Sir Purrcival wrote: ↑Sat Dec 02, 2017 6:23 pm
You know, for someone who is supposed to be a catch, he seems to have been a loose ends for awhile. I really don't know how good he is but you might think that if he has that much of a cachet around the league, he would have been snapped up far more quickly. I mean who knows. He might be a better version of himself than when he was a first time GM in Edmonton.
I think that the unwieldy nature of the situation around here is going to make it challenging to prove himself. Hard enough building a team with stable ownership and coaching. Now we have a HC who is on his way out. An Owner who has been selling for what 5 years. A VP who is also the coach and who is also on his way out. Can it get anymore stupid?
On one hand it makes me laugh. I knew this would not be straight forward. Most things are not straight forward when it comes to Buono.
Lets see. We missed the playoffs for the first time in 21 years. Buono's record in his last 5 seasons of coaching is 45-45. But Buono wanted to coach this season. Why?
Because our Leos needed him to coach? Lots of good candidates out there. Our Leos also needed a fresh face down on the sidelines. Fans wanted a fresh face.
So, our Leos (Braley, Buono) decided instead to hire a new GM. That decision gives us a fresh face in the GM role in Ed Hervey, who did a very good job in terms of gettting a winning product on the field in Edmonton. But why hire a GM that the owner can't trust?
Well, its simple. Buono will remain the Head Coach. Hervey will be the GM. But Buono will keep the big office and remain VP and be the one who discusses things with Braley. Of course, now we're being told that Buono will just attend CFL meetings. But it will still be the Buono/Braley show for one more season, with a different twist.
The reality is that Buono has Braley's ear, not Hervey. Its kinda like when Buono was the GM and Benevedes and Tedford were the HC. Who was really running the show. It was Buono, just as he still is now for 2018.
Buono is all about control and you knew he was not going to give that up. Buono could have retired as VP and that job could also have gone to Hervey but it didn't.
Of course, bringing Hervey in to sign some good free agents and hopefully also recruit some new talent for areas that we need makes sense. Buono wants to go out a winner and Hervey is a guy who has proven he can sign or recruit talent. Hervey, for 2018 has a role - bring in the talent Buono needs to win. If anyone thinks Hevey is really the boss of Buono in any manner at atll, they really need to give their head a shake.
If it all works out, Buono knows how to get most of the credit. If it doesn't, well he can blame it on the players again and also Hervey as well.
One thing I will not listen to is anything that has Buono being a mentor at anything. He has proven that he is completely useless in the role of mentor. If Hervey is better with the press and media this time, it will only be because he has learned the lesson himself.
Besides, the last thing I want from Hervey is to learn Buono's skill set with the media...which basically involves manipulation, deflection, scapegoating, avoiding responsibility, blaming, etc. I would rather just make sure that Hervey makes himself available and remains authentic.
What if Buono began this season 0-6. Think Hervey would fire him? Of course he wouldn't. Think Hervey would fire Buono if he went 0-12. Of course he wouldn't. Think he would fire him if he went 0-15? Of course he wouldn't.
Hervey wouldn't fire Buono if Buono used Hervey's office as his storage area and made Hervey work at a desk in a hallway or a cubicle.
Its all about getting fans to drink the Cool Aid. But I do think the Cool Aid will change. Why?
Because the 2018 season is Buono's last season. He is desparate to go out a winner. Wally contining to be the Head Coach is not about Wally wanting to be loyal to Braley. Wally made this decison on his own in his own best interests.
The Hervey decision, to me, is more than proof that Buono is willing to pull out all the stops to have a winning season for 2018. With only one season to go, I also believe Buono will make some changes to his coaching staff.
Its a short time horizon now, not a long one and Buono will be willing to forsake sychophancy for talent at the assistant coaching level. Hervey wil help shoulder some of the responsibiltity and serve as a buffer for any changes at the assistant coaching level.
What's good? Buono was willing to give up the GM's duties in order to win this season. He could have remained GM and let the next regime select the next GM. Buono remains in control but gives up some duties. We likley get a better GM than Wally in that position for 2018. We also get a coach who is so desperate to leave the game with a winning record and a successful season that he is even willing to make changes to his coaching staff.
That means this season will be less same old, same old.
What is the bad? We, the fans, get Buono back as Head Coach. The players get Buono back as Head Coach. That means we will get some of the the same dum things from him as we have in the past.
But the positive (and I'm trying hard here) is that Buono has proven he can win if he has both of the followiing and he needs both. They are 1) superior talent and 2) good assistant coaching underneath him.
Hervey can bring in the talent. Some changes in scheme at the assistant coaching level could be enough for a successful season. Buono would have to allow for those changes.
But Buono has allowed for changes in certain situations in the past. He allowed Dave Ritchie to use an, aggressive, complex defense from 2005-2007. He allowed Hufnagel, in the role of consultant, to make changes to the offence in 2007 and implement a run first offence.
In 2011, he allowed Chap to make changes to the offence after going 1-6 and he allowed Benevedes to go with a defensive line rotation at the same time, something he had been reluctant to do before.
Change doesn't happen for Buono easily. In terms of flexibility, he is like a 2x4. But a 2x4 will bend, even if not easily. Buono wants to win badly this season. Whether a winning season or a losing season again would have much impact on Buono;s legacy is not important. Its how Buono sees it and not how we see it or others see it, that is important.
Buono, by making the move to Hervey and being willing to make changes to his coaching staff, shows me how desperately he wants to win this season in order to go out on top.
That is what gives me hope for 2018. Nothing was going to change unless Buono was willing to be the change. That either meant he retired as Head Coach/GM or did things differently. It looks like he wants to do things differently. If this was a long term decison to remain as Head Coach I would be much more against it. Buono always reverts to norm, to his default mindset.
But he can change for short periods of time. This will be a better season than last. We have a lot of talent. Hervey will shore up our weak areas, such as the offensive and defensive line.
As Lowell Ullrich wrote: "Its Hervey's eye for talent that is most appetizing and gives the Lions their best reason to think an on-field turnaround is possible".
So, with a new year just around the corner there are things to look forward to - a new GM and the Buono era finally coming to an end after one more season.... and the 2018 season may even turn out to be a good one.