Lionbackers.com

Good trade for Riders. They have nothing to lose and Zach may bounce back playing for a better team. But he must earn the No 1 job. Riders pretty loaded at quarterback right now.

Likely one may be traded to Montreal. Surprised the Als did not go after Zach. What are they going to do? If Drew Willy is their No 1 they are in big trouble. I expect the Als to be very bad again this year.

At one time, some people thought he was the next Doug Flutie. Not this fan, but he has talent.

It seems that under Kent Austin all of his confidence just drained away. I expect he will make a good recovery under Chris Jones. Jones, like Don Matthews, has a way of building confidence in players.

West just keeps getting tougher. Mitchell, Riley, Collaros/Bridge and Nichols. Lions will need Jennings back to 2016 form or a healthy Lulay just to keep pace.

Riders were red hot over 2nd half of season and now looking to close gap further on Alberta teams.

BC will try to keep up with old/new mix coaching staff and will need plenty of good moves by Mr Hervey too.

Riders weren't going to go all the way with Glenn/Bridge. Collaros comes with some question marks, but has shown he can play at a high level. This gives the Riders a legit shot at winning the cup.

When the music stopped, Als are the team left without a starting calibre QB. It looks like they will hope Durant can be better in 2018 than he was in 2017.

Still a few unresolved qb issues up in the air. Will Ray retire? If not, can the Argos sign both Ray and Franklin? Where will Glenn go next? Will an overhyped former college star try to resurrect his career up north?

Lots of speculation that Collaros will renegotiate his contract, but I don't see it. CBA is set to expire. There are still two teams who could potentially bid for his services if he were released (Riders/Als), so no need for him to give up his leverage. If I were him, I would tell the Riders to pay up or cut me.

If I were a Rider fan, I would be worried. Collaros has lost 12 straight starts, he was the only regular QB rated lower than Jonathon Jennings last year in most statistical categories, and he is reportedly due to receive a $200,000 bonus on Feb. 1 and be the highest paid QB in the league in 2018. The Riders are making a big gamble.

B.C.FAN wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 03, 2018 9:47 am

If I were a Rider fan, I would be worried. Collaros has lost 12 straight starts, he was the only regular QB rated lower than Jonathon Jennings last year in most statistical categories, and he is reportedly due to receive a $200,000 bonus on Feb. 1 and be the highest paid QB in the league in 2018. The Riders are making a big gamble.

I agree that it is a risk, but when you look at his career stats, last year was an anomaly. Over his career, he has 83 TDs vs 38 interceptions, which is outstanding. By comparison, Jennings is 58-44. If not for injuries, he likely would have been a league MVP at least once.

And what other options are there at this point? Either pay the price and take a risk (with Collaros or someone else), or write off another season.

maxlion wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 03, 2018 10:28 am

B.C.FAN wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 03, 2018 9:47 am

If I were a Rider fan, I would be worried. Collaros has lost 12 straight starts, he was the only regular QB rated lower than Jonathon Jennings last year in most statistical categories, and he is reportedly due to receive a $200,000 bonus on Feb. 1 and be the highest paid QB in the league in 2018. The Riders are making a big gamble.

I agree that it is a risk, but when you look at his career stats, last year was an anomaly. Over his career, he has 83 TDs vs 38 interceptions, which is outstanding. By comparison, Jennings is 58-44. If not for injuries, he likely would have been a league MVP at least once.

And what other options are there at this point? Either pay the price and take a risk (with Collaros or someone else), or write off another season.

I would be absolutely shocked if Collaros is still on his current contract when that bonus comes due. A new deal will be renegotiated that will bring him down somewhere into the range of Jennings' deal. Winding up in Saskatchewan is probably the best situation for him to re-establish his game. Stick to his guns on the bonus and he winds up without it and trying to find a new place to play that may not be so rosy and for even less salary.

It's a good move for Collaros, the Riders and the Ticats.

What happened last year was astounding. Austin - known to switch QBs in the same series - refused to give Zach C any time on the sidelines where clearly it was in the player's and their team's best interests. Austin seemed to have a death wish and was taking Zach with him. Crazy. I lost a lot of respect for Austin as a coach as all the new guy did was calm the team down and change QBs.

The new environment should give Collaros rekindled outlook and he sure doesn't need to be in Hamilton where it might be a Manziel circus.

He'll still have to earn the starting role and don't count out either Glenn or Banks. These guys had some 35 passing TDs combined last year - best in the CFL.

I would likely think that Franklin is no longer going to be a consideration by the Riders. I would also suspect that the Als may have decided to pursue that avenue rather than sign another vet whose upside may be past or at least has some serious questions about it.

Good move by the Riders. If Collaros bounces back the Riders will have one of the top QBs in the league. If he doesn't then Bridge will get his shot. It's a good situation for Bridge because it takes the pressure off him and the team to elevate him to #1 at this point in his development. I expect Glenn will be released, although Jones may keep him around for training camp. That would be a crappy thing to do, especially if Ricky Ray does retire (although the fact that he has not done so yet makes it seem more likely he wants to play one more year) because Glenn would be an excellent back-up for Franklin in Toronto.

As for Franklin, I am even more convinced he will be playing for Toronto next season. Montreal looks like the only other team in the league that will need a QB, but anyone advising Franklin should be steering him away from that mess. Go to Toronto where you are almost guaranteed 9 wins per season and a likely first round playoff bye for the next few seasons.

Just heard on 1040 Franklin signed a 2 year deal with TOR, and SSK has released Glenn, so the QB picture is getting a little clearer in the CFL.

I wish Edmonton would bring Glenn in as backup. They are the only CFL team he has not played for (edit to read "been the football property of").

WestCoastJoe wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 04, 2018 10:24 am

I wish Edmonton would bring Glenn in as backup. They are the only CFL team he has not played for.

In a story before the 2017 season began, Glenn joked that he would sign a 1 day contract with Edmonton before he retired.

https://www.cfl.ca/2017/03/29/kevin-gle ... lifestyle/

WestCoastJoe wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 03, 2018 7:48 am

At one time, some people thought he was the next Doug Flutie. Not this fan, but he has talent.

It seems that under Kent Austin all of his confidence just drained away. I expect he will make a good recovery under Chris Jones. Jones, like Don Matthews, has a way of building confidence in players.

I am thinking confidence is part of the picture, along with how his now former Ti-Cat colleagues stopped tuning into him.

Collaros is a mirror image of Kent Austin in many ways, super competitive and unable manage his tendency to beak off and point fingers. Just like Austin driving away Steinhauer and Condell and eventually the players with his all too frequent outbursts, Collaros lost the faith of the other players who tuned him out and didn’t really rally around him when he was struggling.

He will get a fresh start and maybe a re-alignment of his attitude but his contract is the biggest hurdle right now. And I don’t know if the Riders can afford to keep Bridge, Adams Jr. and now Collaros. Something has to give.