Jyles set to pick up the pieces

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This article was published 07/09/2010 (5540 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There is no debate now and no quarterback controversy. Steven Jyles need not look over his shoulder and wonder if his next start will be his last — the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are now officially his team to lead.

That much became official in the dying moments of Sunday’s loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the annual Labour Day Classic when Buck Pierce dislocated his right elbow, an injury that could keep him on the disabled list for the rest of 2010.

"It’s unfortunate because you never want to see a teammate get hurt like that," said Jyles after the game. "But this is a big opportunity for me and I’ve got to take advantage of it."

Jyles completed all four of his pass attempts late in Sunday’s loss, including a strike to Adarius Bowman for a touchdown.

He’s had his issues with five fumbles (three lost) in his four starts — the Bombers are 1-3 in those games — but also entered Week 9 with the third-best QB-efficiency rating in the CFL. He has completed 62.8 per cent of his passes with eight TDs against two interceptions.

"I won’t come out and put more pressure on myself than needed," said Jyles. "I’ll work on taking care of the little things. I spent the bye week thinking about the things I need to improve on and I thought I did a pretty good job of working on that throughout the week during practice.

"I’m ready to go."

And so while there are many in the Bomber camp who love rookie Alex Brink’s upside — and it is considerable — Jyles will now get the opportunity he’s coveted since first signing with the Edmonton Eskimos in 2006, spending 2008-09 in Saskatchewan before signing with the Bombers this past winter as a free agent.

Former Purdue star Joey Elliott will be No. 3. Pat White, cut over the weekend by the Miami Dolphins and a big-time star at West Virginia, is the juiciest name on the Bomber negotiation list but he is barely a blip on the radar screen right now.

And so it’s Jyles or bust in the Bombers attempt to make a run at a playoff spot in the second half of the season.

"He gets an opportunity to prove that he can be a starter in this league," head coach Paul LaPolice said Monday. "The season doesn’t fall on his shoulders — it falls on the team’s shoulders — but at the quarterback position, he gets to go with it. We’ve been in position with Steven as a starter to win games and our players believe in him."

"We all believe in Jyles," said left tackle Brendon LaBatte. "We know we can win with him."

"That feels great knowing that," Jyles added. "I’ve worked hard at earning that since training camp. You have to have the faith in your team and when guys believe in you and know that you can lead, it plays a big part in your success.

"The guys do have faith in me. All I can try to do now is try not to let them down."

ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca