Mike O’Shea encourages Taylor Elgersma to ‘enjoy himself,’ stop ‘pressing’ after Bombers preseason debut

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Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ head coach Mike O’Shea felt a lot better about Taylor Elgersma’s first CFL game than the Canadian quarterback did himself.

“He had a stern look on his face when he rolled into the locker room here, and I got to tell him to enjoy himself a little more,” O’Shea joked following the team’s preseason opener in Saskatoon.

“He’s not happy right now, but I think he should be. It’s an exciting time for him.”

The former Hec Crighton Trophy winner made his much-anticipated debut for the Bombers on Saturday afternoon, playing nearly three quarters of action. The results were decidedly mixed, as he completed just six-of-13 passes for 78 yards and two interceptions. He also led the team in rushing with four carries for 18 yards.

Elgersma’s stat line suffered from a couple of dropped passes by young receivers, and at least one of the interceptions didn’t appear to be his fault. Nevertheless, it felt anticlimactic for fans after months of speculation and hype surrounding his arrival.

Not so in the eyes of O’Shea, who described the performance as “good.”

“I thought (Elgersma showed) decent command and understands the playbook, understands defences like that. I think he is pressing; he wants to make plays,” he explained. “There’s times where he can just probably slow down a little bit and understand that a completion for a first down is a good play, too. But that’s all stuff that he knows. He comes off to the sideline, he knows exactly what the answers are. Out there, he wants to compete at a high level; he wants to make bigger plays.”

Elgersma was selected with the 18th overall pick in the second round of the 2025 CFL Draft, but his arrival in Winnipeg was delayed by a year as he pursued opportunities with the NFL’s Green Bay Packers and UFL’s Birmingham Stallions. The Wilfrid Laurier University product is considered the favourite to win the Bombers’ backup QB job, taking the majority of second-team reps in training camp and earning strong reviews.

Following the unexpected departures of Payton Thorne and Terry Wilson this week, former UFL MVP Bryce Perkins is the only remaining competition for the job. He completed five-of-nine passes for 67 yards and an interception against Saskatchewan, but will be graded on a different curve than Elgersma, according to his head coach.

“Very mobile. Probably had some other opportunities he probably could have taken, but once again, he’s new to this game,” O’Shea said of Perkins’ performance. “Taylor’s got a different look at it because he’s played 12-man football and these same concepts, and understands CFL defences. Perk’s been in it for, whatever, 12 days, so there’s going to be some pictures that are just a little more cloudy for him, and those will clear up as we go along.”

Starting quarterback Zach Collaros was also complimentary of the two pivots battling to become his heir, noting that preseason success isn’t determined by the stat sheet.

“I thought they threw the ball well. I think it’s going to be good tape to learn from, both in their first games in the CFL,” the two-time M.O.P. said. “It’s radically different the way that our defence plays. Everything does speed up in a game, but I thought they both carried themselves really well. They got us in and out of the huddles, and there’s a lot more that goes into it besides just the numbers that are in the box score. I thought they both carried themselves really well.”

The investment that the Bombers have made in Elgersma means that he’ll be given every opportunity to bounce back from his disappointing outing. Winnipeg will return home for their preseason finale on Friday, May 29, against the B.C. Lions, giving fans at Princess Auto Stadium their first live look at the Canadian gunslinger.

When asked whether this week’s mistakes could serve as valuable lessons for the 24-year-old, O’Shea didn’t hesitate.

“No doubt,” he stated. “He’ll learn from them, for sure.”