So as much as we railed on Walters and co. for their poor US scouting and apparent lack of depth on the team during our poor start, based on the last few weeks we maybe have to revisit that idea. Here is the game 1 starting lineup and now the depth behind the starters (in some cases former starters):

QB: Willy/Nichols
HB: Harris
WR: Davis
WR: Dressler/K. Adams
SB: Smith/Denmark
SB: Davis
SB: D. Adams/Mayo
WR: Kohlert
LT: Bryant
LG: Hardrick/Bond
C: Goossen
RG: Chungh
RT: Neufeld/Hardrick
DE: Green/Cole
DE: Westerman/Corney
DT: Shologan
DT: Cummings
WIL: Bass/Wild
MLB: Wild/Bass/Knox
SAM: Leggett/Burnett
CB: J. Adams/Frederick
CB: Randle/Roberts
HB: Posey/Fogg
HB: B. Johnson
S: M. Harris/Loffler

I included guys like Knox and Burnett due to their work on teams, you could also add guys like Waggoner and D. Jones as well as they were Walters guys as well. Obviously it's only 2 games but based on the supposed issues we had with depth when we were 1-4 I think we need to acknowledge the fact that these depth guys have been integral to our success over the last 2 weeks.
 

1 hour ago, Atomic said:

Nichols is still catching up with everyone that has been playing for 6 weeks.  I don't mind him getting the snaps.  Don't really see any point to giving reps to Davis, he is the #3.  If he ends up playing this year we're out of the playoffs anyways... If Nichols goes down, it's obviously back to Drew Willy, not Davis.

By no means are we assured of making the playoffs and so long as we get darned close to it without being blown out every second game, I can live with that. Solidifying the quarterback position is the priority, and I still am not confident O'Shea is the right coach.

1 hour ago, Atomic said:

Nichols is still catching up with everyone that has been playing for 6 weeks.  I don't mind him getting the snaps.  Don't really see any point to giving reps to Davis, he is the #3.  If he ends up playing this year we're out of the playoffs anyways... If Nichols goes down, it's obviously back to Drew Willy, not Davis.

MOS might go with Willy if Nichols can't play but that would be a mistake. His team-mates checked out on him several games ago.

9 hours ago, Doublezero said:

MOS might go with Willy if Nichols can't play but that would be a mistake. His team-mates checked out on him several games ago.

They would get behind him in a hurry if Nichols went down.  If you think the team would have more confidence in Dom Davis then I'm afraid you're sadly mistaken.

2 hours ago, Atomic said:

They would get behind him in a hurry if Nichols went down.  If you think the team would have more confidence in Dom Davis then I'm afraid you're sadly mistaken.

Actually you really have no way of knowing that.

On ‎2016‎-‎08‎-‎04 at 0:58 PM, Dr. Blue said:

What's the injury to Hardrick?

shoulder

I agree that the team has definitely responded to the replacement of Willy. If Nichols was to be injured then obviously we would go back to Willy, and that would be his last chance to prove himself to his teammates the coaching staff and of course us.

Loffler certainly looks to be a keeper, and certainly helps with the ratio. Macho isn't coming back any time soon.

I hope Hardrick isn't out long term, I certainly like what he brings.

No idea why on Earth people want to get rid of Drew.

22 minutes ago, Mike said:

No idea why on Earth people want to get rid of Drew.

Agreed. Not this year anyways. Matt Nichols has been a nice surprise, but it's a long season and we need stability if Nichols goes down, or falters.

3 hours ago, ddanger said:

shoulder

I think he first hurt it after the Denmark td. He jumped over Denmark and landed hard on that arm. He got up and walked pretty slowly to the bench. We all wondered if he hurt himself, and it was that arm that ended up getting injured only a series or two later.

1 hour ago, Mike said:

No idea why on Earth people want to get rid of Drew.

Cuz Winnipegers are cheap and they don't like the idea of not getting their money's worth out of Willy. Also, it's bad form to have highest paid player on the team being a $400K+ backup insurance policy.

2 minutes ago, TBURGESS said:

Cuz Winnipegers are cheap and they don't like the idea of not getting their money's worth out of Willy. Also, it's bad form to have highest paid player on the team being a $400K+ backup insurance policy.

It's an off season problem though.

I don't see a scenario where Drew doesn't see the the field again. Maybe he makes the most of it, maybe he doesn't. But it's too early to roll with a bunch of question marks, especially with the entire coaching staff fighting for their jobs.

And that's another can of worms - the coaching staff doesn't care about the salary cap - I doubt MOS wants Walters to throw Willy away.

Man considering that Nichols has a lengthy injury history, and serious injuries to boot do we really want to bank on the guy staying healthy? Unless there's some kind of huge cap crunch you keep your depth at the position because we've seen what happens without depth at qb far too often in this city.

Doesn't it come down to who is the second-best QB on the roster? Willy's stock has fallen dramatically but O'Shea being who he is, I cannot see him voluntarily letting Willy go. It may not be his decision, though and Walters may see a much better use for the remainder of his $400,000 to strengthen the team- to sign Muamba for instance. Willy has had his chance to claim the starter's role and has failed. Maybe Davis or Bennett is no worse or close to being as good.

You keep Willy as an insurance policy for the rest of the year. We're still in the playoff hunt. Do you think they want to trust an unproven Davis?

By the time you get around to potential NFL cuts like Muamba etc, you're likely looking at paying those guys for 6-7 games. Cost drops a lot.

It's funny that most people don't want to see Willy anymore because they don't see him as a starter and because he was a big part of the reason we were losing so often. The same people also argue that we have to keep Willy with his ridiculously large contract because he's the only experienced backup we have and we may need him. I don't see how he can be both too bad to start and too good to let go especially at $400-411K.

18 hours ago, sweep the leg said:

I think he first hurt it after the Denmark td. He jumped over Denmark and landed hard on that arm. He got up and walked pretty slowly to the bench. We all wondered if he hurt himself, and it was that arm that ended up getting injured only a series or two later.

Shoulder injury is terrible news for an O-lineman, it could be awhile before Hardrick can play again.  Foketi up!

16 hours ago, rebusrankin said:

You keep Willy as an insurance policy for the rest of the year. We're still in the playoff hunt. Do you think they want to trust an unproven Davis?

By the time you get around to potential NFL cuts like Muamba etc, you're likely looking at paying those guys for 6-7 games. Cost drops a lot.

At some point if Nichols can't go, you have to trust an unproven Davis or Bennett. These guys are the future. Willy had his chance. It was excruciating to watch and it was apparent that Bombers players also lost confidence in the previous starter - so why would you go back to him? Would it give the team a lift? Not to mention the fact that the fans have moved on: http://www.kijiji.ca/v-hockey/winnipeg/2-winnipeg-blue-bombers-drew-willy-signed-jerseys-for-sale/1187968008?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

3 hours ago, Throw Long Bannatyne said:

Shoulder injury is terrible news for an O-lineman, it could be awhile before Hardrick can play again.  Foketi up!

Lets hope the choice is not a Foketi up.

Just my 2 cents. It gas been mentioned briefly here and I agree totally MOS is stubborn so that becomes a hindrance. Example: the entire secondary all rookies and they outplay the starters. Yes he will have an issue going forward but hopefully he will but wisdom ahead of stubbornness,  not loyalty, when this decision comes up. Another example is his reluctance to play Nichols instead of willy no coach would have waited 2 1/2 years to make the switch. Finally not playing Davis or Bennett in the 4th quarter was downright dumb in my opinion not only for injury purposes but also for grooming purposes. At least Walters didn't flinch in getting Denmark not sure MOS would have done that. People please keep in mind this is only 2 games and we are still belie 500 ball. I am  encourage definite but cautious as there are important decisions to come. Meanwhile keep the status quo but put the foot on pedal in the second half next time, it us what got you the lead in the first place

You say the rookies are out playing the vets. I see it more as the rookies are improving. Fogg and Roberts did not look good their first couple games but have really improved the past couple weeks. Bruce Johnson also has been really good since coming back.

Losing guys like Newfeld, Macho and Posey....turned into addition by subtraction...