Matt Smith/CFL.ca
‘They don’t ask how, they just ask how many’ is the phrase that defines Zach Collaros‘ first season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
Last week, his play against the Calgary Stampeders was outstanding. He looked like the quarterback that was on his way to a Most Outstanding Player Award in 2015 before a knee injury ended that dream.
Other weeks, his play reminded some of why he struggled to win games for the Tiger-Cats in his final season and a half in Hamilton.
But he will tell you, and he’s right, that more goes into an 0-12 record than the quarterback.
The same, however, can be said for the reason he’s started his career as a starter in Saskatchewan with a 9-4 record.
What makes his success rate as a starter this season even more surprising are the drastic peaks and valleys of the season.
Collaros has been very hot and cold, the last two weeks were the extreme of that. He was yanked after going 8-for-19 with just 69 yards, and then, a week later, he threw for 352 yards in a win against Calgary.
Also, he has a 9-13 touchdown to interception ratio, which wouldn’t normally be a recipe for success in the CFL.
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It’s a season that will make the off-season an especially interesting one for the Riders when it comes to Collaros. He’s won a lot of games and could lead them to a Grey Cup in the playoffs, but he hasn’t exactly done it with a lot of style points. So do you give the pending free agent a raise for his wins, or do you try to negotiate another pay cut for Collaros, who took one before the season?
Let’s look at the inconsistencies on offence.
First off, Collaros missed a good chunk of time because of a concussion at the start of the season, which didn’t exactly help his development trying to gel with receivers and with offensive coordinator Stephen McAdoo.
And when it comes to the receivers, in training camp, Collaros spent a lot of time throwing to Duron Carter, Bakari Grant, Naaman Roosevelt, and Rob Bagg with the first-team offence. Carter was released after spending most of the season as a defensive back, Grant was released after training camp as was Rob Bagg.
After building chemistry with those veterans, Collaros all of a sudden had rookies Shaq Evans, Jordan Williams-Lambers and later Kyran Moore in the lineup. There was bound to be some hiccups and indeed there were.
I’ve received questions on what Zach Collaros‘ numbers would look like if those drops by the receivers were actually caught. It would be an interesting case study, but not one I’ve under taken.
No doubt the drops haven’t helped. Collaros hit a wide open Kenny Shaw at the goal line against Edmonton only to see it bounce off his facemask. The stat sheet shows Collaros unable to lead the team down the field for a touchdown, despite Shaw’s unfortunate drop.
That wasn’t the only mistake. Evans, Moore, Williams-Lambert, Shaw and other fill-ins have had their share of drops .
But let’s not take Collaros off the hook entirely. Collaros has been equally erratic on his throws. Last week in Calgary, Collaros looked like he couldn’t miss. He set his feet and threw with confidence. The week previous it looked like Collaros didn’t know where the pressure was going to come from and had happy feet because of it.
And the Riders’ offensive line can’t be blamed for much of the inconsistencies. That group has been outstanding for the most part, although the last four games Collaros has been sacked 10 times. The previous seven games he was sacked four times.
Whether you want to put the blame squarely on Collaros’ shoulders, give him a break or a combination of the two, the Riders need him to find consistency or they will not win the Grey Cup.
I find it highly improbable the Riders are able to get three straight wins with their current recipe of playing solid defence and just getting by on offence.
There will be a game the Riders will need Collaros to match throw for throw with the opponent. Saturday’s win over Bo Levi Mitchell and the Stampeders on the road should give Rider Nation hope.
The bigger question will be if he shines, what will he do the next week.
As fun as rollercoasters are, it would settle the nerves of many to have Collaros’ play start to remind them of a ride down a newly paved, straight as an arrow Saskatchewan highway.
