Jets Preseason Hero Welcomed Back to Winnipeg
Chris Streveler is back in the city that hosts the Jets ... Manitoba's, that is.
The journeyman quarterback, best known to American football fans for his magical summer as the New York Jets' primary thrower, is back with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, the team that hosted his first professional gridiron affairs. He's moving back north on a one-year deal after a four-season sabbatical across the NFL that also featured stops in Arizona, Baltimore, and Miami.
Streveler cited former Jets collaborators Joe Flacco and Aaron Rodgers as one of his biggest sources of inspiration and expertise that he plans to utilize in his second CFL stint.
“In the NFL I was in the room with a lot of guys who really changed the way I view the game,” Streveler, 29, told Ed Tait of the Blue Bombers' official site. “I’m really excited to put the things I’ve learned while being in the room with Aaron Rodgers, Joe Flacco, Teddy Bridgewater, Colt McCoy, Lamar (Jackson), Tua (Tagovailoa), Kyler (Murray). I’m excited now to bring that knowledge up to Winnipeg and share that with guys and hopefully make our team better."
USA TODAY SPORTS
Steveler did the impossible with the Jets and made the latter portions of NFL preseason games worth watching, developing a cult following among fans of green metropolitan football for his comeback efforts in 2022. Over that late summer trio, Streveler completed 24-of-33 passes for 272 yards and five touchdowns while guiding the Jets to a perfect preseason mark.
In a report from Randy Lange of the Jets' official site, head coach Robert Saleh labeled Streveler's summer "one of the greatest preseasons in the history of football." Streveler did not make the Jets' opening day roster but spent most of the season on the New York practice squad and would earn entry into a late December loss to Jacksonville in relief of a struggling Zach Wilson. He would amass 144 total yards on three drives in what became his lone official box score entries for New York.
Streveler returned to Jets camp this past summer but was one of the early castaways after he suffered a thumb injury during the team's participation in the Hall of Fame Game against Cleveland. He failed to find any further work in the NFL after that, leading to his return to the league of the rouge.
Before going down in Jets summer lore, Streveler played two seasons as a depth quarterback for the Canadian Football League's long-running Winnipeg franchise. Though he was mostly a backup, Streveler became well-known for his rushing talents, especially during the team's run to the 107th Grey Cup in 2018.
Streveler went viral on the True North internet in the ensuing championship celebration, hoisting the trophy while clad only a fur coat covering his upper body. Winnipeg teased his return earlier this week by displaying a photo of the coat on its social media channels, along with the simple caption of "soon." In the ultimately futile championship defense, Streveler shared the CFL lead in rushing touchdowns with two others, which earned attention from the NFL's Arizona Cardinals.
