Wilson in battle for Bombers’ third QB job

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This article was published 17/05/2024 (480 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Terry Wilson is quickly getting to know the lay of the land.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers hopeful has been in enough quarterback rooms to recognize the situation he finds himself in as training camp moves along.

After the departures of Dru Brown to the Ottawa Redblacks and short-yardage specialist Dakota Prukop to the B.C. Lions, the Blue Bombers depth chart beyond Zach Collaros and Chris Streveler is wide open.

That’s where Wilson, Eric Barriere and Jackson Tachinski come in.

Although head coach Mike O’Shea was quick to point out it’s still early in the evaluation process for the guys battling for the No. 3 job, the opportunity to see them in game action could come as early as Monday when Winnipeg travels to Regina to face the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

“You’ve been through things like this before. It’s not new,” a smiling Wilson said after Friday’s workout. “I’ve been taking in a lot of information and trying to put it into reps. I try not to put too much pressure on myself. I just want to make sure that I’m prepared and know what I’m doing.”

Leaning on the likes of Collaros and Streveler is part of that process.

“I’ve just been soaking in all of the information,” said Wilson, noting Michael Vick, Vince Young and Randall Cunningham were quarterbacks he patterns his game after. “Zach is very smart and you see some of the throws that he makes and you’re like, ‘Oh my. That’s a next-level throw. Same with Streveler, he runs the ball very hard and he has a nice arm. I’ve been picking his brain on angles and different reads.”

O’Shea has been impressed by how the quarterbacks prepare and process information in the early stages of training camp.

“I like to listen to them and watch them work, to see how they are with their teammates and to see their composure, professionalism and how they are in a huddle. Their demeanour is really important to me. That kind of stuff,” said O’Shea.

“If the same mistake happens a second time, it’s probably because there’s a deficiency there where they didn’t study enough. But if you get to this point, they know how to put in the hours to make sure that they’re ready to run their plays the next day.”

Wilson, 26, admits that there’s an art to diving into a playbook and sorting out concepts on the fly.

“It’s really about being organized and for me personally, I like to have my notes pretty clean and neat. Because once you have it in your notes like that, you have it in your brain clean and neat and you go on the field and do it that way,” said Wilson, who is 6-foot-3 and 207 pounds. “I stick to my routine. If I need to study for a couple more hours, I will. But the game stays the game. I’m still learning.”

That athletic ability has translated to success at a variety of stops for Wilson, including four schools at the collegiate level and a stint in the USFL with the Houston Gamblers last season.

Wilson’s ability to stretch the field with his arms and legs should make him a threat whenever he finds a way to get onto the field.

“There’s no doubt about it,” said Wilson. “It makes me excited to think about the things I could be able to do in this league.

“I know my skillset. I’ll be able to make plays and be able to do things for the team and be very explosive. Right now, I’m just trying to make sure that one day, I’m ready to play.”

Wilson has also dealt with a lot of adversity during his career, including a pair of season-ending injuries in college, one in the second game of 2019 while at Kentucky when he suffered a knee injury and another during his senior season after transferring to New Mexico when he was sidelined with a dislocated elbow.

“You rehab, you get better and you learn from things and you keep pushing,” said Wilson. “Things happen. I try not to dwell on it. It puts a little chip on your shoulder as well and it makes you a little more eager to get back out on the field and heal up.

“I’ve grown from it.”

Wilson has made an early impression on Collaros.

“Terry and Eric are both very smart guys. They’ve picked up what we’re trying to do. I can see the growth as the days go on, for sure,” said Collaros. “They’re both talented and they both want to learn. Terry’s talent really jumps off the tape. His arm talent, he can really spin the football and he’s a great athlete.”

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

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