Veteran QB Zach Collaros leading 'special' Blue Bombers team into Grey Cup

Zach Collaros always sees room for improvement.

Even after putting up a career-high 4,336 passing yards in regular-season action, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers quarterback thought he could have done better.

"I don't think you've ever arrived and I'm the kind of person that's never really satisfied with the way I play," he said Wednesday.

Whether he was satisfied or not, Collaros' performance powered the Bombers to the Grey Cup. Winnipeg will face the Toronto Argonauts in a battle for the championship title Sunday. The 36-year-old athlete from Steubenville, Ohio, will be making his sixth Grey Cup appearance and is looking to collect his fourth ring.

The path to Sunday's game wasn't smooth.

Winnipeg started the season 0-4 and Collaros didn't throw a touchdown pass through the winless skid.

The Bombers were"in a state of flux in a lot of different areas," said head coach Mike O'Shea, and the quarterback had to navigate the tumult.

"He's got a really good understanding of timing and, from a leadership standpoint, what needs to be said and when. And he has the ability to fire up the guys and get them working," O'Shea said.

"But I think most of it is that guys look at him and they see him laying it all on the line all the time, and the amount of work he puts in, and they naturally and very easily want to put in a great deal of work and be good for him, too."

After going 2-6 to start the campaign, the Bombers blanked the B.C. Lions 25-0 on Aug. 1 and never looked back. Winnipeg reeled off eight straight wins and finished the regular season atop the West Division with an 11-7 record.

Collaros finished second in the league in passing yards behind Bo-Levi Mitchell of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. His biggest show came on Sept. 28 when the six-foot-one, 218-pound University of Cincinnati threw an eye-popping 432 yards and six touchdowns as the Blue Bombers handed the Edmonton Elks a 55-27 beat down.

"I think we have gotten better and better as the weeks have gone, even in losses," Collaros said. "I think it's the trust with each other, the repetitions of certain concepts and things. And I think, from a team-building perspective, it's just about the love that we have for each other."

A decisive 38-22 win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the West Division final on Saturday earned Winnipeg a fifth straight Grey Cup appearance.

Collaros doesn't believe there was one single moment that turned the season around. The squad simply continue to work, he said.

"I just think once you start stringing the wins together, if you believe in momentum, sometimes that kind of takes over," he said. "We have a talented bunch and a bunch of guys who understand how to win a game, if it's a tight one, if it's a run game, if it's a pass game, if the defence really has to carry us. It's a special team."

Through the adversity of the season, the veteran quarterback was a steady, confident presence, said Winnipeg's offensive coordinator, Buck Pierce.

"To be able to have the success, players had to go through failure. We have to go through those kind of things to learn. And I think one of the biggest credits is the guys understood that," he said.

"We didn't waste any time feeling sorry for ourselves or looking for blame. We just kept working. And that's the great thing about this game — you're never in it alone. And when you do have good leaders, like Zach, it's easy to work."

The Argos will have some potent pieces looking to stop Collaros on Sunday.

Toronto's Ralph Holley and Jake Ceresna finished the regular season tied for the league lead in sacks (eight), and Jack Cassar topped the CFL in special teams tackles with 22.

Collaros' teammates believe he's bringing something special into this year's Grey Cup, though.

"I think what I've noticed with him throughout the season, but especially the last number of weeks is the whole confidence thing, how loose he's playing and how much confidence he has going into every single game," said Winnipeg running back Brady Oliveira.

"He's a stud. Love the dude. He's a team-first guy. Just such an awesome person. I'm really glad that he's at the helm of our offence and doing what he does best."

What Collaros has shown all season is the same thing he's shown throughout his 12 years in the CFL, O'Shea said.

"It's greatness," the coach said.

"Zach's the same unbelievable [most outstanding] calibre player who makes players better around him, works his ass off all the time, fiery competitor. Obviously, we're very fortunate to have him, and everybody loves being around him every single day."