Assuming we re-sign our key FAs (Bighill, O-line, Harris), what do you see as our biggest needs for improvement next year? Two of the biggest for me are:

- Big time slotback that can go up and get it. Adams is a good weapon at WR but we need someone that can play inside. Love Dressler, but he's getting up there in age and shouldn't be the go to guy anymore.

- Return game - blocking and returner. Nelson looks like a keeper but I don't know what's up with our blocking. No one has had a chance back there.

On 2018-12-14 at 3:30 PM, 17to85 said:

Oh well if TSN said it then excuse me. They are above reproach in their commentary. Trust me, I was in the stands, it wasn't that windy. If it was I'd have been freezing my nuts off.

Nichols himself in the post game press conference blamed the wind on the Adams play.... so what do you have to say about that!?   He also said he "thought he played a pretty solid game".   That's the thing that bugs me the most about the guy, is he can't just man up and admit he played like crap.  At least he didn't throw his receivers under the bus again and say no one was open.

his leash has to be short next season... to pay a guy 450K next season to watch him throw 4 yard passes and maybe 1 TD a game?   That will get frustrating really quick.

On 2018-12-14 at 1:42 PM, Noeller said:

It was like 4 games....? 🤔 If you have faith in your starter, give him a chance to work his way out of it. Nichols was great once he got back on track and proved their faith in him was warranted... 

 He had one good game all year.... not sure how you can say with a straight face that he was "great".  If that's what we are going to consider great QB play, then this fan base has been brainwashed into believing mediocre QBing is acceptable.  

If he comes out of camp healthy and still looks she'll shocked and can't Pull the trigger when needed, then it's time to move on.  Football is very much a "what have you done for me lately" business, and the fact is Matt Nichols has only had 2 good games in the last year and a half, one of them being the 2017 WSF in a losing effort (which I don't blame him for... it might have been one of his best games as a Bomber), the other the home win against Calgary to clinch a playoff spot!

Other than Reilly, Mitchell & Harris just who would you rather have as a starter from the other 5 teams than Nichols? Lulay? Glass. Jennings? Coach killer. Collaros? Concussion issues. Bridge. Career backup at best.  Ray? Too old. Hopefully retires. McLeod Bethel-Thompson? Ugh. Johnny Manziel? No thanks. Antonip Pipkin? Nope. Vernon Adams? Another career backup. Drew Willy? Been there. Done that. Nichols is better than all of those qbs.  

8 hours ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Other than Reilly, Mitchell & Harris just who would you rather have as a starter from the other 5 teams than Nichols? Lulay? Glass. Jennings? Coach killer. Collaros? Concussion issues. Bridge. Career backup at best.  Ray? Too old. Hopefully retires. McLeod Bethel-Thompson? Ugh. Johnny Manziel? No thanks. Antonip Pipkin? Nope. Vernon Adams? Another career backup. Drew Willy? Been there. Done that. Nichols is better than all of those qbs.  

You forgot to add Big Chris....... and why do teams always have to recycle somebody else's QB,  it's about time the CFL teams that need a QB start running more than a few through the scouting process,  and start finding some capable replacements.

9 hours ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Russell Wilson did the same thing his last game that Nichols did in the Banjo Bowl. The pocket collapsed around him & he tried to throw the ball out of bounds but was hit as he threw. The wounded duck never made it to the sidelines. It was picked off & the DL would have had clear sailing to the end zone but was tackled almost as soon as he caught it by a Seahawk. Wilson is one of the best qbs in the NFL. If it can happen to him then it can happen to Nichols. **** happens sometimes. 

And in Nichols' case, again and again. Those gaffes in the games against the Riders may have been the worst in two consecutive games by ant QB in Bomber livery I can recall seeing. I do not think they can be ascribed to any physical cause, either.

10 hours ago, trueBlue83 said:

Nichols himself in the post game press conference blamed the wind on the Adams play.... so what do you have to say about that!?

That he's not going to throw his team mates under the bus. And his saying he played well should clue people in that it was the game plan to throw short passes and not challenge the defense deep. Ie. what I've been saying the entire time, Lapo played not to lose. 

8 minutes ago, 17to85 said:

That he's not going to throw his team mates under the bus. And his saying he played well should clue people in that it was the game plan to throw short passes and not challenge the defense deep. Ie. what I've been saying the entire time, Lapo played not to lose. 

More like he didn't want to throw himself under the bus.

Are you saying Nichols is lying when he says the wind affected that throw to Adams ?

Edited December 16, 20187 yr by NorthernSkunk

3 hours ago, Tracker said:

And in Nichols' case, again and again. Those gaffes in the games against the Riders may have been the worst in two consecutive games by ant QB in Bomber livery I can recall seeing. I do not think they can be ascribed to any physical cause, either.

Every qb throws interceptions. After that game, how many picks did Nichols throw the rest of the season? Yeah, that particular throw was bad but so what? Again, who would you sign to  play in Nichols place? Other than Streveler who isn't ready for Prime Time yet? Who, out there on a CFL team is ready & able to come in, replace Nichols & take the Bombers to the Grey Cup & win it? There is no one. Reilly & BLM won't be coming here. Neither is Harris.  Who else? Jennings??? LOL. As far as physical reasons, the guy had a severe knee injury & with knee injuries, they take a long time to heal. (Of which I have personal experience).  So, I'd say that had a lot to do with Nichol's level of play this season. 

Edited December 16, 20187 yr by SpeedFlex27

23 minutes ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Every qb throws interceptions. After that game, how many picks did Nichols throw the rest of the season? Yeah, that particular throw was bad but so what? Again, who would you sign to  play in Nichols place? Other than Streveler who isn't ready for Prime Time yet? Who, out there on a CFL team is ready & able to come in, replace Nichols & take the Bombers to the Grey Cup & win it? There is no one. Reilly & BLM won't be coming here. Neither is Harris.  Who else? Jennings??? LOL. As far as physical reasons, the guy had a severe knee injury & with knee injuries, they take a long time to heal. (Of which I have personal experience).  So, I'd say that had a lot to do with Nichol's level of play this season. 

Where can I read about Nichols "severe" knee injury ?...... who reported that 

51 minutes ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Every qb throws interceptions. After that game, how many picks did Nichols throw the rest of the season? Yeah, that particular throw was bad but so what? Again, who would you sign to  play in Nichols place? Other than Streveler who isn't ready for Prime Time yet? Who, out there on a CFL team is ready & able to come in, replace Nichols & take the Bombers to the Grey Cup & win it? There is no one. Reilly & BLM won't be coming here. Neither is Harris.  Who else? Jennings??? LOL. As far as physical reasons, the guy had a severe knee injury & with knee injuries, they take a long time to heal. (Of which I have personal experience).  So, I'd say that had a lot to do with Nichol's level of play this season. 

Lots of factors go into QB performance. But given that Nichols plays behind what is arguably the best O-line in the league and gets elite QB money (+$400k) - his 2018 play was a real disappointment. It's likely the knee injury limited his performance - he often seemed hesitant, rarely got much beyond the first read and, once in the grasp had zero escapability. Once a defender got a pinky on him - he just folded. Also, Nichols never was much of a rushing QB. This year he ran 15 times for about 50 yards total. All of that makes it easier for defensive coordinators to counter. Nichols should be taking a pay cut going into 2019 so Bombers can take some $$ from the QB envelope to extend Streveler.

Edited December 16, 20187 yr by Doublezero

51 minutes ago, Doublezero said:

Lots of factors go into QB performance. But given that Nichols plays behind what is arguably the best O-line in the league and gets elite QB money (+$400k) - his 2018 play was a real disappointment. It's likely the knee injury limited his performance - he often seemed hesitant, rarely got much beyond the first read and, once in the grasp had zero escapability. Once a defender got a pinky on him - he just folded. Also, Nichols never was much of a rushing QB. This year he ran 15 times for about 50 yards total. All of that makes it easier for defensive coordinators to counter. Nichols should be taking a pay cut going into 2019 so Bombers can take some $$ from the QB envelope to extend Streveler.

I'm glad you acknowledged Matt Nichols had a knee injury. Something his detractors conveniently seem to ignore. Both qbs are under contract next year so Nichols doesn't have to take a pay cut for the Bombers to sign Streveler.  They have another season to see if Streveler is the Next One. I do agree that Nichols will have to play better but so will his receivers. We'll see if he can bounce back in 2019. 

 

I wasn't aware that knee injuries cause quarterbacks to repeatedly toss the ball to opposing players. The league and coaches need to be alerted.

Edited December 17, 20187 yr by Tracker

1 hour ago, Tracker said:

I wasn't aware that knee injuries cause quarterbacks to repeatedly toss the ball to opposing players. The league and coaches need to be alerted.

Whatever, there's no talking to you. You believe what you choose to believe. 

20 hours ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Russell Wilson did the same thing his last game that Nichols did in the Banjo Bowl. The pocket collapsed around him & he tried to throw the ball out of bounds but was hit as he threw. The wounded duck never made it to the sidelines. It was picked off & the DL would have had clear sailing to the end zone but was tackled almost as soon as he caught it by a Seahawk. Wilson is one of the best qbs in the NFL. If it can happen to him then it can happen to Nichols. **** happens sometimes. 

How are these two plays the same? Wilson tried to throw it out of bounds. Nichols did no such thing. He tried to make a (bone headed) play in desperation. Huge difference.

20 hours ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Other than Reilly, Mitchell & Harris just who would you rather have as a starter from the other 5 teams than Nichols? Lulay? Glass. Jennings? Coach killer. Collaros? Concussion issues. Bridge. Career backup at best.  Ray? Too old. Hopefully retires. McLeod Bethel-Thompson? Ugh. Johnny Manziel? No thanks. Antonip Pipkin? Nope. Vernon Adams? Another career backup. Drew Willy? Been there. Done that. Nichols is better than all of those qbs.  

Well he's not better than Ray or Lulay and there's an argument that either one would be an upgrade to Nichols behind our O-line, as might be some of the others, including Chris Streveler.

Reilly, Mitchell, and Harris were found players as were Ray and Lulay. There's no reason that a player of that calibre can't be found for this football club. The real challenge would be getting O'Shea to play him!

7 hours ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

As far as physical reasons, the guy had a severe knee injury & with knee injuries, they take a long time to heal. (Of which I have personal experience).  So, I'd say that had a lot to do with Nichol's level of play this season. 

Are you saying O'Shea chose to play a QB with a severe knee injury over a healthy young QB with a ton of upside that needs reps to develop? 

On 2018-12-06 at 11:34 AM, NorthernSkunk said:

I have learned here that if I don't apply the lol then some don't realize when my comments are meant for a laugh. 

Ugh. I feel sick saying this but I agree with him here.  I add the lol often because some finer nuances of sarcastic wit are lost on some here at times..

On 2018-12-07 at 8:37 PM, J5V said:

1. A burning desire to win. No we don't have one, never have with this regime. One or the other needs to change.

You have got to be kidding.... 

 

I don't see how self immolation gets us closer to winning...

On 2018-12-14 at 10:35 AM, TBURGESS said:

The real point is that the ball was overthrown to a wide open Adams. Adams wouldn't catch up to it no matter how hard he tried, but the Nichols apologist's need it to be someone else's fault.

Streveler missing his only throw of the game doesn't make him Nealon Green 2.0 or a bad QB, no matter how many times some folks want to make that the story.

Who's implying hes a bad qb, 1 dimensional or anything of the like??

 

People are saying he is still green as a rookie and unproven.. nobody has called him anything other than that from what I've read..

On 2018-12-14 at 10:35 AM, TBURGESS said:

The real point is that the ball was overthrown to a wide open Adams. Adams wouldn't catch up to it no matter how hard he tried, but the Nichols apologist's need it to be someone else's fault.

Streveler missing his only throw of the game doesn't make him Nealon Green 2.0 or a bad QB, no matter how many times some folks want to make that the story.

Nichols overthrows receiver = bad QB

Streveler overthows receiver =/= bad QB.

 

Above rationale = Tburg logic

 

Please stop- you're breaking my brain....

10 hours ago, NorthernSkunk said:

More like he didn't want to throw himself under the bus.

Are you saying Nichols is lying when he says the wind affected that throw to Adams ?

I think the issue is that a pro QB should have accounted for the wind.

Reilly should not be getting a free pass here, he played every minute of every game and yet somehow missed the playoffs.  

-He barely beat Streveller in his professional debut in the rain delayed game 33-30.

-Got clobbered by Hamilton in the second game 38-21. 

-Lost to the Argos in week 4 and beat them by one in week 5, 20-17 and 16-15.

-Lost to BC in week 9, 31-23.

-Lost to Hamilton in week 11, 25-24.

-Lost to Cgy. in week 13, 23-20.

-Lost to Ottawa in week 15, 28-15.

-Got clobbered by the Bombers in week 16, 30-3.

-Lost to Sask in week 17, 19-12.

-Lost to BC in week 19, 42-32.

-Beat Streveller and the Bombers second stringers in week 21, 33-24.

Some may pick up the TSN line claiming his receiving corp. was decimated without Duke Williams and Derel Walker but he still had the likes of Bryant Mitchell, Vidal Hazelton and Kenny Stafford to play catch with, and Duke led the league in receiving with 1579 yds. so he didn't miss all that much action.  Anyone seriously expecting Reilly to take a pay cut?

 

 

 

1 hour ago, J5V said:

Are you saying O'Shea chose to play a QB with a severe knee injury over a healthy young QB with a ton of upside that needs reps to develop? 

I'm not saying anything anymore because as I said to tracker, you guys will choose to believe whatever you choose to believe. You won't listen to any other point of view. There's no point for me discussing it further. 

3 hours ago, J5V said:

How are these two plays the same? Wilson tried to throw it out of bounds. Nichols did no such thing. He tried to make a (bone headed) play in desperation. Huge difference.

 

Yeah, it was but so what? It happened nearly 4 months ago. Time to move on. You think Nichols is the only qb who has made a bad throw or a bad decision? Time to get over it. 

Edited December 17, 20187 yr by SpeedFlex27

14 hours ago, NorthernSkunk said:

You forgot to add Big Chris....... and why do teams always have to recycle somebody else's QB,  it's about time the CFL teams that need a QB start running more than a few through the scouting process,  and start finding some capable replacements.

Yes because teams just pick 2 or 3 and when they flop, that's it.. onto the retreads.

 

Cuz I mean, there is like this endless supply of bonafide starting calibre QBs that teams like Hamilton, Montreal, Saskatchewan and us just ignore or refuse to bring in..

 

Honestly,  do you really think GMs and scouts just say...  "nah.. we good."

 

?