Victimization may have fallen out of fashion in the 2010s, along with jeggings, planking and teenage dystopia, but Montreal Alouettes head coach Jason Maas believes his defenseman is personally responsible for the hamstring injury that limited his participation in the Gray Cup.
“In my opinion, it was a direct result of overtraining, and that's what a lot of young guys do. They'll do more than they ever thought they would just to be ready, and they feel like the more they do, the more ready they'll be,” Maas told the media. when asked about Davis Alexander's health.
“Sometimes the best thing is to rest and you have to be able to put all these things into it. Also, to some extent it's luck. You work so hard and all of a sudden you get a little tune-up. You think it's nothing and you make it worse. Camp is coming and you want to continue to be ready and things happen that way. So for Davis, in my opinion, that's what it was. It's too much work in large part because the expectations are high and his expectations are high.” high.”
Alouettes lost 112th Gray Cup to Saskatchewan Roughriders with a score of 25-17 at Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg. Alexander was limited in pre-game practice because of a nagging injury that he aggravated again in the Eastern finals And showed signs of limitation throughout. Despite a late surge, he completed 22-of-34 passing for 284 yards and three interceptions, throwing no touchdowns and adding just 14 yards on the ground.
After the game, the 27-year-old football player said that he is dealing with a grade 3c hamstring tear in his left leg. is the most serious type of tear that can occur without tearing the muscle from the bone. The injury occurred in April.while the quarterback made curveball sprints and flared up several times throughout the season, limiting him to just seven regular-season starts.
Known for his grueling workouts, which include deadlifting up to 500 pounds, Alexander admitted that he may have gone too far.
“I think it's been talked about a little bit. Maybe I trained too hard, I don't know. I think until now I didn't believe that was really the case. It'll be something I'll definitely keep an eye on. We'll have to figure it out as a team.” He saidadding that his workout routine already includes Pilates and flexibility exercises to stay healthy.
“Part of me thinks it's just some weird injury. Maybe it was due to overwork and stuff like that, and then I just didn't let it recover because it actually happened in April and we've been dealing with it all year. Time – it just takes time.”
Alexander is stockier and more muscular than your typical quarterback, a testament to his reputation as a gym rat. However, some have expressed concern about whether the five-foot-11, 210-pound passer can find sustained success with his current formula, as recent examples have shown that longevity at the position comes from proper body support rather than brute strength.
Maas doesn't want the Portland State product to change his physique or mentality. He just wants his offseason program adjusted so he doesn't have to adjust himself.
“Is he too bulky to play the position? No. The way he's played this year, the success he's had, is a direct result of his training and what he's put into the offseason. But whenever you're first tasked with being a franchise quarterback, human nature tends to do too much,” Maas said.
“When we look at this upcoming offseason and compare it to last year, that's what we're going to do with him. We'll sit down with him, look at everything he's done, and I think he'll learn what worked and what maybe we need to look at a little differently.”
Alexander, who was named the Alouettes' starter last offseason after the club decided to move on from former Gray Cup MVP Cody Fajardo, has assumed full training camp responsibilities despite the injury. He strained his hamstring again during the Week 3 win over Edmonton and was forced to miss three games. He lasted just 60 minutes after his return in Week 7 against Toronto, limping in for the game-winning touchdown. He was then sidelined for nine weeks.
For the first time, a franchise player admitted he probably should have retired the leg before the season to allow it to fully recover, but he unwisely moved forward out of a desire to prove himself.
“Selfishly, I would say yes. But I also don't think we knew how bad the injury was, or even what the injury was at that point, because I was able to make it through training camp and actually felt pretty good there,” he said. “I played three games before I got hurt. I think it's maybe a little selfish that now you're named the franchise guy and you have to come to camp ready and ready to go.”
While on the field, Alexander proved the Alouettes made the right decision by throwing for 2,204 yards, 10 touchdowns and just three interceptions. His energetic playing style and fiery trash talk. were the driving force behind two playoff victories, and the Gray Cup was his only loss as a CFL starter.
How Montreal might have succeeded in the title game if their defenseman had been fully healthy will forever be a “what if” question, but Maas doesn't begrudge Alexander the way he treated his body.
“He wanted to be there for his team, Montreal and the organization that gave him the opportunity. There's nothing wrong with that. Now it's time to learn from it and get better. I know he'll do everything in his power to be back 100 percent in this training camp,” he said.
“Davis will play a part in this, I assure you.”
