Johany Jutras/CFL.ca
After Week 2 in the CFL, there are a lot of ‘too soon’ takes around the CFL.
In Saskatchewan alone, there are a few too many thoughts that land in the category.
Cody Fajardo is the next one = too soon
There are plenty more of those takes from this fan base trying to figure out the new look Riders and what to expect in 2019. The team entered the season with cautious optimism that they could follow up a 12-win season last year without much of a bump with Chris Jones departure.
Then they were hit with Zach Collaros‘ injury on play three and optimism turned pretty pessimistic around these parts.
But what a difference a week makes. Fajardo calmed nerves with a 300-yard game, two touchdowns and no interceptions in the first start of his career.
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Fajardo looked the part of a young quarterback who has been given some time in this league to learn, watch and grow before being thrown to the wolves.
I think too often we see young quarterbacks pushed too quickly in an entirely new game before they can figure out some of the nuances (Johnny Manziel comes to mind).
Many teams desperate to find their next franchise quarterback are guilty of this. The Riders are a team trying to find the next franchise quarterback and now the spinning wheel has landed on Fajardo.
A player who arrived in Canada in the fall of 2015, Fajardo spent time behind Ricky Ray and learned from Marc Trestman for two seasons before heading to B.C. and getting to see new things with quarterback Travis Lulay and another former QB in the league in offensive coordinator Jarious Jackson.
It’s interesting to look back as all those years spent as a short yardage, third string back-up as a knock on Fajardo.
A few examples of the criticism:
• Clearly he’s not good enough or he’d be a starter by now
• He’s just a runner, not a quarterback
• This is his third team in four years, if he was good teams would hold on to him
But what wasn’t taken into account is the experience gained off the field. Fajardo has clearly been paying close attention and the extra years of education in the CFL with spot duty here and there paid off last week.
And yes, I’ve already labeled the ‘next one’ talk as too soon, it’s not too soon to start assessing why we shouldn’t be surprised.
But the examples of quarterbacks getting time to learn are plentiful. The Stampeders allowed Bo Levi Mitchell time to be a third string quarterback and learn the game. Mike Reilly was given that chance in B.C. Oh, and how long did it take Jeremiah Masoli to finally get a shot?
But Saskatchewan doesn’t have to look outside its own borders for a fine example of how time to mature is just as important as skill in the development of a quarterback.
In 2006 and 2007, there was a young quarterback out of the University of North Carolina who was groomed behind Kerry Joseph and Marcus Crandell, while working with coaches who played the position in Danny Barrett and Kent Austin.
In 2008, the young quarterback showed he was more than capable of playing the game, though injuries derailed his chance to take full control that season. ’09 was his time, and three Grey Cup appearances and one championship later, the clock is ticking down on Darian Durant to be enshrined into the team’s hall of fame, the Plaza of Honour.
The next step for Fajardo is to ensure he doesn’t end up on the list of one hit wonders in Saskatchewan like Rocky Butler or Mitchell Gale.
Fajardo’s maturation was noticable early in training camp as Head Coach Craig Dickenson noted that Fajardo was distancing himself from the competition for the back-up job.
Which allowed many to be curious why Dickenson was thinking of a quarterback rotation with Isaac Harker in the last week’s game. The thought being, if Fajardo was far and away the better guy a few weeks ago, what has he done wrong to have Harker catch up so quickly?
Fajardo however gave Dickenson no choice but to stick with him all the way through the 44-41 shootout loss to Ottawa.
Now, Fajardo has full control over the quarterback position in Saskatchewan and there are many who can’t wait to see what he does with the opportunity, hoping the talk of the ‘next one’ wasn’t too soon after all.
