Victory would see Nichols’ stock rise

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This article was published 22/10/2015 (3726 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ perfect-world/dream-case scenario, Matt Nichols would lead the club to a triumphant win Saturday and then into the postseason, prompting a run on No. 15 jerseys and a spike in Grey Cup ticket sales.

Not long after the season, he would then re-sign with the Bombers before hitting the free-agent market, giving the club some stability at the most important position on the field.

And then — again, perfect world/dream case — this: He wouldn’t start a single game in 2016.

Make no mistake, even though he hasn’t been at the controls since early August, this is still very much Drew Willy’s team. While Nichols has been decent after parachuting in following a late-August trade with the Edmonton Eskimos, with every possession he looks more like a guy who could give the Bombers a chance to win than someone who would challenge Willy for the starter’s role next year.

Given what’s unfolded in the CFL this year with so many starting quarterbacks on the endangered species list, that means Nichols will get paid after this season. Yes, for as much as every team is trying to unearth the next Bo Levi Mitchell or Zach Collaros, guys such as Kevin Glenn, Drew Tate and Nichols are proving to be just as important. Those pivots might not get you to the top of the standings as starters but, in a pinch, they could help a team tread water for a spell.

That’s what makes Saturday’s start against the Ottawa Redblacks critical not just for the Bombers, but for Nichols as well. Should he somehow get this bunch into the post-season, his stock in Winnipeg — and across the CFL — would most certainly spike upward.

The Bombers are 2-4 in the six games Nichols has started this season and he’s sporting a 78.7 QB rating after throwing eight touchdowns against five interceptions — three of those picks coming in last week’s loss to Ottawa.

That inconsistency plagued Nichols in Edmonton, too, but the Bombers were a combined 0-3 in games Robert Marve and Brian Brohm started this season. The circumstances here with the Bombers — minus their starting tailback in Paris Cotton, with a revolving door along the offensive line and some serious questions about the offensive game plan — are also considerably different than in the Alberta capital, where the Eskimos are 12-4 and tied for first.

Now, no one is comparing Nichols to Matt Dunigan, but there have been just enough flashes to intrigue management to want him back as an insurance policy next season while continuing to look at Dominique Davis or newcomer Bryan Bennett — or whoever might be signed in the winter — as the latest No. 3 pivot to be groomed, one day, into a starter.

“There’s been a couple halves that he’d want to have back. But he’s won some games for us, too,” said Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea when asked to assess Nichols’ play. “He does provide that leadership. He takes in the playbook and the game plan and understands it really well. There are a number of things that just make you feel really comfortable with him in there.

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“I’d like to find a way to get him to start fast and more consistently, that’s all. The good thing is, he comes in at the half, figures it out and goes back out there and competes. He really is a competitive son of a gun. That’s a good thing. He’s been a good addition to our team.”

The Bombers and Nichols have been mum on a possible contract extension — Nichols did say upon his arrival being in Winnipeg has re-engerized him — and it’s very possible he may want to test the free-agent waters next winter, although potential starting gigs across the league seem non-existent right now.

His best opportunity — and, perhaps, the most lucrative one — might be right here in Winnipeg. And his bargaining power would only go up with a win Saturday.

ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPEdTait