For the first time since his minor knee surgery in early May, Milt Stegall donned his helmet and shoulder pads at Winnipeg Blue Bombers practice Monday but he’s not likely to play against Montreal on Friday.
Bomber slotback Milt Stegall put on his shoulder pads and helmet today and took part in part of the practice for the first time since his knee surgery.
Stegall, who had his knee scoped just before training camp began to clean up the joint, looked good participating in many of the running drills but did not take a regular turn with the rest of the receivers in a 2 1/2-hour practice in scorching heat.
“We’re just taking it day by day now,” Stegall said after practice. “We still haven’t set a date (for him to return) yet because we’ve just got to see how it reacts. Of course I’m running now but I haven’t had a chance to run any major routes or do any major cutting yet.
“That’s going to be the true test.”
Stegall, the CFL’s all-time touchdown leader, is entering his 14th CFL season. He wavered back and forth during the off-season about whether he’d retire or not but opted to return, only to have the knee surgery in early May.
He says he had no pain running and cutting on Monday.
“Not right now, but you never know what can happen tomorrow morning,” he chuckled. “But right now, no, it’s feeling good. Our head trainer, Al Couture, has been doing some great things with me.”
It was frustrating for him sitting out and giving the knee time to heal, he said, but his knee is getting stronger. He isn’t worried mentally about the knee’s capabilities, only what it can take physically.
“You don’t want to wait 'til a game and see what I can do then,” he said. “You want to be able to do it in practice because if I can’t do it in practice, there’s no way I can do it in a game.”
Head coach Doug Berry was coy with reporters, saying Stegall “didn’t do anything” Monday and “all he did was walk up and down the sidelines trying to get some reads.” Berry conceded Stegall is running and cutting, though.
“He’s not going to be ready...this week...I don’t think,” the coach smiled, refusing to say Stegall definitely won’t play Friday for the 0-1 Bombers in Montreal. “I doubt it.”
One player who definitely won’t be playing is centre Dominic Picard, who’ll be out from two to four weeks with a high ankle sprain.
Ryan Donnelly, who replaced him in Friday’s 23-16 loss to Toronto, will start in the middle vs. Montreal despite his problems with the snaps to quarterback Kevin Glenn when the Bombers are in their shotgun formation.
And guard Matt Sheridan, who also saw some action Monday, will play if he’s ready to go, Berry said.
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