Blue resort to strong-arm tactics

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 27/07/2009 (5921 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Michael Bishop has Canadian Football League experience, mobility when the pocket breaks down and legendary arm strength — all factors which led the desperate Winnipeg Blue Bombers to recruit his services this weekend.

What remains uncertain, however, is whether the 33-year-old quarterback can perform CPR on the Bombers’ comatose offence and bring it back to life when others have failed.

"It’s an opportunity to come up and play football so I’m definitely grateful for that," said Bishop Sunday upon arrival at the airport from his home in Texas.

"I still have to learn the offence, get acquainted with the guys and then do my best to be the best teammate and try to get everybody going in the right direction.

"Anybody that plays sports, once you’re away from the game there’s always that itch to get back. When I got the phone call I felt good about it because I knew there was an opportunity for me to get back on the field."

The Bombers contacted Bishop in the wake of Friday’s 19-5 loss to the Toronto Argonauts, a game in which all three quarterbacks — Stefan LeFors, Bryan Randall and Richie Williams — combined for just 66 yards passing and 123 yards in total offence.

The club had also tossed around names like Casey Printers and Marcus Crandell as well as Quinn Gray and Brian Johnson (both of whom are considering the fledgling United Football League) but settled on Bishop not just because of his arm strength, experience and ability to scramble, but for one key factor:

He went 11-1 as a starter with the Argos in 2007 under similar circumstances — that club had an outstanding defence, solid special teams and Bishop managed to run the attack relatively error-free (16 TDs, 11 interceptions and 2,920 yards passing).

"Any quarterback that is in a situation where he’s surrounded by a great defence and special teams and knows that all he has to do is go in and play the game and try not to do anything extra would love to be in that situation," said Bishop. "If that’s the situation I could walk into that would be great for me."

Bishop began 2008 in an awkward spot in Toronto after being re-signed and then seeing the starting chores handed to Kerry Joseph.

The former Kansas State star and runner-up to Ricky Williams for the 1998 Heisman Trophy was traded to the Saskatchewan Roughriders last summer and was 4-4 in eight starts. He was released after the season following a three-interception outing vs. B.C. in the playoffs.

Interestingly, two of those four wins last year came in back-to-back games against the Bombers and included the stunning 20-point comeback in the Banjo Bowl that earned him CFL Player of the Week honours. Bishop played this spring with the Corpus Christi Hammerheads of the Indoor Football League and has since been working out four times a week and dropped 15 pounds.

Clearly the Bombers are trying to provide an offensive spark after looking horrid on Friday. All three QBs saw action and, as well, the team showcased some shotgun formation — which head coach Mike Kelly had infamously said was only for "flag football and coaches who didn’t know quarterbacks."

It’s unclear how this affects LeFors, the QB Kelly brought in from the Edmonton Eskimos and hailed as the pivot of the future, but it is possible Bishop will start this Saturday in Toronto.

"I haven’t had a chance to see anything yet," said Bishop. "I’m aware of Winnipeg from playing here against the Blue Bombers and we do get the games down in the States, so I did watch a little bit of the Toronto-Winnipeg game… I’m eager to get in, get on the ground and learn a lot more."

ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca

The Bishop file

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Born: May 15, 1976 in Galveston, Texas.

College: Was 22-3 at Kansas State. Led the school to Fiesta Bowl win over Syracuse and Donovan McNabb… Finished second to Ricky Williams in the 1998 Heisman voting.

NFL: Drafted in the seventh round (277th overall) in 1999 by the New England Patriots; saw limited action over two seasons.

PRO: Played for the Frankfurt Galaxy of NFL Europa and in the Arena League with Grand Rapids Rampage, Chicago Rush and Kansas City Brigade.

CFL: Rights originally owned by Calgary and traded to Toronto in 2002; made spot starts in 2002, 2004 and 2005 before getting the chores in 2007. Struggled in East Final loss to Winnipeg in 2007, leading to the Argos dealing for Kerry Joseph. Traded to Saskatchewan last August and was 4-4 for the Riders. Threw three picks and fumbled twice in playoff loss to B.C. CFL career record is 20-15-1.