Will the Roughriders unleash Zach attack?
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are the team to watch to see which quarterbacks land where.
And who knows? One of the signal-callers whose rights belong to Hamilton might just end up with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
Jeremiah Masoli, who performed well when he was given the Tiger-Cats’ No. 1 job, is eligible to become a free agent Feb. 13.
Zach Collaros, who was displaced as the starter by Masoli, is under contract through 2018. However, Collaros is due to make something in the neighbourhood of $500,000, so the Tiger-Cats will be looking to move him.
There is also an apparent need to clear a spot for 2012 Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel. Ticats head coach June Jones recently declared Johnny Football could become “the best player to ever play up here.”
Something has to give in Hamilton. The most likely scenario calls for Masoli to re-sign and for Manziel to also land in Steeltown.
That leaves Collaros, who should be of interest to at least two teams — the Roughriders and the Montreal Alouettes.
It is doubtful that Darian Durant will be Montreal’s starter in 2018 — not after a 3-15 season.
Saskatchewan fared consider- ably better this past season, going 10-8, but the Green and White’s quarterbacking situation was wracked with uncertainty during a 25-21 playoff loss to the host Toronto Argonauts on Nov. 19.
Roughriders head coach Chris Jones twice replaced struggling starter Kevin Glenn with Brandon Bridge in the East Division final. Glenn was removed for good after throwing his third interception of the first half.
With Bridge at the controls, the offence continued to sputter until the fourth quarter.
Jones has repeatedly stated that he would like Bridge and Glenn to return, but the suspicion persists that the Roughriders will look outside the organization to complete the quarterbacking puzzle.
Trevor Harris is no longer an option. He has just signed a new deal with the Ottawa Redblacks.
The rights to James Franklin, a pending free agent, were dealt to the Toronto Argonauts by the Edmonton Eskimos on Monday.
That leaves Collaros. Montreal is a possibility, but it would be surprising to see Hamilton deal Collaros to a divisional rival. That leaves Saskatchewan. Jones, remember, made an inquiry when the Tiger-Cats were exploring trade possibilities for Collaros this past season.
In a quarterback-rich West Division, where stars such as Mike Reilly (Edmonton), Bo Levi Mitchell (Calgary Stampeders) and Matt Nichols ( Winnipeg Blue Bombers) reside, Jones and offensive co-ordinator Stephen McAdoo might ultimately feel more comfortable going with Collaros than either of the pivots who were replaced in the East final — in which Saskatchewan participated as a crossover team.
And if the Collaros-to- Saskatchewan scenario does not materialize, what about Manziel?
Once upon a time, remember, Jones did meet with Manziel’s publicist. Hmmm ...