Nichols cashes in

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This article was published 29/07/2016 (3361 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

EDMONTON — All week long, Winnipeg Blue Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea said he hoped a move to Matt Nichols as his team’s starting quarterback would create “a spark.”

He got a full-blown lightning storm instead.

The only thing more electrifying Thursday night at Commonwealth Stadium than the electrical storm that delayed the game against the Edmonton Eskimos for 30 minutes was the play of Nichols — who from the opening series looked to be the antidote for all that had ailed a slumbering offence through the first five weeks of the season.

Nichols led the Bombers on an eight-play, 85-yard touchdown drive on the game’s first series and never looked back, piloting an injury-depleted lineup to a 30-23 upset win over the heavily favoured Eskimos.

Nichols’ final numbers were solid, if not exactly overwhelming — 26-for-33 for 304 yards and one TD — but he was effective in a way starter-turned-backup Drew Willy hasn’t been. It’s not even close.

The Bombers’ win snapped a two-game losing string, improved the club’s 2016 record to 2-4, and was the first win in Edmonton (and just the second in Alberta) since 2006. 

A fine performance

Winnipeg had limped its way to a 1-4 start but looked like a world-beater Thursday, dominating the defending Grey Cup champions in all three phases of the game (quite a trick when you consider Nichols only plays on offence).

With Willy on the sidelines for the start of a game for the first time this year, and backup Nichols at the controls, a Bombers offence that had been all about very quick and very short passes suddenly found a long-awaited vertical component. Nichols hit on passes of 21 and 39 yards on just the first drive alone.

Add to that a breakout game for tailback Andrew Harris — who rushed for 104 yards in the first half and finished with 127 on 22 carries — and it was an offence firing on all cylinders.

But it didn’t end there. An inspired Bombers defence also had a stifling performance against Eskimos QB Mike Reilly, rendering him ineffective for long periods and almost completely shutting down his favourite target, Adarius Bowman.

It was a defensive performance made all the more remarkable by the fact the Bombers did it while fielding a secondary without three injured starters from last week.

All the changes were expected to provide a feast for Reilly, but an effective rush from the front seven and some shutdown coverage in the secondary by newcomers such as cornerback Terrence Frederick proved more than equal to the task.

The net offence numbers were lopsided, particularly at halftime: 312 yards for Winnipeg and 111 for Edmonton.

Throw in a solid night by Bombers kicker Justin Medlock and kick-returner Quincy McDuffie on special teams and this was as close to a complete game by the Blue Bombers as we’ve seen in a long time.

What does it mean?

The win couldn’t have come at a better time.

It should quiet, at least for a little while, the calls in recent weeks from Bombers Nation for head coach Mike O’Shea to be fired. And it should also settle, at least for the time being, that it’s Nichols, not Willy, who should be the starting quarterback.

But while that will no doubt come as a relief to many fans who’ve been calling for Nichols for weeks, it also creates a situation that would be untenable in the long term: Willy makes $400,000 a season, and is now the highest-paid backup in the league.

Under consideration…

1) Bombers slotback Weston Dressler had a monster first half, hauling in six passes for 111 yards, but came up lame late in the second quarter with a right leg injury. He did not return.

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2) A prevent defence late in the game allowed Edmonton to make the score closer than it should have been. The Esks failed to recover an onside kick that would have given them back the ball with 15 seconds to play.

Up Next

The big win should give the Bombers a much-needed ticket-sales bump heading into Wednesday’s home date at Investors Group Field against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The Bombers have drawn less than 25,000 to each of their last two home games and there was concern another loss might have resulted in the crickets outnumbering the spectators at IGF next week.

paul.wiecek@freepress.mb.ca        

 Twitter: @PaulWiecek