Bombers likely turning to Collaros against Stamps

The quarterback question that has been on many people’s minds over the last couple of weeks barely needed to be asked when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers returned to practice on Wednesday.

Zach Collaros, who has played just one game with the Bombers, was taking most of the first-team reps at quarterback, while a still-hurting Chris Streveler was mostly in a backup role.

As if that wasn’t enough evidence that Collaros will get the start in Sunday’s West semifinal at Calgary, Streveler cast doubt on whether he’ll even be healthy enough to play.

“If I am able to go, I don’t know how it’s gonna play out, but I’m more than willing to do whatever it takes to help the team win,” Streveler said when asked if he expected the Bombers to employ a two-quarterback system.

He was then asked if he’d be able to play if the game was tomorrow, instead of Sunday.

“Luckily it’s not,” he said. “I couldn’t give you an answer but I’ll wake up tomorrow, see how I feel, and take it from there.”

Streveler suffered a nasty-looking ankle injury in the Bombers’ second-last game of the regular season, a 37-33 loss in Calgary. The next week, Collaros was at the controls as the Bombers beat the Stamps 29-28 to finish the season at 11-7.

The Bombers still finished third in the West, however, which means they have to go through Calgary and Saskatchewan if they want to play for the Grey Cup.

On the bright side, it looks like they’ll have a veteran quarterback leading the way.

Collaros completed 22 of 28 pass attempts for 221 yards and two touchdowns, with one interception, in his Bombers’ debut on Oct. 25.

The calmness he brought to the quarterback position was as important as anything, his 74 games played in the CFL coming through at a critical moment.

Collaros, 31, gives the Bombers more of a two-pronged attack than they employed for much of the season. He can throw the ball downfield and has proven to be an accurate passer, which should complement the Bombers’ outstanding rushing attack.

The Bombers have a terrific offensive line, the league’s leading rusher in Andrew Harris and averaged a staggering 147.9 rushing yards per game this season as a team.

Streveler, if healthy, adds another dimension to that rushing game, as he put up 726 yards on the ground himself, but it seems most likely his contributions will come in spot duty, short yardage situations and a few designed plays.

“For us, just to have Zach playing as well as he played the last game, I don’t want to say it’s a confidence boost for our team because we’ve always been confident in our quarterbacks, but with Zach stepping in, going into the playoffs, we know he can make plays,” Bombers defensive lineman Willie Jefferson said.

“We know he’s a vet and we just want him to go out there and be comfortable and make the plays that he can make.”

Likely to the Bombers’ advantage, it’s expected to be bitterly cold in Calgary on Sunday. the forecast calls for a high of minus-13 C with flurries. Winnipeg’s ground game is perfect for just such conditions.

It could be harder for Collaros, though, as he has only been in the Bombers’ playbook for a month and has spent very little time in game action with his teammates.

“It helps that I’ve played for a while (in the CFL) and I know a lot of these guys,” Collaros said.

“There’s a lot of vets here, so they know what I’m about, I know what they’re about and it’s been a pretty seamless transition from a relationship standpoint.” Twyman@postmedia.com Twitter.com/Ted_Wyman