It’s the most important position in football—quarterback. And in the CFL where 60 percent or more of all plays have been passes in all but three seasons since 1981, it’s even more crucial to have a pivot operating at an elite level.
Around the CFL it was an eventful off-season for player movement, so let’s check in to see where each team stands in regards to the quarterback position heading into the 2014 season.
MONTREAL ALOUETTES
Over a decade has passed—14 years to be exact—since someone other than Anthony Calvillo entered a CFL regular season as the starting quarterback for the Alouettes. When Calvillo announced his retirement in January the Als officially became Troy Smith’s team. The 2006 Heisman Trophy winner started the last three regular-season games for Montreal in 2013, throwing for 784 yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions while compiling a 2-1 record.
Smith, a fifth-round pick by the Baltimore Ravens in the 2007 NFL Draft, was last on an NFL roster with Pittsburgh in 2012. Since his arrival in Montreal last August, the 29-year-old has shown flashes of elite quarterback skills. He is a sneaky athlete who can extend plays with his feet, and his arm is more than strong enough for the Canadian game. However, Smith needs to prove he can be a consistent triggerman in the CFL.
OTTAWA REDBLACKS
At first it looked like Kevin Glenn would be leading the Redblacks. But after the team went out and signed Henry Burris, Glenn made it clear he wanted out of the Nation’s Capital and was eventually traded to the B.C. Lions for a fifth-round pick on the first day of the draft.
With Glenn gone Burris is the unquestioned starter for the first-year team. Despite his age—”Smilin’ Hank” is 39 years old—Burris still has the ability to be highly productive. He led the CFL with 4,925 yards in 2013 and he had his best statistical season in 2012, posting career highs of 5,367 passing yards and 43 touchdowns tosses.
Of course you don’t get “Good Hank” without “Bad Hank” coming out at times. Burris has led the league in interceptions the last two seasons, with 18 in 2012 and 19 in 2013. As the quarterback of a new and young team, Burris can’t afford to be turning the ball over as much this season.
TORONTO ARGONAUTS
For my money Ricky Ray is the best pure passer in the CFL. In 2013, No. 15 for the Argos completed over 77 percent of his passes and threw 21 touchdowns compared to just two interceptions—ridiculous numbers. Perhaps even more impressive was the fact Ray was the East Division nominee for the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player Award last season even though he only started in 10 regular season games.
Toronto will be a legitimate championship contender so long as Ray is behind centre. Protecting the franchise pivot is of the utmost importance for the Argos in 2014. Ray missed eight starts last season due to knee and shoulder injuries, his health is imperative to the Argos’ Grey Cup hopes.
HAMILTON TIGER-CATS
Ticats head coach and general manager Kent Austin, a Grey Cup–winning quarterback himself, clearly wanted a new pivot to run his offence. Austin and Henry Burris got along well in 2013, but it became clear by the end of the season there was going to be a change behind centre in Hamilton. And when Zach Collaros was released by the rival Argos, Austin pounced just a day later.
Collaros started seven games in place of an injured Ray last season. The six-foot, 216-lb. quarterback compiled a 5-2 record, throwing for 1,829 yards, 12 touchdowns and just five interceptions. During his starting stint, Collaros proved he has the required arm strength to make all the throws necessary on the big CFL field and displayed an ability to avoid pressure, scramble and make plays with his feet. And at just 25 years old Collaros gives Austin a young player to mold into a franchise-type pivot, but first he has to prove he’s worthy of such a tag.
WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS
After three different pivots—Buck Pierce, Justin Goltz and Max Hall—started games for Winnipeg in 2013 with little success, the Bombers went out and brought in some fresh faces. First-year GM Kyle Walters grabbed Drew Willy from Saskatchewan in February, and then a month later acquired Brian Brohm from Hamilton and signed free agent Robert Marve, completing an overhaul at the quarterback position.
Rookie head coach Mike O’Shea immediately anointed Willy as his starting quarterback, and the new regime in Winnipeg strongly believes the University of Buffalo product can be the man to lead the franchise back to respectability. In two seasons as the primary back-up with the Riders, the 27-year-old went 2-2 in four starts. It’s a small sample size to judge Willy on, and his toughness—both physically and mentally—will be put to the test this year like no other time in his football career.
SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS
For Riders quarterback Darian Durant, life is good. He’s coming off a strong 2013 season that ended with Saskatchewan winning the 101st Grey Cup championship in their own backyard, and he inked a three-year contract extension in April reportedly worth $400,000 a season. However, Durant will have to adjust to some new players around him. He has been forced to find a new No. 1 target since receiver Weston Dressler signed with the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs in the off-season.
And not only will Durant be without his favourite pass catcher, but he will no longer be able to lean on Korey Sheets, the 2013 Grey Cup MVP, in the running game. Sheets signed with the Oakland Raiders, and it means a new running back will line up with Durant in the Riders’ offensive backfield.
EDMONTON ESKIMOS
One of the lone bright spots in an otherwise dreadful 2013 campaign for the Eskimos was Mike Reilly. He entered his first season as a full-time starter in the CFL and displayed all the ability you would want to see in a young, up-and-coming quarterback. Reilly proved he is able to handle the rigors of an entire pro football schedule starting all 18 games last season. His decision-making improved as the year went on and he proved his dual threat ability, leading all quarterbacks rushing for 709 yards.
It will be a new offensive system for Reilly to learn as the coaching staff has changed in Edmonton, but it’s time for him to start leading the Eskimos to more wins.
CALGARY STAMPEDERS
Like participants in an old-fashioned shootout, Drew Tate and Bo Levi Mitchell are locked in a heated competition to be the No.1 quarterback for the Stampeders. Tate entered the 2012 and 2013 campaigns as Calgary’s starting quarterback, but injuries sidelined him for big chunks of each season.
Mitchell meanwhile made his first career CFL start on July 26 last year and created a buzz by completing 29 of 33 passes for 376 and three touchdowns. He earned CFL Offensive Player of the Week honours for his performance. All told, Mitchell started three games and produced a 3-0 record last year.
Tate is the more mobile of the two, but he has to stay healthy for an extended period of a CFL season. Mitchell might have more upside, but he has far less experience in the Canadian game. It’s going to be a tough call for head coach and GM John Hufnagel. Ideally, whoever earns the starting job goes out and puts any concerns to rest, but it could be a competition that continues well into the regular season.
B.C. LIONS
On the Left Coast, Travis Lulay’s right throwing shoulder has been closely monitored since he underwent off-season surgery to repair a damaged labrum. Lulay has been working diligently to get the shoulder back to operating at 100 percent, but thanks to the acquisition of Glenn at the draft there is no need to rush.
Going back to 2012, Glenn—now a 13-year CFL veteran—stepped in for an injured Drew Tate and led the Stampeders all the way to the Grey Cup. Last season he did the same for Calgary and helped guide the Stamps to a league-best 14-4 regular-season mark. Glenn’s arrival will allow Lulay to take as much time as he needs to fully recover from shoulder surgery.