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JOHN WOODS \/ FREE PRESS<\/p>\n
Winnipeg Blue Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros was a full participant in practice Sunday, August 9, 2026, after being out with a neck injury for more than a month. <\/p>\n
The Bombers, who were on a bye last week, returned to work on Sunday at Fort Garry Lions Field for the first time since suffering an inexcusable 35-19 home loss to the B.C. Lions on July 30.<\/p>\n
\u201c(Inexcusable) is a good way to describe it,\u201d admitted O\u2019Shea after practice.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then you realize, everyone out there on the field is human and there are mistakes that happen \u2014 in every game, win or lose. But the way it looked, the way it felt and the outcome, yeah, I\u2019d say inexcusable.<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe the players would agree.\u201d<\/p>\n
For those that need a reminder, the Lions \u2014 led by backup rookie quarterback Kaidon Salter, who was making his first career start \u2014 scampered for 377 rushing yards and outscored the Blue and Gold 25-3 in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n
Those 377 ground yards are the most the Bombers have ever allowed in a game in franchise history.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of mistakes. It\u2019s not good enough,\u201d said O\u2019Shea.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou sit on that all week, and then the guys show up ready to put in a ton of work, come in with the right mindset, and the day ends and you just feel the positivity that this is going to be fantastic for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
If there\u2019s at least one positive in Bomberland, it\u2019s the fact that starting quarterback Zach Collaros was a full participant in practice on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Collaros (neck) has been out of action since July 5, when he was strip-sacked from the blind side in Hamilton and left the game in the second quarter.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou sit on that all week, and then the guys show up ready to put in a ton of work, come in with the right mindset, and the day ends and you just feel the positivity that this is going to be fantastic for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Bombers, now 4-4, went 2-2 in his absence. They host the winless Ottawa Redblacks (0-8) on Friday.<\/p>\n
Backup quarterback Dru Brown was dressed but did not fully participant on Sunday. He left the B.C. game in the fourth quarter with an apparent lower-back injury.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a shot that obviously just didn\u2019t feel very well afterward. And it lingered for a bit of time with respect to my neck,\u201d said Collaros.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince I got here in 2019, Dr. Craton (team physician) and Al (Couture, head athletic therapist), all the docs involved, have been very upfront with me. It\u2019s not a decision coming from the front office or the coaching staff, it\u2019s just solely based on Al, Dr. Craton, and me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe felt this was the best week to get back into it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Collaros was suffering from the effects of whiplash.<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t determined right away that the 37-year-old was going to be out for a month, either. His situation was monitored on a week-to-week basis, and extra precautions were taken considering his injury history.<\/p>\n
Even though the Bombers are coming off of two discouraging performances, Collaros remains confident they can turn things around.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, I think we\u2019re a group that cares a great deal and wants to win,\u201d said Collaros.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are things, obviously, from the last couple weeks that we need to clean up\u2026 But we have the right guys here.\u201d<\/p>\n
The return of Collaros doesn\u2019t magically cure the Bombers\u2019 defence, however.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe last six minutes of the game, it kind of got out of hand. We know we\u2019re not those type of guys or team to collapse when things are needed of us\u2026 especially as a defence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Starting safety Redha Kramdi continues to wear a cast on his left hand and he is now joined in sick bay by dime back Michael Griffin, who was wearing a walking boot on his left leg on Sunday.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, that\u2019s a hole. (Griffin) gets asked to do a lot of different things,\u201d said O\u2019Shea.<\/p>\n
With or without Griffin, linebacker Tony Jones understands the defence has a lot of work to do.<\/p>\n
Jones arrived in Winnipeg in 2024, and their latest outing is far and away their worst showing since he\u2019s been in town.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery loss hurts, but a loss like that, it burns a little more \u2014 especially how we felt we did pretty solid in the first couple quarters,\u201d said Jones.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe last six minutes of the game, it kind of got out of hand. We know we\u2019re not those type of guys or team to collapse when things are needed of us \u2014 especially as a defence.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve just got to be better, and we will be better.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\tThe Warm-Up<\/p>\n
Winnipeg Jets Game Days<\/p>\n
On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.<\/p>\n
\t\t\tSign up for The Warm-Up<\/a><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t It starts with the Redblacks \u2014 a team they cannot afford to take lightly.<\/p>\n After this week, the Bombers enter a daunting stretch where they play Edmonton (6-3), Montreal (8-1) and Saskatchewan twice (6-2).<\/p>\n \u201cEvery team, you have to expect their best,\u201d said O\u2019Shea.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd if you expect anything less, that\u2019s a recipe for a disaster.\u201d<\/p>\n winnipegfreepress.com\/taylorallen<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Taylor Allen Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree\/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Taylor produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Reporter
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