CFL.ca
TORONTO — It’s been over a week since the 103rd Grey Cup presented by Shaw was handed out and we are no closer to quiet days on the CFL front.
Monday’s hiring of Chris Jones by the Saskatchewan Roughriders has set off a potential domino effect in the coaching ranks across the league. That and more news and notes in the latest edition of Checking Down.
| BC LIONS
– After bring granted permission to speak to Eskimos passing game coordinator and quarterback coach Jarious Jackson, the Lions will not land the former BC quarterback. Jackson is reportedly headed to Saskatchewan to join Chris Jones.
– Special Teams Coordinator Chuck McMann has announced his retirement as a CFL coach after eight years on the sidelines for the Lions. He joins Offensive Coordinator George Cortez, who Wally Buono said last week has also retired.
| EDMONTON ESKIMOS
– Grey Cup-winning head coach Chris Jones officially signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Monday as their head coach and vice-president of football operations. Esks GM Ed Hervey offered his full support to Jones in the following statement:
“I thank Chris Jones for his work over the last two seasons. This is an opportunity for him to grow professionally and I wish him well in his future endeavours.”
– It was widely speculated after Jones joined the Riders that much of his coaching staff would join him, and it appears that Jarious Jackson is the first to follow him from Edmonton to Regina. TSN‘s Farhan Lalji reports Jackson has agreed to be the Riders’ passing game coordinator and quarterback coach, the same title he had in Edmonton. The Bombers and Lions had permission to talk to Jackson before that while Lalji also reports that the former Lions and Argos pivot turned down a chance to be the offensive coordinator in Calgary.
– Ed Hervey has not spoken publicly since the Jones move other than the statement he released, while he’s expected to address the media this week after returning from Vegas for the annual league-wide meetings in Las Vegas. The Eskimos are expected to move quickly in their search for a new head coach however, and so far Jason Maas is the name everyone’s talking about. The Eskimos have reportedly been granted permission to interview Maas while the REDBLACKS are considering their offensive coordinator as good as gone.
| CALGARY STAMPEDERS
– Eskimos passing game coordinator and quarterback coach Jarious Jackson has reportedly turned down an offer to become Calgary’s offensive coordinator and will join Chris Jones in Saskatchewan. The Stampeders may or may not hire a new offensive coordinator, depending on whether there’s a fit to be made, after Dave Dickenson was elevated to head coach following the season.
– The Calgary Sun‘s Scott Mitchell reports that Mark Kilam will return as the Stamps’ special teams coordinator in 2016.
| SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS
– Grey Cup-winning head coach Chris Jones is excited for the opportunity to build a franchise “from the ground up,” after officially signing with the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Monday. Jones takes on a lot of responsibility with the Riders, serving as the head coach and defensive coordinator on the sidelines as well as the general manager and vice-president of football operations.
WATCH: Riders introduce Jones
MORE: Jones takes over in Riderville
ANALYSIS: Nye says Riders get their wake up call in Jones
– Jones won’t totally be starting from scratch, as it appears former Riders offensive lineman Jeremy O’Day will play a role in the team’s rebuilt front office. O’Day was the assistant GM to Brendan Taman and took over the role of interim general manager when Taman was dismissed late last August. O’Day was also considered for the current position of GM. The Regina Leader-Post‘s Mike Abou-Mechrek has more on how things worked out between O’Day and Jones.
– The first of potentially several coaches is reportedly set to follow Jones from Edmonton to Saskatchewan, as passing game coordinator and quarterback coach Jarious Jackson has agreed to join the Riders in the same capacity according to TSN‘s Farhan Lalji.
– After Jackson, Craig Dickenson could be the next Eskimos coach to follow Jones over to Regina. According to the Winnipeg Sun‘s Kirk Penton, Dickenson will make a decision shortly on whether to join his brother Dave Dickenson in Calgary or go with Jones to Saskatchewan, where he was the team’s special teams coordinator from 2011 to 2012. Craig would likely serve the same role on Jones’ staff.
– It looks like Bob Dyce will not be back in Riderville in 2016, as Sportsnet‘s Arash Madani reports the Riders’ former interim coach’s office has been cleaned out. Dyce started with the Riders in 2010 as the passing game coordinator and receivers coach before becoming offensive coordinator in 2012. After spending two years as the special teams coordinator, he was named interim coach at the end of last August.
– From the sideline to the front office, changes continue to sweep the Riders organization. Arash Madani is also reporting that the Riders are parting ways with Craig Smith, the team’s director of player personnel and Canadian scouting. Madani also reported that the team will hire on Stampeders assistant GM John Murphy.
| WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS
– After parting ways with Offensive Coordinator Marcel Bellefeuille, the Bombers have found the man to run their offence and continue developing franchise quarterback Drew Willy. Paul LaPolice was hired as the team’s offensive coordinator on Monday as he returns for a third stint with the Bombers. According to Kirk Penton, LaPolice was reportedly waiting for the Riders’ head coaching job to settle before going to Winnipeg.
– The Blue Bombers ensured that they locked up one of their most critical Draft picks of the last few years, inking Matthias Goossen t0 a contract extension that will see him in Winnipeg through 2018. The 23-year-old was Winnipeg’s second overall selection in the 2014 CFL Draft and has made 10 starts in his first two seasons. MORE: Goossen goes 1-on-1 | View Bio
| HAMILTON TIGER-CATS
– The Ticats will have a busy off-season of trying to lock up free agents as 37 players currently remain without a contract heading into 2016. But the biggest question this off-season in the Hammer surrounds the health of Zach Collaros, who is ready to resume walking as he continues healing from a torn ACL. Collaros was non-committal on whether he’d be back in time for training camp while The Globe and Mail reported in November that he may not be ready for the start of the 2016 season. So far though Collaros’ recovery appears to be on schedule.
– Every season at this time Orlondo Steinauer is mentioned as a head coaching candidate, but for now it appears the Ticats’ defensive coordinator will remain in Hamilton. Jason Maas is reported as the favourite to replace Chris Jones, while TSN‘s Gary Lawless tweeted on Sunday that Steinauer has told the Ticats he’ll be staying in Hamilton.
| TORONTO ARGONAUTS
– Incoming President and CEO Michael Copeland has penned his first letter to Argos fans, promising a reinvented game day experience as the team moves into BMO Field in 2016. The Argos are accepting deposits for 2016 season tickets which also give fans the right to purchase tickets to the 104th Grey Cup in Toronto.
– After announcing last week that they’ve signed Ricky Ray to a two-year contract extension, the Argos now turn their attention to the remaining 28 players due to become free agents in February — including Trevor Harris. General Manager Jim Barker says re-signing Harris is a priority, as the team envisions an open competition between Harris and Ray for the starting QB position:
“[Head Coach Scott Milanovich] was completely up front with both Ricky and Trevor in terms of the situation and we would love to have Trevor back,” said Barker, “and Rick knows if Trevor comes back there’s competition.
“We’re doing everything in our power to re-sign Trevor, we think it’s the best situation for him,” he added. “We’re trying to be fair to him and to the club and we’ll see what transpires here in the next couple of weeks.”
– While Dave Dickenson said the exit of Rich Stubler came suddenly and unexpectedly, Jim Barker said his team did no wrong-doing in hiring the former Stamps defensive coordinator:
“His contract was up,” said Barker. “We didn’t go after him, Rich contacted us. It wasn’t like we went out and took him from Calgary, that’s not how it went down.
“After their season he went and talked to Huff and then he contacted me and said he had an interest if anything was going to be available, and I connected him with Scott and Scott hired him.”
– Not among the Argos’ free agents is national receiver Andre Durie, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in 2015. A contract re-structuring could be in the works, but Barker said he expects Durie to return next season:
“He’s one of those guys who everybody says can’t do it,” said Barker, “he’s going to find a way to do it.
“I believe in Andre, his situation means he’s going to have a different kind of contract but I think he’s very excited about the chance to do something everybody says he can’t do and that’s come back again and be able to stay healthy for a year,” he added. “We’ll see how that goes but at this point I am expecting Andre back.”
| OTTAWA REDBLACKS
– The REDBLACKS made it official on Tuesday that they’ve released defensive end Shawn Lemon to give him the opportunity to pursue NFL opportunities. Lemon recorded five sacks in 10 games after joining Ottawa mid-season following a stint with the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers.
– Chris Stevenson of TSN is reporting that the REDBLACKS are considering offensive coordinator Jason Maas as good as gone to Edmonton to become the head coach. Gary Lawless reported Monday that the Eskimos had lined up an interview with Maas, while CHED‘s Bryan Hall reports that the Eskimos will look at other candidates as well.
– The REDBLACKS also announced the addition of 10 other players.
Could Jason Maas be in line to take over the Grey Cup-winning Edmonton Eskimos’ sideline next season?
| MONTREAL ALOUETTES
– The Als officially announced their 2016 coaching staff on Tuesday, confirming that Anthony Calvillo will be the team’s offensive coordinator and quarterback coach. Absent from the list was Ryan Dinwiddie, who has reportedly accepted a job with the Stampeders’ QB coach.
– Among the other changes, Greg Quick is returning to Montreal to become the team’s linebacker coach. Quick coached the Alouettes’ linebackers in 2014 before being hired by Corey Chamblin to coach the Riders’ defence in 2015. He resigned as the Riders’ defensive coordinator last week.
– With the coaching staff almost entirely settled and Kevin Glenn primed to return as the team’s starting quarterback, the biggest question for the Alouettes will be whether they can lock up their key free agents. It was a topic of discussion as CFL.ca asked one pressing off-season question for every team.
