Bombers deem receiver Matthews expendable

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This article was published 28/08/2019 (2204 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When the Winnipeg Blue Bombers inked Chris Matthews to a multi-year deal on the eve of training camp in May, his addition was viewed as the final piece to a promising offence.

With Matthews under contract through the 2021 season, no longer would quarterback Matt Nichols be without a big-bodied wide receiver — the kind of target Nichols had quietly longed for in recent years. For Matthews, a 6-5, 235-pound native of Long Beach, Calif., it was a homecoming of sorts, back to the team he started his CFL career with.

Those high expectations hadn’t panned out as the Bombers crossed into the back half of the regular season and, as a result, Matthews’ tenure with the Bombers came to a sudden halt. He was issued his release Wednesday morning, making the termination of his contract effective immediately. Matthews is now a free agent, able to sign with another CFL team.

The Free Press reached out to Matthews’ agent, Rodney Edwards, Wednesday afternoon and Edwards said he didn’t feel comfortable commenting on his client’s situation, claiming it was too fresh. He said he’s already heard from a handful of teams.

“It’s never ever one reason, but Darvin Adams is coming back and we certainly like the play of Kenny Lawler,” Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea said following Wednesday’s practice. “He’s a good football player, I’m sure he’s going to land on his feet somewhere.”

It was a curious answer by O’Shea, even if it did make some sense.

The original plan for Winnipeg was to bring in Matthews to complement Adams. The hope was Matthews would steal a good chunk of attention from opposing defensive backs, giving Adams, already a perennial 1,000-yard receiver, added time and space to flourish.

Adams has missed the last four games with an lower-body injury, but is expected to play in Regina in the annual Labour Day clash with the Saskatchewan Roughriders Sunday afternoon. The two played together for just two games, with Matthews also missing time due to injury.

As for Lawler, he’s five years younger than the 29-year-old Matthews, and has put up similar numbers. Matthews played in six games, registering 12 receptions for 180 yards and one touchdown. Lawler has 16 receptions for 263 yards and one major in eight games.

More likely, O’Shea was looking at the clock ahead of the stats sheet. The Bombers had until 2 p.m. Friday before Matthews was guaranteed his full salary under the league’s collective bargaining agreement. By releasing him, they save the remainder of his $107,000 contract. But with Nichols sidelined with a shoulder injury for at least six weeks, meaning his salary is off the books, the Bombers aren’t in a cap crunch. There also isn’t an immediate need to sign another receiver.

The business side of professional football was not lost on a number of Bombers players, all of whom seemed genuinely surprised by Matthews’ exit.

“It kind of happened out of nowhere. Before it happened we were all joking around and treating it like a normal day,” said receiver Nic Demski. “It’s just sad to see stuff like that happen — he’s a good guy and a great player but at the end of the day it’s a business and you’ve got to move on from the decisions that are made from above.”

Many others echoed much of the same sentiments: Matthews is a great player; Matthews cared about the team; Matthews wanted to make plays.

“He bought into everything that the Blue Bombers are all about,” left tackle Stanley Bryant said. “He came to work every day and worked hard. He was a competitor.”

Bryant, the CFL’s most outstanding offensive lineman in back-to-back years, added it was a reminder that you can never feel too comfortable. Interestingly, Adams, always one to be careful with his words, preferred to play dumb, claiming he had just found out the news only after the reporter’s request for comment.

But it was defensive end Willie Jefferson whose actions spoke louder than anyone’s words. When Jefferson heard the news, he went to Matthews’ locker and grabbed the No. 13 jersey hanging in his stall. Jefferson put on the jersey and wore it for Wednesday’s workout. It should be noted that the defence wears blue and the offence white for practices, creating a chance for confusion between the units during 12-on-12 drills.

That didn’t seem to bother Jefferson, who said the gesture was an act of solidarity to his friend and now former teammate.

“Chris is one of the guys that a lot of the guys gravitated on the offensive side of the ball. Him being a veteran, him being here years ago and then just him being the guy he is off the field — a cool guy, a guy that you can talk to. He was a big guy on the team,” Jefferson said.

“It hurts when you get close to a guy and you feel like the guy is doing his part for the team and then just all of a sudden the guy is gone. You can’t be mad at anybody, you can’t point fingers at anybody. You just got to wake up and get ready for work.”

Matthews made an immediate impact in his first stint with the Bombers, winning the league’s rookie of the year honours in 2012. That helped propel him to a career in the NFL, where he played for the Seattle Seahawks and Baltimore Ravens. He returned to the CFL late last season but was first turned down by the Bombers before eventually signing with Calgary, where he helped the Stampeders win the Grey Cup.

When he retuned to Winnipeg this spring, the Bombers seemingly spared no expense to celebrate his return. They made him, quite literally, the face of the franchise by brandishing him on a large promotional banner placed prominently in the front of the Bombers Store at IG Field.

But unlike the first go-around, progress has been slow for Matthews this season. He suffered a lower-body injury that kept him out of the majority of camp and the first game of the regular season. He was injured again midway through the Bombers’ third game in Ottawa against the Redblacks, suffering a gruesome injury to a pinkie finger that involved a number of stitches from the bone breaking skin.

When Matthews was ready to return two weeks later, a seemingly impossible timeline given the injury, the Bombers decided to go with Lawler instead. Matthews was scratched for the next two games before an injury to Adams opened up a roster spot.

“It was going to be a situation where he was going to be off the roster and I don’t know if it’s really fair to put a guy in that position,” O’Shea said.

It can be argued Matthews wasn’t been put in a position to succeed. He was targeted 23 times in six games, with just five deep-ball — 20 yards or more — attempts, two of which he caught. He was inconsistent at times, including some dropped balls, but the same can be said for other starters.

Despite a number of weapons on offence, Winnipeg averages a league-worst 211 passing yards per game. The team’s leading receiver is Lucky Whitehead, with 378 yards — good enough for 21st among receivers in a nine-team league.

In last week’s win in Edmonton, Bombers backup quarterback Chris Streveler completed just seven passes in his first start of the season since Nichols’ injury.

While the Bombers will be without Nichols, running back Andrew Harris — who tested positive for a banned substance and is suspended — and now Matthews for two big games against the Roughriders, where Wednesday’s move will likely hurt most is down the stretch.

Winnipeg didn’t have a talented enough group of receivers to battle Calgary in the West Division final last season, losing 22-14 thanks mostly to an inept offence. They’re betting on a much better group this season, one that’s now without Matthews. The hope now is this plan actually works.

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton

Jeff Hamilton
Multimedia producer

Jeff Hamilton is a sports and investigative reporter. Jeff joined the Free Press newsroom in April 2015, and has been covering the local sports scene since graduating from Carleton University’s journalism program in 2012. Read more about Jeff.

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