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In the coming days when the Riders inevitably name Kelly Jeffrey the new OC, they will say all the right things in the press conference. It was an exhaustive search. We determined him to be the best man for the job. Etc. But the truth is Jeffrey will be the OC because of the two sweetest words in the English language: De Fault.
The Riders used to be the prime destination in the CFL… not so much right now. Let me summarize how our search has gone so far: LaPo declined to be interviewed. That was fine, he gets a free pay cheque from the RedBlacks so has no incentive to actually work at this point. Then Marty Costello decided to stay with the Bombers. Then Mark Mueller decided to stay with the Stamps. Then Khari Jones opted to go to the RedBlacks. Then even Jarious Jackson declined to be interviewed (and he is far from a top OC option). At this point that leaves Pete Costanza and Jeffrey… and its only a matter of time before Costanza officially says no.
As
I have talked about in this space. Our OC job was about as desirable as a combination
tax audit/colonoscopy. We have no QB. We have the worst OL in the league’s
recent memory. We can’t offer any kind of job security as our Head Coach and GM
are in the final year of their contracts and there is no guarantee they make it
to Labour Day. So the only way the Rider OC job is appealing is if you are truly
desperate or if you have absolutely no other viable job opportunities.
I am not saying that Jeffrey doesn’t have the skills to be an OC but if you honestly think that he was the best option out there then Jeremy O’Day thinks you are qualified to scout O-lineman. Jeffrey might be good. He’s admittedly an unknown at this point. But this hardly does much to give hope to Rider fans. I know its too early for doom and gloom but at this moment in time the most likely scenario, if we are being honest, is another garbage year in 2023 followed by a house cleaning. That is far from a certainty and could all change depending on which Riders we re-sign, who we get in free agency and how we draft. We have some solid pieces in place but not enough to be very confident at this point. Hopefully Jeffrey spites me and turns out to be awesome (yes I’m so desperate that I’m trying to play the reverse psychology card).
One final thought on this Monday for you and it relates to QBs. I am not looking forward to 2 straight months of Bo Levi Mitchell talk. I'm sick of it already. So here my one and only statement on it until he actually signs somewhere. Is Mitchell an upgrade at QB for the Riders? Yes…. BUT only for 3-4 games max. I honestly don’t think Bo’s body can stand up to a full season. Pretty much proved that in Calgary. So throwing big money and a multi-year deal (because that’s what it will take to land him) at a guy that you don’t think can be full time starter will not improve your team. If I needed a QB for a 3 game playoff run, sure I’d take a rested Bo. But we need a QB that can lead this team for 18 games plus playoffs. No chance Bo is that guy anymore… even if we get our OL back to mildly competent (which is no guarantee).
6 comments:
Glad to see someone finally speaking sense on the matter of Bo Levi Mitchell. You're bang on in suggesting he'd be a great piece for a playoff run. He's a proven winner. A team on the cusp of contending that was just missing the final piece at quarterback would do well to sign Mitchell. The Saskatchewan Roughriders are not that team. In addition to an already suspect shoulder, if we were to play Bo Levi Mitchell behind our offensive line, he'd come out looking like Sideshow Luke Perry the time Krusty imagined firing him out of a cannon into a brick wall.
I suppose in years past when Bo was a very effective quarterback for the Stamps I'd actually have liked to see him horribly disfigured, but given the current state of our team, there are far better ways to spend our money.
Bonus points for working Sideshow Luke Perry into a football conversation.
Once again. Unless O'Day get off his ass and gets some talented personnel for the O-line it won't matter who the OC is. Coaching is not the problem...personnel the problem
Add Markus Howell to the list of people who have turned down an interview request for OC.
Cody Fajardo has indicated he has had no contact with the Riders since the end of the season. Evans may be the only option when all this shakes out. The bigger picture? With 40 FA's unsigned they top the list for most in the CFL. How many top free agents will want to come here &, if so, how much do you have to overpay. It will also be interesting to see who stays. So far only Beaulieu has signed.
Anon 1 - To a large extent you are right, you can't make chicken soup out of chicken shit but I do believe coaching has a definite impact. In 3 of his past 4 seasons (dating back to Edmonton), Maas' offense has been 7th or worst overall in sacks allowed.
Anon 2 - Yeah no offense to Howell or Jarious Jackson but when even those guys are turning you down, it's not a great sign.
I like Cody but man does he come across as whiny. He basically said the relationship was done before the season even ended. Now he's sad we aren't talking to him? Still think a possible scenario is that a lack of better options on both sides leads to a reunion. We know we aren't a primo destination and who else is going to give Cody a chance to start?
The reason we have signed no one is that we are clearly up against the cap and have no money to spend until the new year (yes we spent pretty much the entire cap on that garbage). I'm not super worried about signing players... except OL. We are going to have to throw stupid money around to attract anyone of note.
Sorrell is back with Jones in Edmonton. Announced earlier today. I guess we'll see if it was just him that was the problem. He was with Jones before in Regina for 2 years.
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