New quarterback Zach Collaros introduced to Rider Nation
Collaros spoke to media in Regina Tuesday for the 1st time since last week's trade
All Zach Collaros is looking for is an opportunity to prove himself again.
That was pretty much the theme of Collaros's first meet-and-greet with the Saskatchewan media.
"I think it's a rebirth because I'm in a new place," said Collaros after arriving in Regina Tuesday, following last week's trade from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
"I'm really looking forward to this opportunity and focusing on the present and there's not a better place to be."
The Riders' newly acquired quarterback is anxious for a fresh start.
While Johnny Manziel looks for a "Zach Collaros-type contract" in Hamilton, Collaros himself is more interested in regaining "Collaros-type form."
Roughriders fans will be just as curious which version of Collaros they will get — the Collaros who was having a most outstanding player-type season in 2015, which justified the richest contract in the CFL, or the Collaros who had difficulty winning a single game in Hamilton last year.
He played a starring role on the bench for the second half of the season while Jeremiah Masoli led the Tiger-Cats back to respectability.
Priority 1 for Ti-Cats management post-season was shedding Collaros and his $500,000-a-season contract.
The Riders were happy to oblige, giving up a second-round draft pick and making the trade with the understanding Collaros would agree to renegotiate.
Those talks have apparently already started.
"That's something my agent and coach Jones are working out," Collaros said. "It seems like everything is going well. I haven't really asked many questions about it."
Who can blame Collaros if he prefers to keep his head in the sand while other people hammer out his salary cut — and a large one it will be.
Collaros insists he's focused on getting his career back on track.
"Obviously things didn't go the way I had planned, or we as a team in Hamilton had planned, the last two years. But from a physical standpoint I feel the exact same. I'm really looking forward to going out there and proving myself again."
Collaros, who will go into his seventh CFL season, will battle Brandon Bridge for the No. 1 job in training camp, but given his resume and Bridge's lack of starting experience, it will be Collaros's job to lose.