’Shea.

“He’s working, but we’ll see,” O’Shea told the media on Tuesday. “We’ve got time left.”

The veteran coach indicated he has little say in the timeline for the quarterback’s return from injury, saying it’s mostly up to head athletic therapist Alain Couture and Collaros himself.

The 37-year-old was as a non-participant in practice last week due to a neck injury. He was listed as questionable for Winnipeg’s game against the Toronto Argonauts but did not play and was moved to the one-game injured list.

Dru Brown started in place of Collaros and completed 80.6 percent of his passes for 339 yards, one touchdown, and one interception in a 30-21 win.

“I thought (Brown) was excellent,” said O’Shea. “He delivered the ball well and on time. He made some creative plays. I thought he was excellent — the numbers show that, too. He made good decisions, he made them quickly, and I thought he handled the emotion of playing the game quite well.”

As impressed as the veteran coach was with Brown’s performance, he indicated it will not affect the team’s decision for when Collaros will retake the starting role.

“I don’t think that enters into it. I think we know we have a good quarterback room. We made a trade for a reason. We’re going to stick to our process on how we make decisions and how we’ve made decisions all along,” said O’Shea.

“It’s awesome that Dru went in and won the game and we know he’s quite capable — that’s why we traded for him. How things play out or unfold with regards to the rest of the room, it’s always wait and see how it unfolds.”

Brown was acquired from the Ottawa Redblacks late last month. Ryan Dinwiddie, Ottawa’s head coach and general manager, later told the media Brown became “a little bit of a distraction” for the team, and suggested he lacked arm strength.

The 29-year-old passer has taken the high road since, wishing the Redblacks the best.

The Blue Bombers are set to visit the nation’s capital this weekend, though O’Shea indicated that won’t play a factor in the team’s decision of who will start under centre.

However, if he is called upon, O’Shea expects Brown will handle the situation well.

“I imagine a lesser-prepared, lower-E.Q. guy might let it get to him or might let it affect his emotion one way or another,” said O’Shea. “I imagine Dru will probably stay pretty even-keeled.”

Collaros suffered his injury early in the second quarter of the team’s 14-13 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in Week 5. It occurred when strong-side linebacker Reggie Stubblefield came unblocked on a blitz and sacked Collaros for a seven-yard loss.

The six-foot-one, 218-pound passer has completed 71.8 percent of his passes for 985 yards, five touchdowns, and three interceptions through four starts this season, posting a 2-2 record.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers (3-2) will visit the Ottawa Redblacks (0-5) on Sunday, July 19 with kickoff scheduled for 7:00 p.m. EDT. The Blue Bombers are coming off a 30-21 win over the Toronto Argonauts, while the Redblacks lost 40-17 against the Edmonton Elks.

The weather forecast in Ottawa calls for a high of 27 degrees and a mix of sun and cloud. The game will be broadcast on TSN and RDS2 in Canada, CBS Sports Network in the United States, and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune in on 680 CJOB in Winnipeg or TSN 1200 in Ottawa.