The topic of continuity was raised continuously Thursday during a CFL Week event at the Co-operators Centre.
The five head coaches from the West Division discussed the issue throughout a 30-minute gab session with the media.
Some teams have continuity infused in their programs because they faced only minor roster turnover over the past few seasons, but other clubs still are seeking it.
Saskatchewan Roughriders head coach/GM Chris Jones has spent the past two off-seasons rebuilding his team, so he’s one of those coaches still searching for the right mix.
He’s hopeful the chemistry develops with the group he’s putting together.
“You always feel like you’ve made the right choices,” said Jones, whose squad went 5-13-0 in 2016 — his first season at the Roughriders’ helm. “A year ago, I felt like we had a good football team. Unfortunately, we didn’t perform as well for whatever reason; you can come up with 4,000 things.
“I feel like we’re a very good football team (now). Certainly, quarterback is going to be something that’ll be interesting to see how it transpires. But we should be a little bit better defensively because we do have some returning young kids coming.”
The Roughriders’ quarterbacking situation for 2017 is uncertain due to the off-season trade of long-time starter Darian Durant to the Montreal Alouettes. Saskatchewan’s roster currently includes five QBs: Bryan Bennett, Brandon Bridge, Kevin Glenn, G.J. Kinne and Vince Young.
But the Roughriders aren’t the only team in the division that faces some uncertainty.
Players across the West have been released or lost in free agency, so virtually every team has sustained some significant losses. The key now is how a team replaces those players.
“You prioritize, keep the nucleus and then you go find players; you have a scouting department for a reason,” said Calgary Stampeders head coach Dave Dickenson, whose squad lost to the Ottawa Redblacks in the 2016 Grey Cup game.
“This year will not be the same as last year, nor do I want it to be. There will be new challenges. It’ll be a different flow, but if we can get ourselves back in the mix and get hot late, that’s the plan.”
The CFL’s salary cap is responsible for many of the changes made to teams’ rosters in recent years.
Players who have successful seasons often seek (and find) lucrative deals that their previous teams just can’t afford. Then, when the free agents join other teams, those clubs often jettison players to fit everyone under the cap.
As B.C. Lions head coach/GM Wally Buono put it: “You’ve got to choose who you pay and who you don’t pay. Sometimes that affects people who are high-profile.”
“Football is a game that evolves all the time,” Buono added. “Sometimes change is better than other times. Sometimes it’s necessary.
“I can’t control players who leave. But I’m excited about the team we have. We’ve kept a good nucleus. We’ve brought in some very good free agents. Now it’s our job to go to training camp and build a football team.”
Edmonton Eskimos head coach Jason Maas likes the fact that his team has many of the same players as last season as well as the same voice at the helm.
But even the Eskimos face the challenge presented by off-season changes as they prepare for 2017.
“We did a lot of good things (in 2016) and it’s stuff to build on,” Maas said. “We’re going to have to change — like every team up here has to change — but the way I look at it, it’s good to change.
“I’m a positive-outlook kind of person, so I’m very optimistic. We’re 0-and-0 right now, but I like what we’re building. The team we ended with last year, I’m looking for that team to just take off and compete.”
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers made strides in 2016, improving their record to 11-7-0 from 5-13-0 the season before.
Head coach Mike O’Shea isn’t going to let his team rest on its laurels, though. Winnipeg didn’t win the Grey Cup — like all of its West Division brethren — so the Bombers’ 2016 campaign won’t make their preparations for 2017 any easier.
“Continuity certainly helps,” O’Shea said. “Familiarity with how we do things, maybe having to spend less time explaining how we do things, certainly allows you more time to get things done.
“But you try and start every year with a new, fresh, positive outlook (and with the) same goal in mind in terms of winning the Grey Cup.”
