Would the Bomber's record be 3 - 4 if MOS had inserted Matt Nichols when Willy was struggling in game one?

[IC Khari]

Anyone not think at the very least we'd be a win or two better?

Edited August 4, 2016 by IC Khari

[B-F-F-C]

Sorry but no coach would have sat his marquee QB that early in the season.  Willy had to be given the opportunity to work thru his funk.   

So don't go blaming this on Mike O'Shea.

 

[M.O.A.B.]

Lawless, explained it well. 

Willy got all the leeway up to the point of the switch. He is getting pain as the #1 QB and he was coming from an injury. But a move has to be made last game.

And are we so glad that Walters was able to resigned Nicholls? 

[Taynted_Fayth]

I think we might have held onto our lead vs edmonton (20-16 game) other then that all the other losses we were on the outside looking in too early

Edited August 4, 2016 by Taynted_Fayth

[Nash00]

27 minutes ago, M.O.A.B. said:

Lawless, explained it well. 

Willy got all the leeway up to the point of the switch. He is getting pain as the #1 QB and he was coming from an injury. But a move has to be made last game.

And are we so glad that Walters was able to resigned Nicholls? 

I have to eat a little crow on this one. In the preseason I thought Nichols was awful, I wanted Davis at #2. Glad I don't get paid to make these decisions.

[bearpants]

would we have 1 or 2 more wins?... maybe... but who cares?... we are currently 3-4 and starting to look like a real football team... not too disappointed right now...

[IC Khari]

Yep true, not blaming MOS, agreed though, where we are now is not too bad.

[White Out]

I don't think I would have brought back Willy if I were GM, but since you brought him back and he's making 400k a year, he had to get the early starts. Nothing wrong with pulling a QB in a game they're not being effective in though. So I'll disagree with some responses here that make it seem untoward to pull Willy earlier in the season. He isn't Tom Brady.

[Tracker]

There seems to be almost unanimous agreement that Willy has dropped to the backup role, and at 400K per year, that is untenable. Nichols appears to have a command of the team in a way we haven't seen since 2014, so the question is: do either Davis or Bennett have the stuff to go in on short notice and be competitive if Willy gets sent on his way?

[pigseye]

The o-line for Willy was ****, had they gone to 3 imports sooner, he may still be the starting qb.

[Nash00]

1 minute ago, tracker said:

There seems to be almost unanimous agreement that Willy has dropped to the backup role, and at 400K per year, that is untenable. Nichols appears to have a command of the team in a way we haven't seen since 2014, so the question is: do either Davis or Bennett have the stuff to go in on short notice and be competitive if Willy gets sent on his way?

That's the big question. I would be hesitant to get rid of Willy based on two starts from Nichols. Let's see where this thing goes for a few more weeks, the schedule starts to lighten up a bit and we might be able to string together a few more W's. We all know how valuable depth is at the QB position and now that we finally have it, it's not in our best interests to go back to square one.

Let Walters manage the numbers and make everything work, but unless we have to cut an impact starter somewhere else on the roster it doesn't make sense to let Willy go. Say what you want about him, but he would be a more than adequate backup QB.

[Taynted_Fayth]

I wouldn't be to quick to get rid of willy. Last year when he got hurt and Nichols filled in he was OK but we were still losing so everyone was like get well soon willy we need you.  So that sense of job security could have a part in his... lack of fire. Now that Nichols is winning I'm curious to see if that's the motivation he needed. If/when Nichols starts to struggle I'd rather give willy one more shot before Davis or Bennette. If he's truly done then, then it's time to cut the cord

[17to85]

1 hour ago, pigseye said:

The o-line for Willy was ****, had they gone to 3 imports sooner, he may still be the starting qb.

Yeah and when hardrick went out the O dried up. Not a coincidence.

[O2L]

Last year Nichols wasn't in a Paul LaPolice offence, had o-linemen with a year less experience, didn't have Andrew Harris in the backfield, had one of the worst receiving corps in the league, and had a kicker that did everything in his power to lose games. I think we're now seeing what he's actually capable of. Let's remember that without Matt Nichols winning five games for them, Edmonton is not likely to be the defending Grey Cup champs. 

Let's also remember that with the exception of the season opener last year, against the worst team in the league, Willy didn't look spectacular prior to his injury. 

Travis Lulay agreed to take a pay cut to stay on as the backup in BC, maybe Willy will do the same. Could we have won these last two games with Willy at QB? Maybe. But it's not mechanics, players, or anything else that's caused his poor performance this year, it's fear and indecisiveness. When Nichols rolled out of the pocket yesterday and threw a completion down the sideline (much like he did last week after avoiding a sure-sack), I was confused. I didn't realize that Blue Bombers QBs were permitted to do that, since it's been so long since I've seen it happen. 

I was as excited as anyone to have Willy back this year, I believed him to be the answer. But as with Buck and Khari before him, he's a shell of his former self post-injury. Maybe he'll get it back, maybe he won't, but with how often QBs go down in this league I wouldn't be surprised to see him back on the field this year, and I agree that having him as our second option is pretty solid. 

Everyone forgets that Nichols was battling Reilly for the starter's role in Edmonton before an unfortunate injury. By the time he was healed it was Reilly's job, and this is the first time since then that Nichols has another shot. I'm not saying he's the next elite QB, but let's remember that it took Anthony Calvillo some pretty bad seasons before he became the hall of famer he is today. Nichols is winning us games - can we stop making excuses for why that's happening and just be happy that he's getting it done? 

(Apparently I want everyone to remember a lot of things. Time to expand my vocabulary!)

Edited August 4, 2016 by O2L

[mbrg]

2 hours ago, tracker said:

There seems to be almost unanimous agreement that Willy has dropped to the backup role, and at 400K per year, that is untenable. Nichols appears to have a command of the team in a way we haven't seen since 2014, so the question is: do either Davis or Bennett have the stuff to go in on short notice and be competitive if Willy gets sent on his way?

Did the salary cap change when Nichols became the starter?  Seems like a strange way to do it, but the CFL has always been quirky.

[TBURGESS]

Just now, mbrg said:

Did the salary cap change when Nichols became the starter?  Seems like a strange way to do it, but the CFL has always been quirky.

No, but the amount of bonus money that Nichols will get did. I saw a tweet that said Nichols gets $100K bonus if he starts 6 games. Now, I've got no idea if that's true or not, but I have to believe that his contract is bonus laden.

[Jpan85]

I highly doubt that because Walters has gone on record that he does not give bonuses. 

[mbrg]

1 minute ago, TBURGESS said:

No, but the amount of bonus money that Nichols will get did. I saw a tweet that said Nichols gets $100K bonus if he starts 6 games. Now, I've got no idea if that's true or not, but I have to believe that his contract is bonus laden.

And conversely, the starts not made by Willy may...

[JuranBoldenRules]

4 minutes ago, Jpan85 said:

I highly doubt that because Walters has gone on record that he does not give bonuses. 

Are you serious?  You think he'd be able to sign any free agents if he didn't?

[holoman]

9 minutes ago, Jpan85 said:

I highly doubt that because Walters has gone on record that he does not give bonuses. 

I think he said he doesn't LIKE to give incentive based bonuses. because it's tough to keep the numbers in check....Now if he offered one because he thought there was no chance in hell that Nichols would start 6 games, that's a different story. 

Edited August 4, 2016 by holoman

[TBURGESS]

8 minutes ago, mbrg said:

And conversely, the starts not made by Willy may...

I'll bet that Willy's contract has way more guaranteed money and way less bonuses built in. One 'source' said he got over 100K up front this year. Again, I have no idea if it's true or not.

[wbbfan]

7 hours ago, IC Khari said:

Anyone not think at the very least we'd be a win or two better?

nope. Those 2nd half numbers were as bad or worse then willys worst halfs. With a dropped pick 6 too. Never had a long drive or drove the lenth of the field. Barely half the length on his longest drive.

[bearpants]

18 hours ago, TBURGESS said:

No, but the amount of bonus money that Nichols will get did. I saw a tweet that said Nichols gets $100K bonus if he starts 6 games. Now, I've got no idea if that's true or not, but I have to believe that his contract is bonus laden.

The only tweet I saw about this magical $100k bonus was from..... wait for for it....

GBill...

Unless you saw it from a reputable source, I'm choosing not to believe it...

[TBURGESS]

11 minutes ago, bearpants said:

The only tweet I saw about this magical $100k bonus was from..... wait for for it....

GBill...

Unless you saw it from a reputable source, I'm choosing not to believe it...

Is GarrettB GBill? See point 3 in: http://3downnation.com/2016/08/04/nichols-bombers-back-track-_-thoughts/ by John Hodge.

[bearpants]

1 minute ago, TBURGESS said:

Is GarrettB GBill? See point 3 in: http://3downnation.com/2016/08/04/nichols-bombers-back-track-_-thoughts/ by John Hodge.

yeah that's the article I saw also... and I'm pretty sure that's who it is...