Starting quarterback Dru Brown ruled out for Ottawa Redblacks' home opener
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The Ottawa Redblacks’ quarterback depth will be tested in Week 2 of the Canadian Football League season.
So will their depth at safety.
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Head coach Bob Dyce confirmed after Wednesday’s practice that Dru Brown will not dress for this week’s home opener against the Montreal Alouettes.
Brown, the Redblacks No. 1 QB, suffered a hip injury on the second-last offensive series in Thursday’s loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
“If I were to hazard a guess, I would think he could be ready for Week 3,” Dyce said.
Matt Shiltz will start Friday’s game at TD Place against the 1-0 Alouettes with Dustin Crum and Tyrie Adams suited up as backup plans.
Meanwhile, the news on starting safety Alonzo Addae is worse.
The 27-year-old veteran is done for the season after suffering an unspecified elbow/tricep injury against the Roughriders.
Addae, a key member of the Redblacks defence, is expected to be replaced by fellow Canadian and former B.C. Lion Charlie Ringland.
“I feel for Alonzo because of the way he was playing, the way he was communicating in the secondary, and I know how much work he put in in this off-season,” Dyce said of Addae, whose 2024 season was cut short after 14 games by a knee injury. “I feel awful for him. I know he’ll come back strong. He’s very strong mentally and he’ll battle through us. I know how he’ll help us and whoever’s playing, whether it’s Charlie at free safety, going forward from there. He’s still a huge part of what we do, and we’ll work forward like that.”
Shiltz, a free-agent signing over the winter, spent the first five seasons of his CFL career with Montreal and the next two as a Hamilton Tiger-Cat.
He spent last season with the Calgary Stampeders, playing in 10 games and making two starts while completing 34-of-62 passes for 438 yards.
Shiltz, a 32-year-old native of St. Charles, Ill., also carried the ball 14 times for 133 yards.
“They’re totally different quarterbacks,” Dyce said in comparing the styles of Brown and Shiltz. “Matt’s probably a little bit more mobile. He adds the dimension of running maybe a little bit more. They’re both fantastic leaders. They both can make all the throws that they need to make.”
Shiltz will be facing a tough defence on Friday.
In last week’s 28-10 victory over the defending champion Toronto Argos, the Alouettes allowed reigning Grey Cup MVP Nick Arbuckle just 20 of 32 completions for 273 yards and a touchdown while also picking him off twice.
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