Now healthy, Getzlaf aims to be leader for Eskimos
Chris Getzlaf will stare across the line of scrimmage Saturday at the familiar green and white he wore so proudly for almost a decade. But he won’t recognize half the faces inside those Saskatchewan helmets.
“The team I played on for several years, there’s not much left of it,” the new Eskimos slotback said Friday.
Indeed. The new Riders regime retained just 26 holdovers from last year’s debacle and cut two of them in camp. The massive overhaul might be a comfort for Getzlaf, considering he was a veteran free agent cast adrift. High-profile Riders John Chick and Weston Dressler were released as well, but Getzlaf was as Saskatchewan as a bunny-hug, which had to sharpen the knife. He played minor, junior, university and pro football in Regina, where he was born 33 years ago. He works as a financial adviser there in the off-season.
That the Riders gave him an early heads-up of their intentions offered him time to wrap his head around a life-altering move. And by the end of February, he had a new address. Rejection from his former employer and 10 days on the open market as a free agent did nothing to erode his confidence.
“At no point in time did I think I wasn’t going to get a job. Did it take longer than I expected? A little bit.”
Four months later, he’s comfortable here, enough to talk about stepping up his game and assuming a leadership role.
That’s a good sign. So, too, the fact that, after a gruelling 20-day training camp, he has emerged healthy and positioned atop the depth chart on a Grey Cup-champion offence that hasn’t changed much.
That stability is one of the reasons Getzlaf was excited about the opportunity in Edmonton. The Eskimos are led by a quarterback, Mike Reilly, clearly in his prime. And head coach/offensive co-ordinator Jason Maas was at the helm of an Ottawa offence that contended for the Grey Cup ring on Reilly’s hand.
Maas will count on Getzlaf to fit in seamlessly and make the most of his touches.
“We usually try to spread the ball around, so he’ll have his opportunities to make plays, just like everybody else will. There’s no liability in Chris. As long as he’s healthy and he’s able to go out there and do the things he can do, he’ll be one of our go-to guys.
“He is a veteran presence for us. I know, coming off the injuries he had last year, if he’s good to go, he’ll be a big positive for us on our offence.”
Ah yes, the injuries. Getzlaf missed just one start in his first five seasons with the Riders but has been dogged for the past two campaigns by foot and back injuries. A bad hoof limited him last year to just 10 games, 33 receptions, 402 yards and four touchdowns.
The Eskimos flew him into Edmonton and checked him out medically prior to signing him to a one-year pact. Coming off that kind of season, at age 33, might slap an asterisk on your name. Getzlaf acknowledged the need to prove himself fully recovered and ready to run headlong into a fresh start with a new team.
“I think there is something to prove. You miss several games, you’re coming back, and you’re obviously an older guy, a veteran guy. But I feel great. I feel I’ve improved each and every day. I’m ready to put it on the field.
“I want to be a leader in the locker-room, and I want to be a leader on the field at the same time, whether that’s catching one, two balls a game or catching seven balls a game. I don’t know how that’s going to pan out. But I’m going to be the guy that’s out there doing my responsibilities each and every play, either getting people open or making a big play.”
The best teams in the Canadian Football League have the best quarterbacks and Canadians. Edmonton lost one of the latter, receiver Shamawd Chambers, to the Riders on the opening day of free agency. A disappointed general manager Ed Hervey was forced to fill the spot and gambled just a little on Getzlaf.
If he returns to 2013 form, when he played 17 games, caught 63 passes for 1,045 yards and seven TDs and was the Grey Cup’s most outstanding Canadian, the loss of Chambers won’t sting nearly as much. Getzlaf sounds pretty confident that whatever the Eskimos need from his position, he can provide.
“For the first few years of my career, I was more of a stretch-the-field guy. I had a really high yards-per-catch (ratio). Then the last several years, I’ve been more of a second-down converting, get-first-downs type of guy. I’m ready to do whatever role is expected. I’m going to be mentally prepared for it, put my best foot forward and whatever happens, happens.”