Lionbackers.com

Coaching staff announced. Only holdovers from last year are Bates and Phillips.

https://www.bclions.com/2020/01/06/lion ... ing-staff/

OC Jordan Maksymic another ex EDM.
Offensive assistant Danny O’Brien gets to still be Mike Riley's valet.

Was hoping the name Travis Lulay would have been on that list, but maybe better for Maksymic that he is not. Nobody is going to be calling for O'Brien to take over as OC if the Lions offence struggles again this year.

BC 1988 wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 12:08 pm

OC Jordan Maksymic another ex EDM.
Offensive assistant Danny O’Brien gets to still be Mike Riley's valet.

Before trying to tie O'Brien to the hip of Reilly please be reminded that he spent 3 years as one of Campbell's backup QBs before he ever worked with Reilly. It was Campbell's old OC Jason Maas who brought O'Brien to Edmonton. He certainly didn't do that to provide competition for Reilly. I think Maas probably recognized from working with him in Ottawa that O'Brien would work very well with Reilly in terms of supporting him, being another set of eyes etc.

We shouldn't underestimate the value some of these journeyman backups and 3rd stringers can bring in terms of potential as coaches. There's been about a half dozen NFL HCs this past decade who spent time as CFL QB backups.

The best news to come out of this is that Jarious Jackson is gone.

Kudos to Rick Campbell. These look like solid choices all around.

Jordan Maksymic was no surprise. He was the only option left. I don’t know much about his offensive philosophy but if he just brings Jason Maas’s schemes to B.C. that would be a positive change from Jarious Jackson.

I don’t know anything about Don Yanowsky but Rick Campbell obviously does. Having recent experience as a CFL special teams coordinator is essential.

Many of us had expressed hope that Ryan Phillips and Kelly Bates would be retained. Campbell’s decision to keep them validates their success in an otherwise ineffective and inexperienced 2019 coaching staff.

Leroy Blugh and Travis Brown are experienced coaches who should be able to get better results from the Lions’ front 7 this year.

I notice that the Lions named only 10 coaches. They are allowed 11 under the CFL coaching cap. That could just be a cost-cutting move with the team still paying DeVone Claybrooks but it also leaves the door open to naming another assistant at some point.

Hambone wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 12:44 pm

We shouldn't underestimate the value some of these journeyman backups and 3rd stringers can bring in terms of potential as coaches. There's been about a half dozen NFL HCs this past decade who spent time as CFL QB backups.

Exactly. The John Becks, Dave Dickensons, and Danny O'Briens of the world made it to pro football not from being gifted athletically but from being smart.

I'll take a cerebral ex-QB as an OC than a superior athlete ex-QB any day. There is no positive correlation between QB rating (when he played) and success as a coach. I believe it is more to do with how he thinks the game.


DH

The part that jumps out at me most reading the profiles of the new coaches:

Waaaaay more coaching experience than previous regime. That can only help us.


DH

B.C.FAN wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 1:08 pm

Kudos to Rick Campbell. These look like solid choices all around.

Jordan Maksymic was no surprise. He was the only option left. I don’t know much about his offensive philosophy but if he just brings Jason Maas’s schemes to B.C. that would be a positive change from Jarious Jackson.

I don’t know anything about Don Yanowsky but Rick Campbell obviously does. Having recent experience as a CFL special teams coordinator is essential.

Many of us had expressed hope that Ryan Phillips and Kelly Bates would be retained. Campbell’s decision to keep them validates their success in an otherwise ineffective and inexperienced 2019 coaching staff.

Leroy Blugh and Travis Brown are experienced coaches who should be able to get better results from the Lions’ front 7 this year.

Agreed. Pretty much all of the new coaches are either ex-EDM or ex-OTT, but the best thing is they all have at least a few years of CFL coaching experience. (ST is a huge upgrade from last season.)

JohnnyMusso wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 1:05 pm

The best news to come out of this is that Jarious Jackson is gone.

X2 My thoughts as well

David wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 1:22 pm

Hambone wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 12:44 pm

We shouldn't underestimate the value some of these journeyman backups and 3rd stringers can bring in terms of potential as coaches. There's been about a half dozen NFL HCs this past decade who spent time as CFL QB backups.

Exactly. The John Becks, Dave Dickensons, and Danny O'Briens of the world made it to pro football not from being gifted athletically but from being smart.

I'll take a cerebral ex-QB as an OC than a superior athlete ex-QB any day. There is no positive correlation between QB rating (when he played) and success as a coach. I believe it is more to do with how he thinks the game.


DH

Agreed. In hockey most of the top coaches are guys who were mostly journeyman calibre grinder types. They made it as players not because of natural talent but because they had to work their tails off learning all the fine little details. Same with a lot of football coaches. Many were fringe calibre players but got to the level they did by deligently studying the X's and O's, paying attention to the finite details and being prepared.

JohnnyMusso wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 1:05 pm

The best news to come out of this is that Jarious Jackson is gone.

Amen to that.

Hambone wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 12:44 pm

We shouldn't underestimate the value some of these journeyman backups and 3rd stringers can bring in terms of potential as coaches.

Signed
Hufnagel, J.
Milanovich, S.
Jones, J.
Dinwiddie, R.

Coast Mountain Lion wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 10:10 pm

Hambone wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 12:44 pm

We shouldn't underestimate the value some of these journeyman backups and 3rd stringers can bring in terms of potential as coaches.

Signed
Hufnagel, J.
Milanovich, S.
Jones, J.
Dinwiddie, R.

Also signed:
Payton, S.
Klingsbury, K.
Taylor, Z.
Garrett, J.
McCoy, M.

3 current and 2 recent NFL HCs who spent time as CFL backup QBs.

Hambone wrote: ↑

Tue Jan 07, 2020 12:17 pm

Coast Mountain Lion wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 10:10 pm

Hambone wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 06, 2020 12:44 pm

We shouldn't underestimate the value some of these journeyman backups and 3rd stringers can bring in terms of potential as coaches.

Signed
Hufnagel, J.
Milanovich, S.
Jones, J.
Dinwiddie, R.

Also signed:
Payton, S.
Klingsbury, K.
Taylor, Z.
Garrett, J.
McCoy, M.

3 current and 2 recent NFL HCs who spent time as CFL "backup"QBs.

I was just thinking of CFL coaches, having paid almost no recent attention to any NFL activity.

Emphasis added to the above - I recognise the names Zac Taylor and Kliff Kingsbury as both having a had a cup of coffee with the Bombers but have no idea about the others.