Who Will Rise and Who Will Fall in 2017

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B.C.FAN
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BC 1988 wrote:Considering the timing, Ed Hervey being fired today is a bit of a head scratcher.
http://globalnews.ca/news/3363953/edmon ... ed-hervey/
In simple terms, fans won and Hervey lost.
“The resistance to provide access became an increasingly difficult issue over the past year. It became a barrier to what we feel is required to grow our organization in terms of success in a marketplace that is increasingly competitive. Fan access, media access, season seat-holder access, sponsorship access and showcasing our athletes are all important areas allowing us to grow our fan base and ultimately the success of the Edmonton Eskimos Football Club.”
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B.C.FAN wrote:
BC 1988 wrote:Considering the timing, Ed Hervey being fired today is a bit of a head scratcher.
http://globalnews.ca/news/3363953/edmon ... ed-hervey/
In simple terms, fans won and Hervey lost.
“The resistance to provide access became an increasingly difficult issue over the past year. It became a barrier to what we feel is required to grow our organization in terms of success in a marketplace that is increasingly competitive. Fan access, media access, season seat-holder access, sponsorship access and showcasing our athletes are all important areas allowing us to grow our fan base and ultimately the success of the Edmonton Eskimos Football Club.”
I highly doubt the fan access aspect was the biggest part of the decision. Hervey had allowed access to players and coaches but not in the locker room since he became GM in 2012.

In four seasons under Hervey's leadership, the Green and Gold made three appearances in division finals and won the 103rd Grey Cup. Not too bad for four seasons of work, as a rookie GM.

I do agree with Rhodes that Rhodes that a team has to "do more than have a good product on the field' and also have to expose the product, adjust, and evolve in terms of what’s going on in the marketplace. But I doubt access to the locker room kept fans away...they don't get to go in the locker room anyway. Its the press and media who want access and didn't like not having that access in Edmonton.

Rhodes was accurate when he said Hervey had Ed Hervey had built a consistently competitive roster, expanded the scouting department to comprehensively cover all regions of the United States and Canada, and increased the club’s ability to identify and recruit top talent.  
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
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The CFL Scouting Bureau final rankings have been determined. While the draft will not likely mirror the draft rankings, if all teams followed the rankings with their choices, our Leos would be selecting Geoff Gray if he is still on the Board at #3 but if Ankou is still available I could see us taking him too.

I don't see us taking Auclair at #7 if he was available. I can see us drafting Mason Woods instead but he could be gone by #7 as offensive linemen are a priority for most teams.


1.Justin Senior
OL
Mississippi State

2. Eli Ankou
DL
UCLA

3.Geoff Gray
OL
Manitoba

4 Danny Vandervoort
REC
McMaster

5.Faith Ekakitie
DL
Iowa

6. Christope Mulumba
LB
Maine


Antony Auclair
TE
Laval

8 Mason Woods
OL
Idaho

9
Nathaniel Behar
REC
Carleton

10. Dariusz Bladek
OL
Bethune-Cookman

11.Junior Luke
DL
Montreal

12 Kwaku Boateng
DL
Laurier

13.
Qadr Spooner
OL
McGill
Brossard, Que.

14.Robert Woodson
DB
Calgary

15 .Kay Okafor
DL

16 Braden Schram
OL
Calgary

17.Johnny Augustine
RB
Guelph

18.Fabion Foote
DL
McMaster

19. Dondre Wright
DB
Henderson State
Ajax, Ont.

20.Connor McGough
OL
Calgary

 
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
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WestCoastJoe
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Got some good prospects there, Blitz.

This fan would be happy if we are able to draft two of:

Ankou, Ekakitie, Gray, Woods, Bladek, Luke, Boateng or Spooner

I think this is a year where we have to try to land 3 top linemen.

WR, LB, TE, DB not so crucial IMO.
John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
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DanoT
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WestCoastJoe wrote:Got some good prospects there, Blitz.

This fan would be happy if we are able to draft two of:

Ankou, Ekakitie, Gray, Woods, Bladek, Luke, Boateng or Spooner

I think this is a year where we have to try to land 3 top linemen.

WR, LB, TE, DB not so crucial IMO.

I agree, Oline, especially a tackle, should be the top priority followed by Dline.

Seeing as how he Lions have two first round picks, taking a guy in the second round who might have NFL prospects wouldn't be a bad thing either.

However, Wally does like to pick linebackers who may never start but become great special teams players. Given the value and contributions over the years of a guy like Jason Arakgi, finding the next Arakgi is not such a bad idea.
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DanoT wrote:
WestCoastJoe wrote:Got some good prospects there, Blitz.

This fan would be happy if we are able to draft two of:

Ankou, Ekakitie, Gray, Woods, Bladek, Luke, Boateng or Spooner

I think this is a year where we have to try to land 3 top linemen.

WR, LB, TE, DB not so crucial IMO.

I agree, Oline, especially a tackle, should be the top priority followed by Dline.

Seeing as how he Lions have two first round picks, taking a guy in the second round who might have NFL prospects wouldn't be a bad thing either.

However, Wally does like to pick linebackers who may never start but become great special teams players. Given the value and contributions over the years of a guy like Jason Arakgi, finding the next Arakgi is not such a bad idea.
I'm with you Dano T. on us choosing an offensive lineman who is a tackle with one of our two first round choices. I'm not as positive as you about us choosing a linebacker, should we go in that direction. I would rather an offensive or defensive lineman who will start in the future and can also rotate in (extra blocker on offence, rotational defensive lineman) this season rather than a player who will be delegated to special team work now and forever.
Got some good prospects there, Blitz.

This fan would be happy if we are able to draft two of:

Ankou, Ekakitie, Gray, Woods, Bladek, Luke, Boateng or Spooner

I think this is a year where we have to try to land 3 top linemen.

WR, LB, TE, DB not so crucial IMO. West Coast Joe
Do you like Boateng WCJ? I worry that he could be another Ese. He could surprise in that he is very athletic but he also has a bigger downside than other prospects that we could draft. Boetang has dropped from 6th to 12th in the latest rankings.

With seven defensive linemen, six offensive linemen, two receivers, two defensive backs, a linebacker, a running back and a tight end in the Top 20 (and I can't remember this many defensive lineman being ranked so highly, this is the year to go for offensive and especially defensive linemen.
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
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Bovada Sports Book in Vegas have the Stamps as the favorite to win the Grey Cup this year, i

They have the Eskimos improving in the West, the Bombers dropping while in the East, they see Hamilton and Montreal improving from last season and Ottawa dropping.

Calgary Stampeders  +350
British Columbia Lions  +450
Edmonton Eskimos  +550
Hamilton Tiger-Cats  +600
Ottawa Redblacks  +700
Montreal Alouettes  +750
Winnipeg Blue Bombers  +800
Saskatchewan Roughriders  +1200
Toronto Argonauts  +1200

Calgary Stampeders
3/1
British Columbia Lions
9/2
Edmonton Eskimos
11/2
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
7/1
Ottawa RedBlacks
7/1
Montreal Alouettes
17/2
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
17/2
Saskatchewan Roughriders
12/1
Toronto Argonauts
15/1
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
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WestCoastJoe
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Blitz wrote:
WestCoastJoe wrote:Got some good prospects there, Blitz.

This fan would be happy if we are able to draft two of:

Ankou, Ekakitie, Gray, Woods, Bladek, Luke, Boateng or Spooner

I think this is a year where we have to try to land 3 top linemen.

WR, LB, TE, DB not so crucial IMO.
Do you like Boateng WCJ? I worry that he could be another Ese. He could surprise in that he is very athletic but he also has a bigger downside than other prospects that we could draft. Boetang has dropped from 6th to 12th in the latest rankings.

With seven defensive linemen, six offensive linemen, two receivers, two defensive backs, a linebacker, a running back and a tight end in the Top 20 (and I can't remember this many defensive lineman being ranked so highly, this is the year to go for offensive and especially defensive linemen.
Yes, Blitz, some scary similarities between the two. Boateng has been ranked higher than Ese throughout this process, I think. We took Ese much too high. He might be doing some serviceable stuff for Chris Jones. He might have been a decent pick around 18, 19 or 20. We had no idea what to do with him. He was even a bust on STs. If Boateng goes in round one, the team better know how to utilize his talents. He is small for DL, but apparently an athletic freak. I would prefer a much bigger DL. If we see him as a rush end, he might be good as our third pick. Dunno if he is up to that at CFL level.

My preference and hope is that we land three top linemen, a mix of OL and DL. No fooling around. No finesse plays. Top OL and top DL. IMO, as a group, the teams do a good job, taken all together, of putting a good evaluation on the players. If a team finds their draft board has a guy way higher than everybody else, they are about to gamble needlessly. Stay pretty close to concensus evaluations.

We know that you build a CFL program by drafting top OL and DL. Build around them. No fooling around with picks you think are smarter than everybody else's.

And of course try to pick guys we can likely sign, as with Vaillancourt. Wait for later rounds to go for the NFL tryout guys.

OL. DL. That is our biggest need, IMO. And it seems there is a bumper crop of talent at those positions this year. We also have the extra high pick. Now watch Wally fool us.
John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
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WestCoastJoe
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Good comparison here of Boateng and Mrabure-Ajufo.

https://www.cfl.ca/2017/04/12/compariso ... u-boateng/
John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
Blitz
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WestCoastJoe wrote:
Blitz wrote:
WestCoastJoe wrote:Got some good prospects there, Blitz.

This fan would be happy if we are able to draft two of:

Ankou, Ekakitie, Gray, Woods, Bladek, Luke, Boateng or Spooner

I think this is a year where we have to try to land 3 top linemen.

WR, LB, TE, DB not so crucial IMO.
Do you like Boateng WCJ? I worry that he could be another Ese. He could surprise in that he is very athletic but he also has a bigger downside than other prospects that we could draft. Boetang has dropped from 6th to 12th in the latest rankings.

With seven defensive linemen, six offensive linemen, two receivers, two defensive backs, a linebacker, a running back and a tight end in the Top 20 (and I can't remember this many defensive lineman being ranked so highly, this is the year to go for offensive and especially defensive linemen.
Yes, Blitz, some scary similarities between the two. Boateng has been ranked higher than Ese throughout this process, I think. We took Ese much too high. He might be doing some serviceable stuff for Chris Jones. He might have been a decent pick around 18, 19 or 20. We had no idea what to do with him. He was even a bust on STs. If Boateng goes in round one, the team better know how to utilize his talents. He is small for DL, but apparently an athletic freak. I would prefer a much bigger DL. If we see him as a rush end, he might be good as our third pick. Dunno if he is up to that at CFL level.

My preference and hope is that we land three top linemen, a mix of OL and DL. No fooling around. No finesse plays. Top OL and top DL. IMO, as a group, the teams do a good job, taken all together, of putting a good evaluation on the players. If a team finds their draft board has a guy way higher than everybody else, they are about to gamble needlessly. Stay pretty close to concensus evaluations.

We know that you build a CFL program by drafting top OL and DL. Build around them. No fooling around with picks you think are smarter than everybody else's.

And of course try to pick guys we can likely sign, as with Vaillancourt. Wait for later rounds to go for the NFL tryout guys.

OL. DL. That is our biggest need, IMO. And it seems there is a bumper crop of talent at those positions this year. We also have the extra high pick. Now watch Wally fool us.
We're completely on the same page regarding the draft and Boeting too WCJ.

With regard to this 2017 draft, with 7 defensive lineman and 6 offensive lineman in the Top 20, I would love to see us draft lineman with all three of our first picks.

On our offensive line for this season, right now, if we start Steward at left tackle, our backup Nationals for the offensive line are Jas Dhillon and David Facault, as well as two players we signed for this season - 2016 eighth round draft choice Quinn Horton (SFU), who was cut by Calgary last year and was on our practice roster for a short stint in 2016 and former Vancouver Island Raiders and UBC offensive lineman Alex Pennell (undrafted) in 2016 and who played at UBC. Pennell has pro size and had a good college career playing for the Thunderbirds. However, both Horton and Pennell would be considered projects at this point.

On the defensive line, we have one National tackle (Maxx Forde) and two National defensive ends - David Menard and Ainsworth. Menard has shown his stuff as a rotational defensive end who can also slide inside. Menard has a motor and Craig Roh's play really picked up after we started rotating in Menard to his spot in the latter half of 2016. We drafted Forde in 2015 as a 7th round choice. Forde never dressed for a game in 2015 (practice roster) but we did dress him and play him for 5 games last season, using him mostly for special teams with some rotational reps inside. Forde can play inside or outside and he has athleticism.

Dylan Ainsworth is a local boy who was drafted in the second round by the Riders in 2014. He is a pure rush end type (242 pounds) who was almost exclusively used for special teams by the Riders in his first two seasons before missing the 2016 season with an injury. The Riders released him two weeks before free agency this year. Ainsworth played his college football at Western Ontario and established a record there in 2013 with 9.5 sacks. Ainsworth was highly regarding by the Scouting Bureau for the 2014 draft and was rated #7 while David Menard made the list at #13 after not being on the winter edition list.

We didn't have a first round draft choice in 2014. Wally bet on Travis Lulay being ready for the 2014 season and we didn't have a backup that we had confidence in. So Wally gave up a first rounder for Kevin Glenn, who had demanded he be traded when Ottawa signed Henry Burris. "Little Wally" Mike Benevedes publically called the trade a steal for the Lions but then Benevedes publically said a lot of dum things like: "I’ve been described as an *beep* but I’ve always said: I learned from the best. By which, presumably, he means Buono".(Ian MacIntyre Vancouver Sun, July 6, 2014)

More and more, each and every season, CFL offences have become pure spread offences, with pocket passing quarterbacks schooled in that style of offence in college. The Bo Levi Mitchell's, Zach Collaras, Trevor Harris types stay in the pocket and deliver. Quarterbacks as Henry Burris and Darian Durrant, who were double threat quarterbacks evolved into more pocket passer types. So the key on defense is getting inside penetration on the pass rush. Last season we got a good edge rush from Bazzie for most of the season and Roh finished with 7 sacks but we didn't have an inside pass rush last year and it hurt us. Westerman, a first round draft pick for us in 2012 (2nd overall) had 5 sacks while Brooks only had 1 sack in 2016.

If we are drafting a defensive lineman, I would prefer a National defensive tackle. In this CFL draft, there are 7 defensive lineman in the Top 20. They are: Eli Ankou #2, Faith Ekakitie #5, Junior Luke #11, Kwaku Boateng #12, Kay Akafor #15, Fabian Foote #18, Connor McGough #20.

Teams may shy away from Ankou due to NFL interest but if he was available I would take him.. Faith Ekakitie, Junior Luke, Kay Okafor, and Fabian Foote are defensive tackles.

Offensive line top prospects are Justin Senior #1, Geoff Gray #3, Mason Woods #8, Dariusz Bladek #10, Qadr Spooner #13, Braden Schram #16.

No team is likely to draft Senior in the first round but the Riders will likely take Mason Woods with their first choice and the Eskimos will likely take Geoff Gray, so we will have a number of good choices for a defensive or offensive lineman at #7. I would take Junior Luke here and he will likely still be available at #7. Boeting, at 233 pounds does not make sense to me for a first round choice.

It would not surprise me to see our Leos choose a linebacker with our first choice in Christophe Mulamba and a defensive back (Dondre Wright) with our first two choices, even with such a high number of defensive and offensive linemen on the board. But if I was betting, my best guess would be a linebacker and a lineman with our first two choices. A key question would be what offensive and defensive linemen would be left at #16. Quite possible to have Faith Ekakitie, Connor McGough, Kay Okafor, Fabion Foote, Jean-Simon Roy available at #16.

Justin Senior could also be available at this spot. He may not get drafted. But he would draw NFL interest and go to an NFL training camp.

This year's draft is very difficult to predict. If the Bombers go with Ankou and the Riders go with Mason Woods, the #3 spot becomes very intriguing. If our Leos did not choose Mulamba, the two higher rated players by Central Scouting are Vandervoot and Geoff Gray. Vandervoot runs outstanding patterns but he does not have elite speed. So it will likely come down to a choice between Geoff Gray or Mulamba for our Leos. As much as I hate to say it, I would take Mulumba over Gray or Faith Ekakitie, who I don't think should be rated as highly as he is. If the Bombers and Riders shied away from Ankou, he would be the best first choice at #3 for our Leos. If not availale I would take Mulumba.

Even though Junior Luke is ranked #11, I really like him as a draft choice at #7. He lacks technique but his upside is tremendous. He is quick, athletic for a man of his size, and with good coaching could become a force as a defensive tackle in the CFL.

My best hope for the 2017 draft:

Ankou, Mulumba, Luke

My best realistic hope:

Ankou or Mulumba, Luke
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
Blitz
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As mentioned a number of times in previous posts on this thread, the team that I see improving the most this season are the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

The major reason why is the talent they are assembling. The reason why that talent is going to Regina is Chris Jones. His coaching staff followed him to Regina and players are wanting to play for him.

Jones took a lot of criticism on this Board last year. Some of it was deserved. But Jones is a coach that most players want to play for. He really knows his x and o's and players respect that in a Head Coach.

Here is an article on Jones from cfl.ca
April 15, 2017
Saskatchewan bench boss attracting players to Riderville
Matt Smith/CFL.ca

There was something that kept coming up each time a Roughrider was asked why they signed in Saskatchewan.
It wasn’t just the brand new state-of-the-art stadium – although they said having the facility at their disposal did help make the decision a little easier and they’re all more than thrilled to play in the opening game at New Mosaic Stadium on July 1.

And it wasn’t so much of a thing as it was a person – a he, to be more specific.
It was Riders’ head coach and general manager Chris Jones.

Whether they had battled against Jones’ teams in the past, played for him or met him somewhere else over their careers, the consensus between them all was, “we want to play for him.”

Chris Jones started the rebuild in Saskatchewan last season and has added more pieces to the puzzle this year (CFL.ca)
Free agent signings Chad Owens and Derek Dennis both agreed that having Jones leading the Roughriders’ charge was one of the major reasons why they decided to sign in Regina.

Willie Jefferson and Henoc Muamba, who both signed with Saskatchewan late last season, also said they headed west because of coach Jones.

“The reason why I came to Regina was really because of the coaching staff and pretty much just knowing everything out here was starting over new,” said Jefferson, who signed a contract extension in January. “I knew the defensive system and I know Coach Jones. He was really the main reason I came out here.”

So what makes the bench boss so special?

Perhaps it’s his winning record.

Before last season – his first year in Saskatchewan – Jones had never missed the playoffs in his entire career. That’s 14 years without missing the post-season.

He’s appeared in 12 division finals and seven Grey Cup games while spending time with the Montreal Alouettes, Calgary Stampeders, Toronto Argonauts and Edmonton Eskimos. He also won four of those seven trips to the final showdown in 2002, 2008, 2012 and 2015.

After the 49-year-old helped turn the Eskimos from a 4-14 team in 2013 to a Grey Cup-winning squad in 2015, he headed to Saskatchewan to try his hand at doing the same thing there.

Jones started the rebuild in Saskatchewan in 2016 after the Roughriders had a 3-15 record the season before. Near the end of last year, the team started to take shape and showed glimpses of what they’re capable of.

That’s when Muamba joined the Roughriders, near the end of the season, when the team started to click together. The linebacker had spent 2014 and 2015 in the NFL with the Indianapolis Colts and Dallas Cowboys before deciding to return to the Canadian game last fall.

Muamba had met Jones back when he was still going to school in Nova Scotia at St. FX. Jones had put on a combine out in Eastern Canada that Muamba had attended and the two kept in touch since.

“I had multiple options,” said Muamba, who had numerous teams offering him deals when they caught wind of his decision to return to the CFL. “But this is the decision I went with because I wanted to be a part of the defence that was here. I know the record (in 2015) didn’t really speak volumes but I looked beyond that and when I was looking at it, I know Chris Jones as well from way back. I know the type of defence that he’s running since his days in Calgary.

“I know a lot of guys he’s coached from down there and I’ve talked to them multiple times. Having the opportunity to play under him was (why) I had to take the jump.”

Jefferson, who spent 2014 and 2015 with Jones in Edmonton, also joined Riderville at that time and had gotten to know the coach pretty well in his time with the Eskimos.

“The one thing that I really just like about Coach Jones is his personality,” he said. “He’s not a mean guy, he might come off like he’s mean or intimidating or intense but as a defensive coach and as a defensive player you want somebody like that on your sideline. You don’t want somebody that’s soft-spoken talking to you on the sideline in the middle of the game.”

Owens also knew Jones before Saskatchewan inked the receiver when he became a free agent in February.

Both were part of the Toronto Argonauts in 2012 and 2013. Despite Jones being the defensive coordinator at the time, Owens remembers the two still shared a special bond.

“I’d always sit down and talk to him because he’s an X and Os guy. He’s a football guy,” Owens remembers. “He breathes it, he lives it. That’s what he does. We’ve always had a great relationship.”

Perhaps that’s why they want to play for him. They appreciate his ability to build special bonds with each player, no matter the role that he, or they, have on the team.

“Coach Jones, to me, is a really motivating person,” Jefferson gushed. “He knows a lot about the game, he knows a lot about people. He tries to instill that into you. When he talks to people, he doesn’t talk to you as though you’re just a player. He talks to you like you’re a person, like you’re somebody he wants to teach the game to.”

Dennis felt the same way. His wacky ways – from his colourful hair to his outspoken personality – were embraced by Jones, along with the rest of the Riders’ coaching staff.

“It’s one of those things where if people want you here and they’re going to treat you like the person you are then (it’s good),” said Dennis. “They (the coaching staff) basically told me they want you to be you, do the funky hair, do whatever you want. Be yourself.”

While all four of those players wanted to play for Jones, Jones really wanted them all to play for him, and for good reason.
Adding 2016’s Most Outstanding Lineman, Dennis, will help to anchor the o-line this season to protect whoever is starting under centre. Dennis says it doesn’t matter to him who is starting at the quarterback position this season, whether it’s Vince Young, Kevin Glenn or even Canadian Brandon Bridge, he will “give him the best chance to succeed.”

Owens, 2012’s Most Outstanding Player and Grey Cup Champion, adds a veteran presence to the receiving corps. The 35-year-old had his 2016 season cut short because of a foot injury but in the 12 games he did play, he had 58 catches for 808 yards and five touchdowns.

In his eight-year CFL career, the Hawaii native has a total of 5982 receiving yards and 26 major scores. His best season was in his Grey Cup-winning campaign where he collected 1328 receiving yards, 25 rushing yards, 828 punt return yards, 1588 kickoff return yards and 94 miss field goal return yards for a total of 3,863 all-purpose yards – the CFL record for the most in a regular season.

Muamba’s best season came in 2013, before he caught the attention of the NFL and made the jump south of the border. That year he was named the Blue Bombers’ Most Outstanding Defensive Player, Most Outstanding Canadian and Most Outstanding Player after he registered 111 total tackles (tied with Montreal’s Chip Cox for first in the league), one sack and one interception.

And finally, Jefferson brought size and a winning attitude to the Roughriders’ defensive line when he signed with the club late last year. The 6-foot-6, 245-pound defensive end won the Grey Cup in 2015 as a member of the Edmonton Eskimos. That season, the 26-year-old collected 23 defensive tackles, six sacks and three forced fumbles.

It seems the puzzle is coming together in Saskatchewan with an established coach bringing in the final pieces to complete the picture. The excitement and optimism is palpable in Regina as Jones and the rest of his team get ready to start a new era of sorts, equipped with a new stadium and new attitude.

“Just walking around here (in Regina), there’s a lot of excitement,” Muamba smiled. “It’s a great atmosphere and we’re excited to perform well for Rider Nation. I think the really deserve it, especially in front of these fans and this new stadium. It’s going to be great.”
“The one thing that I really just like about Coach Jones is his personality,” he said. “He’s not a mean guy, he might come off like he’s mean or intimidating or intense but as a defensive coach and as a defensive player you want somebody like that on your sideline. You don’t want somebody that’s soft-spoken talking to you on the sideline in the middle of the game.”

Owens also knew Jones before Saskatchewan inked the receiver when he became a free agent in February.Both were part of the Toronto Argonauts in 2012 and 2013. Despite Jones being the defensive coordinator at the time, Owens remembers the two still shared a special bond.

“I’d always sit down and talk to him because he’s an X and Os guy. He’s a football guy,” Owens remembers. “He breathes it, he lives it. That’s what he does. We’ve always had a great relationship.”

Perhaps that’s why they want to play for him. They appreciate his ability to build special bonds with each player, no matter the role that he, or they, have on the team.

“Coach Jones, to me, is a really motivating person,” Jefferson gushed. “He knows a lot about the game, he knows a lot about people. He tries to instill that into you. When he talks to people, he doesn’t talk to you as though you’re just a player. He talks to you like you’re a person, like you’re somebody he wants to teach the game to.”

Dennis felt the same way. His wacky ways – from his colourful hair to his outspoken personality – were embraced by Jones, along with the rest of the Riders’ coaching staff.

“It’s one of those things where if people want you here and they’re going to treat you like the person you are then (it’s good),” said Dennis. “They (the coaching staff) basically told me they want you to be you, do the funky hair, do whatever you want. Be yourself.”

Dennis will be playing in his first year in the green and white when the season gets started in June (Johany Jutras/CFL.ca)
While all four of those players wanted to play for Jones, Jones really wanted them all to play for him, and for good reason.
Adding 2016’s Most Outstanding Lineman, Dennis, will help to anchor the o-line this season to protect whoever is starting under centre. Dennis says it doesn’t matter to him who is starting at the quarterback position this season, whether it’s Vince Young, Kevin Glenn or even Canadian Brandon Bridge, he will “give him the best chance to succeed.”

Owens, 2012’s Most Outstanding Player and Grey Cup Champion, adds a veteran presence to the receiving corps. The 35-year-old had his 2016 season cut short because of a foot injury but in the 12 games he did play, he had 58 catches for 808 yards and five touchdowns.

In his eight-year CFL career, the Hawaii native has a total of 5982 receiving yards and 26 major scores. His best season was in his Grey Cup-winning campaign where he collected 1328 receiving yards, 25 rushing yards, 828 punt return yards, 1588 kickoff return yards and 94 miss field goal return yards for a total of 3,863 all-purpose yards – the CFL record for the most in a regular season.

Muamba’s best season came in 2013, before he caught the attention of the NFL and made the jump south of the border. That year he was named the Blue Bombers’ Most Outstanding Defensive Player, Most Outstanding Canadian and Most Outstanding Player after he registered 111 total tackles (tied with Montreal’s Chip Cox for first in the league), one sack and one interception.

And finally, Jefferson brought size and a winning attitude to the Roughriders’ defensive line when he signed with the club late last year. The 6-foot-6, 245-pound defensive end won the Grey Cup in 2015 as a member of the Edmonton Eskimos. That season, the 26-year-old collected 23 defensive tackles, six sacks and three forced fumbles.

It seems the puzzle is coming together in Saskatchewan with an established coach bringing in the final pieces to complete the picture. The excitement and optimism is palpable in Regina as Jones and the rest of his team get ready to start a new era of sorts, equipped with a new stadium and new attitude.

“Just walking around here (in Regina), there’s a lot of excitement,” Muamba smiled. “It’s a great atmosphere and we’re excited to perform well for Rider Nation. I think the really deserve it, especially in front of these fans and this new stadium. It’s going to be great.” [/quote]
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
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WestCoastJoe
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Blitz wrote:As mentioned a number of times in previous posts on this thread, the team that I see improving the most this season are the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

The major reason why is the talent they are assembling. The reason why that talent is going to Regina is Chris Jones. His coaching staff followed him to Regina and players are wanting to play for him.

Jones took a lot of criticism on this Board last year. Some of it was deserved. But Jones is a coach that most players want to play for. He really knows his x and o's and players respect that in a Head Coach.
Jones definitely connects with the players, Blitz.

He knows his Xs and Os.

In some ways he reminds me of Don Matthews. Kind of an "us against the world" attitude, protects his players, speaks the truth to them, motivates them.

This fan thought he would do better in his first year in Regina.

Not sure what he is doing with Vince Young.

I expect the Riders to be very competitive under his leadership. He comes across as a guy who would be a loyal friend, but not afraid to tell you what he really thinks.

I like the style of defence he coaches.
John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
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DanoT
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There definitely is a Don Mathews style to Chris Jones and it is not by accident. Early in Jones' CFL career he coached on a Don Mathews' team and so Mathews was his mentor.

While the 2017 Riders will be much improved over last season, what about the rest of the West?

Stamps are still top of the heap.

Lions could scare some teams on O, but some uncertainty on D. If Yell, Lee, Clark all return to form then defensive backfield will be in capable hands.

Bombers, is the D for real? is Nichols?

Eskimos, Reilly gets the nod for best QB in the CFL. Then there is the Hervey factor. IMO his departure will not hurt the Esks too much in the short term as it will be overcome by the fact that as far as GMs go, he was well liked by the players. Players can't say anything publicly but they sure can go out there and "Win one for Ed".
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Our Leos go into this season with high hopes. Their is a lot of excitement about our offence and potential scoring with Jonathan Jennings back for his second season as a starter, with both Manny and Burnham back, the signing of Chris Williams, and the concept of using four International receivers. Jermiah Johnson is also back and Chris Rainey adds speed and talent as well as pure excitement.

Swayze Waters should also give us much better field goal kicking and we lost too many points on the scoreboard with Leone's inaccuracy last year as well as Wally's relunctance at times to have him attempt field goals.

Still, its on defense that we have the biggest question marks and if those question marks are not addressed, our opportunity to overcome Calgary and play in the Big Dance will hit serious road blocks.

Here is a closer look:

OFFENCE

This off-season Buono determined that he needed another weapon on offence in order to get a leg up on Calgary, as well make defenses pay for double covering Manny/Burnham with press man, two deep double coverage on them. It was the recipe teams used last season to take away our deep and deep intermediate game. The Sinkfield signing later in the season added another deep threat but Sinkfield was unreliable on shorter patterns, as well as inconsistent. We lost badly to Calgary in the Western Final and changes were needed if we wanted to beat Calgary in year's playoffs as the standard bearer of success.

Offensive Line

In the off-season Wally said that he wanted to go with four International starters on the offensive line for 2017 and use four International receivers. Its been something he has been reluctant to do and has WCJ pointed out, Wally has tended to earmark Nationals for certain positions in the past. Calgary started four National offensive linemen last season, as they usually do, as well as a National tailback in Messam. Winnipeg started Harris in the backfield as a National. Both Messam and Harris made the CFL All-Star team as running backs with their combintion of rushing and pass receiving. Montreal started five Nationals on the offensive line for years. No fretting publically about National backups from Hufnagel, Kyle Walters, or Jim Popp like the usual hand wringing we get from Wally over starting Nationals at certain positions like tackle or tailback.

The notion of using Hunter Steward as a starting left tackle for 2017 provides us with the ability to use four Nationals on the offensive line. It was a concept that Buono could have and should have gone with in 2016. But instead he moved Steward into a starting left guard position and shifted Olifioye to left tackle. Buono's decision was based largely on his signing of free agent signing of Levy Adcock, who was a right tackle.

It was a bad decision. The signing of Adcock meant that Olifioye had to change almost everything from stance, drop step, punch hand, to play the left side. Steward, a natural left tackle, had to learn to play the inside at guard, a very different position for him. After a career of playing on the outside, he was now blocking bigger defensive tackles in a phone booth environment. Adock was a bust that went on for too many games mid-season before we jettisoned him.

The original decision for 2017 was to move Steward to left tackle, Olifioye back to right tackle and insert 2016 first round draft choice James Vaillencourt to starting right guard. Four National starters on the offensive line enabled us to use Manny, Burnham, and Moore as slot recievers for 2017, and add a fourth International receiver, a deep threat.

That concept would give us an improved offensive line, with Olfioye, Vaillencourt, Steward, Husband, Vaillencourt, and Olifioye, and as well as the potential for an even more dangerous receiving corpps. But Shawn Gore's pending retirement and the unexpected availability of free agent Chris Williams, who was not signed by Ottawa and the bidding war with Hamilton over Waters changed things.

Field Goal Scoring

Buono, with both the need to find a field goal kicker who could get it done for 2017, as well as replace Leone's punting, targeted Swayze Waters. But Hamilton decided to part ways with kicker/punter Brett Maher. Maher had two-thirds of a great season for the Ticats. After 13 weeks, he 87.9 per cent accuracy rate on field goals while missing just one extra point. He hit 6/7 field goals from outside the 50 yard line. He averaged 45.9 yds. per punt in 2016. But by the end of the 2016 season, Maher’s field goal percentage had dipped to 82 per cent and In the East Semi-Final loss to Edmonton, Maher missed a 35 yarder in the second quarter in a game that the Ticats would eventually lose by a field goal.

Hamilton GM/HC Kent Austin, who paid Maher $65,000 for the 2016 season would not hand Maher the job for 2017 nor give him a raise or pay him guaranteed money for 2017, which is what Maher wanted. Instead, Kent Austin also targeted Swayze Waters. Swayze Waters. With both B.C. and Hamilton vying for his services, Swayze Waters was able to play both against each other and force Buono to outbid Hamilton.

What made Waters appealing to both teams was not only Waters field goal kicking. Waters is an excellent punter. In 2014 he averaged 47.7 yds. per punt with Toronto and combined with his 47/52 successful field goal kicking he earned the Outstanding Special Teams award. Waters appeared in 46 CFL games through four seasons (2012-2015) and had a 79.5 per cent success rate on field goals (101/127). His career punting average is 46.9 yards.

Waters CFL field goal average would have ranked him only above Richie Leone, based on the 2016 season. Whyte, Parvedes, Medlock, Crapigna, Maher, Milo, and Fera all had field goal kicking averages of over 80% or more in 2016. But Buono highly values punting very highly, in fact so much so, that he attempted to convert Leone, basically a punter in college into a field goal kicker and stuck with him through numerous stuggles, as he did previously, when he unsucessfully tried the same thing with Duncan O'Mahoney. Swayze Waters is an excellent punter.

Buono had other options than signing Waters. He could have chosen to sign much cheaper Nationals as Brett Maher, Chris Milo, or Sergio Castillo or gone with a cheaper International in Anthony Fera, who is also an excellent punter. Fera averaged 46.5 yds. per punt in 2016. Waters offered the best established option but he came expensive. Waters was only offered a one year contract.

Buono, by siging an established deep threat in Williams and a former CFL kicker with a proven CFL record in Waters, was now up against the SMS. Seven CFL teams use National kickers. We signed an expensive International. He is good but he is also costly and the prime reason we had to let Olifioye go. Buono attempted to get Jovan Olifioye to take a salary cut and but when the contract could not be renegotiated to Buono's satisfaction, he put Olfiioye on the trading block. Buono only wanted to trade Olifioye to an Eastern opponent and wanted a National depth offensive lineman in return.

The Olifioye Trade

There was speculation that Buono wanted a National tackle to back up Hunter Steward but instead Buono went after Montreal's National guard Phillippe Gagnon. Montreal wouldn't budge and Buono settled on National tackle, David Facault, who would not sign with Montreal unless he got starters money.

Buono accepted the trade and signed Facault to a starters salary while saving approximately $75,000 on Olifioye's contract, when all was said and done. Olifoye signed a three year contract extension with Montreal as well as a signing bonus.

But there was no happiness about the trade. Instead of improving our offensive line for 2017, with Olfiioye returning to right tackle, where he especially excelled, with Steward playing his natural left tackle spot, and Vaillencourt, a first round draft choice with the talent to start being given that necessary opportunity, our offensive line had lost not only its most talented player but also a very loyal one, as well as its leader. Jovan Olifioye was a West All-Star in his rookie season as a Leo and then followed that up with 6 consecutive CFL All-Star nods. He was a three time DeMarco-Becket Memorial Trophy recipient. He was not a Stanley Bryant or a Derrick Dennis who wanted to test free agency and signed for more money elsewhere.

By trading Jovan Olifioye, we were trading the best offensive lineman in the CFL. The next best CFL offensive linemen are Stanley Bryant and Derrick Dennis, although I could make a great argument for Calgary's Spencer Wilson. Stanley Bryant has made the CFL All-Star team twice in his career. Derrick Dennis made the CFL All-Star team last year, in his first full season as a starter in Calgary in 2016. Neither have Olifioye's sense of loyalty nor do they have his resume.

The trade of Olifioye created a lot of scrutiny for Buono and for good reasons. Jovan Olifioye will go down in history as one of the greatest Leos ever, along with Al Wilson and Geroy Simon. Only two Leos players have ever accomplished what Olifioye did as a BC. Lion. Al Wilson made the CFL All-Star team 7 times but that was over a 15 year career in B. C. Geroy Simon made the CFL All-Star team 6 times, also over a 15 year CFL career, made the CFL All-Star team 6 times. No other Leo players, other than Wilson and Simon, have accomplished what Olifioye has in a B.C. uniform.

B.C Lions greats such as B.C. Lions Hall of Fame inductees Lui Passaglia made the CFL All-Star team four times over 25 years. Joe Kapp made the CFL All-Star team twice. Willie Flemng, Norm Fieldgate, and Jim Young and Dave Dickenson made it once and Dickenson's nod as a CFL All-Star was when he played for Calgary. By Bailey never made the CFL All-Star.

Has Our Offence Improved?

So has our Leos offence improved for 2016? In terms of the skill positions we've added Williams, who should be a definite upgrade on Boldewijn and Sinkfield. Nick Moore will play the role of Shawn Gore, as our fourth receiver.. Iannuzzi will play his familiar 5th receiver spot although that spot would have gone to Shawn Gore, had he not retired.

So, for 2017, the best scenarios for our offence are gone. The best scenario for our offensive line would have been to move Steward to left tackle and Olifioye to right tackle. Our best scenario would have been to use Moore as our 4th recieiver or another International in that spot and use Gore as our fifth receiver.

Still, our offence looks to be improved for 2917. Jennings returns for his second season as our starter. We have an established deep threat to compliment Manny and Burnham. Steward will be playing his natural tackle position. Vaillencourt is a huge, aggressive guard with a mean streak. However, I would not be surprised to see Facault as a starter this season, whether right out of the gate or soon into the season. Facault may deserve that shot and he may not but he will be given ample opportunity, as Levy Adcock was last year. GM's like to make trades or free agent signings look good for them.

I either anticipate that Steward will either be benched at the first opportunity or a Kirby Fabian or a James Vaillencourt will be singled out for criticism is Facault is not the starter to begin 2017. I can see Steward being shifted back to guard to allow Facault to become a starter. Something will have to give, with 4 former first round draft choices in our lineup, all four being paid as starters and with only three positions available as well as all believing they are starter material.

One can anticipate an offensive lineman being drafted with our of our first three choices in this year's draft to add depth to our offensive line for 2017.

In the backfield, we did not sign Anthony Allen for 2017. Johnson thrived with the extra rest. Whether we will use Rainey more on offence or insert a Josh Harris to keep Johnson fresh has not been determined.

But our offence should be even better in 2016, with more offensive weapons at the starting receiver position and Jennings having a full year of quarterback starts.

What is the difference between Calgary and our Leos Offence?

Our offence has the talent to compete with Calgary's offence. We have the talent at guarterback, receiver, tailback, and offensive line to compete iwth them. Jennings is also a double threat quarterback who can run with the football. He finished second in quarterback rushing last season. The only differences between Calgary and our Leos are:

1) The time they allow Bo Levi Mitchell to pass the football. Sometimes Mitchell has all day back there to throw the football. Calgary's offensive line protected Bo Levi Mitchell much better than any other offensive line last season, even with 11 different offensive linemen serving as starters last season, many times playing out of position. Their offence was very successful using four Nationals on the offensive line and a National in Messam at tailback.

2) Calgary's protection is very helped by their offensive strategies. Dickenson was named as the CFL's best coach by the CFL Players Association. Calgary can beat a defense deep, intermediate, and short. They stretcht the field horizontally as well as vertically. Defenses usually pick thir poison.

If our Leos want to become a better offensive team than Calgary in 2017, its going to take more than the magic of Jonathan Jennings, Manny Arseneaux, Bryan Burnham, Chris Williams, Nick Moore, Jeremiah Johnson, and Chris Rainey. That is a lot of talent. But that talent was shut down by the Stamps by the Stamps defense in the West Final as it was in our last regular season game against Calgary. Jennings nor Lulay could exploit it nor will Chris Williams be able to be the difference maker.

The Key Difference Maker Has to Be Khari Jones

The difference maker has to be Khari Jones. He has to take all our weapons and build an offence that uses their talents to the best advantage as well as become much better at game planning and play calling against certain types of defenses.

For 2017, there can be nore more using the inside zone read on second and two when the defense is stacked against it and everyone including my grandmother knows its coming. There can be no more Chris Rainey quick swing passes against press man or quick hitch screens to Bryan Burnham against that defense also. There has to be a short and short intermediate pass game to compliment our vertical attack and we have to stretch defenses more laterally as well as vertically.

Calgary lead the CFL last year, with 32.6 points per game. Our Leos offence was 3rd with 30.4 points per game. With experiments like O'Neil and Adcock out of the way, with Leone's erratic field goal kicking replaced by Waters, and with the addition of Williams our talent is every bit as good as Calgary's. Calgary had an edge up last season with the addition of rookie DeVaris Daniels, who became their best deep threat. He was an inexpensive rookie for Calgary compared to us signing Williams. Calgary just seems to find these receivers. Daniel's caught 74 passes for 885 yds. and had the second best yd. per catch average in the league.

But with an established deep threat in Williams and a sound field goal kicker our offence has the talent to be as good if not better than Calgary and become the CFL's best offence in 2017.

DEFENSE

Buono's time line is short to win a Grey Cup again and go out in a blaze of glory as he did in 2011. The Stamps stand in his way. The Bombers were tough to beat last year. Both teams had something that we did not have on defence in 2016. Calgary has a defensive line that can get consistent pressure on a quarterback with their front four. The Bombers defense created tons of turnovers. Our defensive line in 2016 could not create consistent pressure and our defense could not create turnovers.

The Stamps also found a National linebacker in the draft in Alex Singleton who became a starter part way through last season and who looks like a player will be a star for many years ahead.

The Defensive Line of Scrimmage

The Stamps, who were 15-2-1 last season, have a lot of talent in the skilled positions. But the Stamps usually win, more than any other reason because they dominate the line of scrimmage on defense. They don't have to blitz to get pressure on opposing quarterbacks. The Stamps defense only had 5 quarterback sacks last season from their linebackers/defensive backs out of their league leading 52 sacks. Calgary got 47 sacks from defensive linemen and they got quarterback pressure and sacks from both their defensive tackles and defensive ends.

Our Leos defense also tied the Stamps for the honor of sacking opposing quarterbacks last season with 52. But of those sacks 18 of them came from Eliminian, Purifoy, and Bighill. T.J. Lee and Stephen Clarke added a couple more. When we got to the quarterback, those linebacker and defensive back sacks looked good. But they also opened up our defense and we got burned as well.

Calgary's defense not only tied for the lead in sacks but they gave up the least points in the CFL last season, while being the best against the rush while their pass defense gave up less than 300 yds. per game. The Stamps defense was also second best in the CFL in not giving up big plays while only Toronto's defense gave up more big plays than our Leos defense did In 2016.

Replacing Defensive Starters

But its on defense that we needed to make the biggest improvements for 2017, even before losing Bazzie, Bighill, Jabar Westerman, and Anthony Gaitor, Adam Bighil finished 3rd in the CFL in 2016 in tackles, had 5 quarterback sacks and had a chemistry with Eliminian. Bazzie was our sack leader and finished in the Top 5 in sack leaders in sacks in 2016. Lokombo only saw limited action on defence in 2016 but always got it done when he was inserted in our three linebacker set. Anthony Gaitor, even though he didn't start until part way through the season was our best defensive back in 2016 and led our defensive backs with two interceptions.

Jabar Westerman departed without much fanfare but he had 5 sacks last season in a rotational role, which was 2nd in the CFL amongst National tackles and he was fourth amongst all CFL tackles in that category last season with only Internationals Almondo Sewell and Micah Johnson ahead of him and National Zack Evans ahead of him. We just lost the second best National tackle in the CFL this off-season and our best defensive tackle last season and it has hardly been noticed while we discuss the importance of drafting a National tackle in this year's CFL draft.

We go into this season losing our best defensive end and our best defensive tackle. Our free agent signing to replace Bazzie is Dequin Evans, a defensive end who couldn't crack Montreal's starting lineup last season and only had 1 sack. Evans had two sacks in 9 games while playing for Calgary in 2014. We also signed defensive end Dylan Ainsworth, a projected first rounder who was drafted 11th by Regina and spent three seasons there. Ainsworth should add a lot to special teams and has upside but is a question mark at this time.

Tony Burnett is in an undersized linebacker (210 pounds) that we signed as a free agent and who played with the Bombers. Burnett had 33 tackles to Bighill's 108 tackles in 2016 and zero sacks to Bighill's five sacks and zero interceptions to Bighill's two picks last year.

Our Leos secondary should be improved if they can stay healthy. Ronnie Yell is an excellent corner and Stephen Clarke has the talent to be a star at halfback. Kenyan Parker will be an upgrade at corner over Brandon Stewart. Phillips was getting older in the tooth but his leadership will initially be missed.

What Needs to Happen Defensively for 2017?

While our offence should be improved over 2016 and our offence was very good in 2016, our defense does not look to be improved. In order for that to happen, a new signee like a Frank Alexander will need to emerge as a new sack leader. A new defensive tackle, amongst the many we will bring to training camp will need to step into our lineup and become an inside force. Michael Brooks will need to play to his potential. Maxx Forde will need to play very well in a rotational role. A Micah Awe or Dyshawn Davis will need to become the new Adam Bighill.

In order to get to the Big Dance we will need to beat Calgary. Right now, on paper, we can compete with Calgary offensively and in the kicking game. But Calgary has not missed a beat on defense. In fact they should be even better than last season with the signing of Corderro Law late last season, the emergence of Alex Singleton, their ability to play an import free safety in Josh Bell, and three CFL All-Stars in Tommie Campbell, Ciante Evans, and Jamar Wall returning to their backfield.

Even thought both Calgary and our Leos tied for most sacks in 2016, the Stamps only allowed 20.5 points per game while our defense gave up an average of 25.2 points per game. Our Leos had the fewest interceptions in the league in 2016, a stunning low of 9 interceptions for an entire season. Our defence rarely turned the football over and gave up a lot of big plays.

Mark Washinton also did not prepare well for our playoff games against Winnipeg and Calgary. Our defense was exploited badly in the first half of those games and we were down early and often. We were not well prepared with game plans to take away their best weapons or to defense their offensive tendencies.

Buono has recognized that we need better coaching on defense. He is presently looking for a defensive backfield coach, rather than havng Mark Washington coach the defensive backs. When it takes a Jonathan Jennings and a Travis Lulay to take time after practice to show a Mike Edem how to change his ball coverage angles, help is necessary. When a defensive backfield plays so passively in pass protection, its a signal that something needs to change in the defensive backfield's approach.

WRAP

The excitement and focus this off-season has been on offence. But the key to a very successful 2017 season will be our defense. Its where we have to improve most if we want to be able to get a Grey Cup berth. Rather than magical runs from a Jonathan Jennings to cap off a magical second half offensive performance, we need our defense to be better in 2017.

Our offence led the CFL in big plays last year. We led the CFL in rushing. We led the CFL in first down offence. We were just slightly behind Calgary (14 seconds per game) in time of possession. We averaged over 400 yards per game of offence and we averaged over 30 points per game of offence, even with Leone as our field goal kicker. We did all of that with a quarterback playing his first full year as a starter. Our offence will be exciting and dangerous again this season.

So for 2017, we need get a better defensive pass rush from our defensive line, while replacing our best pass rushing end and our best pass rushing defensive tackle. We also need more aggressive play from our secondary. If we can get those things from our defense, our Leos will have a great shot in 2017.

But as we learned from the playoffs last season, talent and effort are only one part of the eqauation. Being down 25-6 and 30-0 to Winnipeg and Calgary in playoff games is not the recipe for success. Those games reflected a lack of preparation, scouting and game planning by our coaching staff. John Hufnagel is the best GM in the CFL. Ottawa's Dejardins is also special, with one Grey Cup berth and one Grey Cup win in three seasons with an expansion team. Dave Dickenson is the best coach in the CFL and Rick Campbell has proven that he is not only an outstanding coach but knows how to prepare his team for the Big Dance to upset a favorite.

In order for us to have the best chance of winning in 2017, Buono needs to sign a player for 2017 that can contribute like a Davaris Daniels and draft a National like an Alex Singleton. He needs to bring in an International tackle with talent, like a Derrick Dennis, who became the CFL's best offensive lineman in his first full season. He needs to lead a coaching staff that can prepare his team strategically for big playoff games.

Buono needs to match his counterparts in John Hufnagel/Dave Dickenson and Dejardins/Campbell in managing and coaching his CFL team. Right now HufnagelDesjardins and Dickenon/Campbell are the CFL's best. We made improvements last season but a lot of that improvement could be laid at the feet of Jonathan Jennings, whom Jeff Tedford discovered.

We need a star pass rusher to compete with Charleson Hughes and Corderro Law and a defensive tackle who can penetrate like a Micah Johnson. We need someone to step into Bighill's linebacking spot and play very well.

The 2017 season is filled with optimism but there are question marks that need to be answered. The answers to those questions are Buono's to find and make happen. The draft and training camp are soon arriving.

This is likely Buono's last season as HC. The story of the 2017 season still needs to be written,
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
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Blitz wrote: ...... The story of the 2017 season still needs to be written,
and you are just the guy to do it :)
Every day that passes is one you can't get back
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