It’s an interesting collection, the six men who make up the best of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2016.

One was kicked to the curb by his old team and traded here for a mid-round draft pick. Another saw his draft stock drop amid injury concerns. One came back to his hometown; another now calls Winnipeg home year-round. There is a giant of a man who dominates the line of scrimmage and a specialist who is so meticulous he continues to fine-tune his craft on an almost-daily basis.

The Canadian Football League announced its Most Outstanding Player award team nominees on Tuesday, as voted on by The Football Reporters of Canada and the nine head coaches, and the Bombers’ six winners are as diverse as the men themselves.

Quarterback Matt Nichols was named the Most Outstanding Player after essentially being cast adrift by the Edmonton Eskimos 14 months ago; Taylor Loffler is the Most Outstanding Rookie just a few months after falling to the third round of the CFL Draft; Winnipeg product Andrew Harris is the Most Outstanding Canadian; linebacker Maurice Leggett, who has moved his family here, is the Most Outstanding Defensive Player; Travis Bond, a human eclipse at 6-7, 356 pounds, is the Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman, while the 33-year-old Justin Medlock has monk-like dedication to the smallest details of kicking.

And, as was pointed out by Kirk Penton of The Winnipeg Sun on Wednesday, three of those winners – Nichols, Bond and Loffler – actually didn’t start their first game this season until July 28^th in Edmonton. The Bombers entered that game 1-4 and with vultures circling overhead.

“It was a time in the season where the season is going to go one of two ways,” said Nichols after practice. “To have a lot of guys step in off the bench and make such a difference has been huge for this team’s turnaround.

“There have been a lot of guys that have stepped up and done a lot of great things this year to get us where we are now.”

One of the biggest, literally and figuratively, has been Bond. The club was impressed with him from the moment this man-mountain stepped on the field during camp. But he was nicked up during the season and didn’t get his shot until that night at Commonwealth Stadium.

And his impact was massive.

“I remember that first drive in Edmonton… I still talk about it to this day,” said Bond. “We punched in after close to 90 yards (eight plays for 85 yards) and when we scored it was part of us changing the whole point of the season by going on a winning streak and how we moved forward and had success as a team.”

The Bombers started a seven-game win streak that night that brought them out of the depths and into a position where a win on Friday in Ottawa, coupled with a loss by the B.C. Lions on Saturday, would mean the club would finish second in the West Division.

Interestingly, the origins of that success can be drawn back to the game in Edmonton at the end of July. And the six men nominated all had their fingerprints on that ‘W’ and the run that has come after it.

“There’s definitely been a turnaround,” said Harris. “There’s a positive outlook and a positive season but we’ve still got a lot of work to do and that’s the exciting part of it. We’re in the playoffs and we still don’t know where we’re going to end up and where we’re going to be, but the fact of the matter is we’re going to be at the dance and anything can happen.”

THE ENVELOPE PLEASE…

A look at the six Blue Bomber nominees for the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player Awards, as voted on by The Football Reporters of Canada and the nine head coaches:

MOST OUTSTANDING PLAYER

Matt Nichols
Position: Quarterback
His 2016 numbers: He is 9-3 since replacing Drew Willy. Has completed 69.7 per cent of his passes for 3,367 yards with 16 TDs and eight interceptions for a 96.4 QB rating. Has also rushed for six TDs.
FYI: All those numbers above are career highs… Nichols is just the second Bomber QB in the last nine years (Drew Willy, 2014) to be named the team’s MOP.
Matt says: “It’s a pretty awesome honour to get from this team. Obviously my teammates have been great all season long and put us in great situations. Any kind of awards like that or personal accolades fully reflect your team and what your teammates have done.

“It’s awesome. It’s been a long road from me and a pretty cool thing to hear. To go through the things I’ve been through to not even being the starter here until Week 6… to have the belief and trust from my coaches and organization has just been an awesome experience this year for me.

“It just proves that some of the injuries and ups and downs I’ve been through in my career… it’s been a long road and I’ve put in a lot of work and it just shows you that the hard work is paying off. It’s never talking ‘no’ for an answer and not listening to people who say you can’t do it. It’s been an awesome year for me and we’ve still got a lot great things to do this year.”

MOST OUTSTANDING CANADIAN PLAYER

Andrew Harris
Position: Running back
His 2016 numbers: Has 914 yards rushing in 14 games and has added 64 receptions for 549 yards for five TDs total.
FYI: An offensive player hasn’t been named the Bombers top Canadian since O-lineman Moe Elewonibi in 2000… A Canadian hasn’t led the Bombers in rushing since Gerry James in 1957… Harris’ 64 receptions is the most by a Bomber running back since Robert Mimbs had 71 in 1990… This is the fourth top Canadian honour for Harris (2015, 2013, 2012 with B.C.).
Andrew says: “It feels great. It’s definitely an honour. There are definitely a lot of talented Canadians on our team and lot of talented players. Ultimately, I couldn’t get an achievement like this without my teammates, so it’s a credit to them. It’s definitely something I take pride in.”

MOST OUTSTANDING DEFENSIVE PLAYER

Maurice Leggett (unanimous)
Position: Linebacker
His 2016 numbers: Leads the CFL with seven interceptions (tied with teammate T.J. Heath), three of which he has returned for touchdowns. Has two fumble recoveries, one sack, and one forced fumbles along with 48 tackles.
FYI: This is Leggett’s second top defensive player nomination for the Bombers, after also winning in 2014… A Bomber has won the CFL Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award only once in the last 24 years – Jovon Johnson, in 2011. In a seven-year stretch from 1985 to 1991, a Bomber player won CFL honours three times: Tyrone Jones in 1985 and Greg Battle in 1990 and 1991.
Moe says: “I was there (leading the league in interceptions) the majority of my rookie year. I’ve always felt like I could do it… I’m disappointed I’m not at 10 right now. But I’m still up there and a teammate is tied with me. It’s us two and there’s a lot of trash talking between us for this last game. We’re just going to play football and make plays like we normally do.

“But we still have work to do. There’s one goal in mind right now.”

MOST OUTSTANDING OFFENSIVE LINEMAN

Travis Bond
Position: Left guard
His 2016 numbers: Has made 12 starts at left guard for the Bombers (his status for this week’s regular season finale is doubtful) and has been part of a transformation for the O-line. Winnipeg has yielded 33 sacks this year, down from the 59 a year ago, while Matt Nichols has set career marks for passing and Andrew Harris is closing in on 1,000-yards rushing.
FYI: Selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round of the 2013 NFL Draft, he also spent time with Carolina and St. Louis.
Travis says: “It’s a great honour and I really appreciate being nominated. There’s a lot of hard work that goes into something like this. I’m good at pushing people around, even when I was a young kid playing around outside. I was always known as being the roughest kid in the playground. I’ve tried to bring that to the field and I think it kind of trickled down to everyone… we wanted to become more physical on offence and defence.”

MOST OUTSTANDING ROOKIE

Taylor Loffler
Position: Safety
His 2016 numbers: Loffler has 52 tackles – including eight just last week – four interceptions, three forced fumbles, one sack and seven special-teams tackles this year.
FYI: Started his college career at Boise State, but injuries looked to sidetrack his football career. Joined the UBC Thunderbirds in 2015 and helped them win a Vanier Cup… The injury concerns seemed to affect his draft stock, as he fell from being ranked in the Top 10 to the 17^th spot, where the Bombers grabbed him.
Taylor says: “It’s awesome to be able to do what I’ve done this year and be recognized for it. This whole year has been a great experience. It was actually a blessing that I slipped in the draft because coming here has been a blessing. With all the injuries I’ve had in the past nothing is guaranteed and so to be able to do this is great.”

MOST OUTSTANDING SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER

Justin Medlock (unanimous)
Position: Kicker
His 2016 numbers: Has hit on 56 of 64 field goal attempts this year (87.5 per cent), including a perfect 35 for 35 from inside the 40. He is a perfect 37 for 37 on converts, the only kicker in the CFL to do so this season. Medlock has a 42.7 punting average and has placed eight inside the 10-yard line, second most in the CFL to Saskatchewan’s Josh Bartel, who has 18.
FYI: Medlock is three kicks shy of tying Dave Ridgway’s all-time record for field goals in a single season (59), set in 1990… Medlock tied the club record for longest field goal (58 yards, set by Bernie Ruoff in 1975) in the season opener, and twice tied Trevor Kennerd’s record by kicking seven field goals in one game.
Justin says: “They brought me here to make kicks and help the team out. We’ve won some games and we’re in the playoffs so that’s the first step and hopefully moving forward I can continue to keep making those kicks.

“There are a lot of good guys. Everybody plays a role and I’m just trying to do my part.”

BLUE ON THE FYI…

The Bombers (10-7) head to Ottawa Friday to face the REDBLACKS (8-8-1) in the regular season finale for both clubs.

Three things you should know as the Bombers completed their final full practice before jetting out to the nation’s capital Thursday morning:

A BIG PIECE MISSING UP FRONT?

The REDBLACKS, who have already clinched first in the East Division, will be starting third-string QB Brock Jensen Friday night in a move designed to keep both of their QBs – Henry Burris and Trevor Harris, who will still dress but only serve as the holder – healthy. But the Bombers have some injury issues and other roster decisions to make as well.

Most notable among them is Travis Bond, the team’s top O-lineman, who pulled up lame near the end of practice on Tuesday and did not work out on Wednesday. The Bombers No. 1 O-line featured Jermarcus Hardrick moving from right tackle to left guard, with Manase Foketi at right tackle.

MORE CHANGES:

LB Khalil Bass looks to be out this week; Wednesday’s practice had Sam Hurl at his spot at middle linebacker and flanked by Tony Burnett and Maurice Leggett. As well, SB Clarence Denmark did not practice again, with his spot taken by Tori Gurley. The D-line also had a couple of changes, with Padric Scott in Keith Shologan’s spot and Shayon Green in at defensive end for Justin Cole.

“They’re in there getting treatment now,” said Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea. “And it’s up in the air whether they are going to play or not. We’ll make a better decision (Thursday).

“As a coach you can over-analyze it (dressing guys or giving guys a rest leading into the playoffs). You’ve got to go with your gut on certain guys and just say it’s better to rest certain players. The bottom line is we’ve done a great job with our depth this year, all these guys want to win and understand that winning this game is important, too. All but one of these guys (Scott) have taken reps this year, so we’ll be good.”

GREAT SCOTT:

Although it’s not official, Padric Scott looks like he will make his Bomber debut Friday night. He’s a popular member of the team’s D-line crew who has spent most of the year on the practice roster after spending the last two years with the Philadelphia Soul of the Arena League.

“A guy like Padric Scott is a very good football player who has been working hard every single day for an entire season,” said O’Shea. “I’d like to see what he can do in a game. He deserves it.”

WE ASKED, YOU ANSWERED

Last week, bluebombers.com asked fans to fill out their own ballots for the Most Outstanding Player Awards in a chance to have their voices heard as the league honours its best in our first annual Fans Choice Awards.

We were overwhelmed by the response – thank you very much – as more than 1,500 fans opted to weigh in with their thoughts. And, interestingly, the fan poll results mirror exactly the official awards announced on Wednesday.

As well, we have selected three names as winners of our Bomber Store gift certificates.

$100 – Paul Phangureh

$75 – Cade Arason

$50 – Phil Volk

Poll results here: