It’s Zach Collaros’ brain. And he shouldn’t be allowed to keep marching onto a football field until his brain turns into a pickle.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders’ quarterback reportedly passed the CFL’s concussion protocol two days after he was removed from his team’s Banjo Bowl victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
Earlier this year Collaros hid concussion symptoms from the Roughriders’ medical staff because he didn’t want to miss any games and appear injury-prone to his new teammates. Collaros had suffered head injuries at least twice while with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
His dangerous plan backfired two games into the regular season when he absorbed a hit that triggered more severe symptoms. Collaros confessed to his deception before returning from a four-game absence, which demonstrated the danger of allowing a professional football player to decide if he’s healthy enough to play. The CFL should certainly change it’s protocol, to make it more difficult for an injured player to get back onto the field.
Now that he’s cleared the CFL’s concussion protocol, Collaros can again decide if he’s OK to play for the Roughriders, even though he’s already made one horrible decision.