Taylor Elgersma, Winnipeg Blue Bombers overcome Collaros injury to beat Hamilton (& nine other thoughts)

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats by a score of 14-13 in front of 20,189 fans at Hamilton Stadium on Sunday evening. Below are my thoughts on the game.

Zach goes down

Zach Collaros left Sunday’s game after being sacked by Reggie Stubblefield on the first play of the second quarter (more on that in a moment) and did not return.

The veteran quarterback laid on the turf momentarily and initially declined offers from teammates for help up, appearing to gesture that he needed a moment to collect himself. He was then able to leave the field under his own power and did so relatively quickly, as the team’s training staff never entered the field of play.

Collaros watched the rest of the game from the sideline. The scene was similar to previous instances when he has suffered upper-body injuries. At times, the team has subsequently termed its decision not to have Collaros reenter a game as “precautionary.” We’ll have to wait for an official update this time around, though we may not get one until Wednesday.

Taylor Elgersma took over the controls from Collaros (more on that in a moment). After his first possession — a two-and-out during which he completed a short pass to Nic Demski — TSN’s cameras caught a conversation between the two passers along the sideline. Elgersma appeared to be checking in with his mentor and gave him an encouraging pat on the helmet.

The game started poorly for Collaros, whose first pass was intercepted by Destin Talbert. The veteran defensive back jumped a short route intended for Tim White, having read the play like a book.

The 37-year-old finished his limited action completing five-of-seven pass attempts for 41 yards and one pick.

Can’t stop Bo

Bo Levi Mitchell shredded Winnipeg’s secondary, though the pass rush did little to help before the veteran quarterback was carted off the field in the third quarter.

The 36-year-old completed 18-of-29 pass attempts for 228 yards and one touchdown in a little over one half of action. He faced little if any pressure until Jake Ceresna sacked him, which is when the injury occurred.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a better touchdown catch than the one Kenny Lawler snagged on Hamilton’s first possession of the game.

Jonathan Moxey read the route perfectly and was in good position when Mitchell threw up a jump ball near the back of the end zone. Lawler simply outmuscled Moxey at the point of attack, ripping the ball down and fighting through contact while sliding out of bounds. It was an amazing play.

This was Moxey’s return to Hamilton, where he spent the last two seasons, and he finished the game with one tackle. This was also Tim White’s return to Steeltown, and he made five catches for 27 yards.

Winnipeg’s top defensive back was arguably Major Williams, who was tested early and often and mostly lived up to the challenge. He notched his team’s only takeaway with an interception off Tre Ford and knocked down three passes, though he was also charged with a 15-yard pass interference penalty.

After struggling to stop Larry Rountree III in Week 2, the Blue Bombers limited him to 45 yards off nine carries on Sunday. The team dressed a heavier defensive line, including local product Collin Kornelson. He made a key pass knockdown in the second quarter, batting away a ball that was intended for Kenny Lawler and may have gone for a touchdown.

The Blue Bombers defence was dominant after Ford and Jake Dolegala took over the controls for Hamilton. The pair went a combined three-of-nine passing for 12 yards and one interception, with David Reese notching a sack on the final play from scrimmage.

Taylor-made

Taylor Elgersma took over the controls from Zach Collaros and played decently in his first career regular-season snaps, completing 11-of-15 pass attempts for 86 yards and one touchdown.

The score came on a short shovel pass to Ontaria Wilson, which the veteran receiver took 31 yards around the edge with the help of lead blocks from Stanley Bryant and Nic Demski.

Elgersma was far from perfect — he missed an outlet throw to Tim White and walked into a sack on a key drive in the fourth quarter. He also didn’t push the ball downfield much at all, though he drew an accidental pass interference penalty in the fourth quarter on a deep shot to Wilson.

Most importantly, the 24-year-old avoided major mistakes, which couldn’t be said for Tre Ford and Jake Dolegala, who were forced into action after Bo Levi Mitchell went down. By not turning the ball over, Elgersma gave the Blue Bombers a chance to win, which is arguably the most that can reasonably be expected from a rookie quarterback.

Dru Brown was acquired from the Ottawa Redblacks a little under two weeks ago, a move that cost Winnipeg a first-round pick in the 2027 CFL Draft. Brown didn’t dress for Sunday’s game, spending a second-straight week on the reserve roster.

It makes sense that Winnipeg doesn’t want to rush Brown, but this is a bit of a unique situation.

The 29-year-old has previously played with many of Winnipeg’s key offensive contributors and Tommy Condell, the team’s offensive coordinator, served in the same role the last two years alongside Brown in Ottawa. If there was ever a plug-and-play situation in football, this is it — Brown is a veteran, he knows his teammates, and he knows the system.

If Collaros can’t play next week — and remember, Winnipeg will play on Friday coming off a short week — I’d imagine Brown will draw the start.

OL shuffle

Micah Mazzccua (pronounced: ‘Muh-ZOOKa’) made his first career start at left guard in place of Gabe Wallace, who is dealing with a shoulder injury. The change gave Winnipeg four American starters along the offensive line for the first time this season and possibly the first time in franchise history.

The results were hit-and-miss.

The most notable play occurred when Zach Collaros was sacked at the start of the second quarter. Reggie Stubblefield came unblocked off Mazzccua and Bryant’s side, then laid into the quarterback.

The Tiger-Cats sent six rushers against six blockers on the play, and Brady Oliveira immediately flowed to the opposite side of the formation to pick up a rusher. Assuming Oliveira made the right read, Stubblefield had to have been the responsibility of Mazzccua or Bryant.

This is speculation — it’s impossible to say for sure without watching the film and knowing the play-call — but it seems fair to suggest the rookie was more likely to make a mental error than the 40-year-old future Hall of Fame inductee.

With that said, it wasn’t a strong performance from Bryant. He gave up a sack to Julian Howsare early in the first quarter, which snuffed out a drive, and took an illegal procedure penalty in the fourth quarter. He also gave up a sack in the fourth quarter, though it occurred mostly because Taylor Elgersma made a questionable decision to flee the pocket.

The offensive line was at its best late in the game when the unit helped Brady Oliveira churn out yardage to set-up a game-winning 23-yard field goal from Sergio Castillo. Everyone in the stadium knew Winnipeg was going to run the ball, and yet Oliveira was able to produce 44 yards on seven consecutive carries.

The Blue Bombers pride themselves on their ability to outmuscle opposing defensive lines in the run game. Despite some spotty pass protection, the unit excelled when it mattered most to get the late win.

Missing chances

Evan Holm dropped what should have been an easy interception near the end of the first half, which would have taken a field goal off the board for Hamilton and provided the Blue Bombers with a much-needed spark.

Moments later, Sergio Castillo slipped and fell on a 56-yard field goal attempt, leading his kick to fall well short of the end zone. The play still resulted in a score as Isaiah Wooden Sr. kneeled in the end zone to concede a single point, but the miss cost Winnipeg two points in a relatively close game.

Near the midway point of the fourth quarter, Jake Dolegala fired the ball directly to Deatrick Nichols, who let the would-be interception bounce off his face mask. The Tiger-Cats were still forced to punt but the Blue Bombers would have immediately been in field goal range had Nichols caught the ball.

Moments later, Redha Kramdi punched the ball loose on a run from Larry Rountree III but the Blue Bombers were unable to recover it, as offensive lineman Liam Dobson gobbled up the loose ball.

The Blue Bombers forced only three turnovers over their first three games and let three opportunities slip through their fingers on Sunday. Good teams don’t do that.

Had Major Williams not secured his late interception off Tre Ford, Winnipeg would likely have lost this game.

Vaval’s valiance

Trey Vaval continues to be arguably Winnipeg’s best player, bringing energy and fearlessness to the return game.

The CFL’s reigning Most Outstanding Special Teams Player ripped off a 46-yard punt return in the third quarter, which led to a touchdown from Ontaria Wilson. He got key blocks from Redha Kramdi, Michael Ayers, and Nuer Gatkuoth on the play, and may have scored a touchdown if he’d gotten one last block from David Reese.

Vaval finished the game with eight punt returns for 114 yards and three kickoff returns for 67 yards. He continues to make the first defender miss almost every time he has the ball in his hands.

Special teams are always important, but even more so when the offence is struggling.

U Sports ties

The circumstances were awful, but it was still neat to see Taylor Elgersma and Tre Ford go head-to-head on Sunday.

We’ve had a few games in recent years that have featured two Canadian quarterbacks, something that would have been considered unthinkable no more than a decade ago. However, there was an added wrinkle in this game: both quarterbacks are U Sports products.

As per a CFL statement, this marked the first time that two U Sports quarterbacks attempted passes in the same regular-season game since Frank Cosentino and Russ Jackson did so in 1969.

Ford and Elgersma even played at neighbouring schools: the University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University, respectively. Both players also won the Hec Crighton Trophy, which is awarded annually to the top player in all of U Sports football. Ford received the honour in 2021, followed by Elgersma in 2024.

Milestones

Zach Collaros reached 20,210 passing yards as a Blue Bomber on Sunday, surpassing Khari Jones for second all-time in franchise history. He has a long way to go to catch Dieter Brock (29,623) for the top spot, but it’s still a remarkable accomplishment considering the team is nearly a century old.

With all due respect to Collaros, Jones, and Brock, I’d argue that the greatest quarterback in franchise history is the late Kenny Ploen, who ranks fifth all-time with 16,470 passing yards.

Next up

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers (2-2) will host the Toronto Argonauts (2-2) on Friday, July 10. This will technically be an Argonauts “home game,” so expect a few changes to the usual branding at Princess Auto Stadium. Other than that, it’ll be a Blue Bombers home game for all intents and purposes.

Given the short turnaround, Winnipeg will practice only once this week — a closed practice on Wednesday. The Argonauts will be coming off seven days of rest after losing 58-36 to the Calgary Stampeders this past week, allowing Vernon Adams Jr. to notch seven touchdowns in the process.

This will mark just the second time the Blue Bombers face Chad Kelly as a starter. The 32-year-old made his first and only start against Winnipeg on Oct. 11, 2024 in an ugly slugfest the Argonauts won 14-11 at Princess Auto Stadium. Toronto didn’t accomplish much offensively but sacked Zach Collaros seven times and forced four turnovers to secure the victory.

Five weeks later, the Boatmen dominated the line of scrimmage again in the 111th Grey Cup, though Chad Kelly was unable to play due to a fractured leg that also cost him the entire 2025 season.

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