Glen Suitor lions last in west

[dupsdell1]

Heard glen suitor today saying that most cfl writers are picking lions last in the west , Just like they picked the lions to get to the grey cup last year ?

[DanoT]

Seeing as how the Lions have rebuilt the coaching staff and have a larger than normal turn over of players for 2015, as well as a huge ? about Lulay and who his back up will be, yah it does not surprise me that they are being picked for last place.

[B.C.FAN]

That's probably a fair assessment at this point. With questions at QB, running back and the O-line and a lot of change overall, they need everything to go right to get to a 10- or 11-win season.

[Toppy Vann]

Seeing as how the Lions have rebuilt the coaching staff and have a larger than normal turn over of players for 2015, as well as a huge ? about Lulay and who his back up will be, yah it does not surprise me that they are being picked for last place.

I thought Vancouver's Glen Suitor was making that call...lol.....or was he?

Two teams in the west that are unknowns for a lot of changes are the Lions and the Riders.

I'm very curious with Darian Durant and his new OC. JC can be prickly and DD can be a coach killer as Greg Marshall and Doug Berry both know. Berry is known to be prickly too... but maybe that is nothing as Cortez is really prickly too and I guess DD did okay with him.

The Lions... Great coach (gone from CFL for a long time and it takes TIME to really acclimate to the nuances as well as the level of skill they will face.

I have very little confidence that the QB isn't one odd hit from the end of his career. If this were Danny McManus or a veteran Damon Allen or Ricky Ray (who is himself just coming back from injury) I'd have more confidence that these guys can play well and avoid injury.

But Travis Lulay has different DNA and instincts as to how that position is played and that means- you run when it's there and you take on the DB if you think you can make it into the end zone.

The Danny Macs of the football world see and play the position differently. DM says he hated being hit and they avoided them. And they did well when they had decent teams around them.

You know Jones' Eskimos will be told to go for the QB's shoulder unless that guy has changed his mindset. Jones was blitzing Buck Pierce in the first pre-season to get Buck out for the year!!!

[dupsdell1]

If I have to make a prediction know I say they will be a 9-9 team again too many questions lulay is not going to last the entire season as the OL is too week .

Unless another qb comes out of the woodwork like Printers did in 2004 .

[TheLionKing]

Is 2016 a good draft year ?

[Rammer]

That's probably a fair assessment at this point. With questions at QB, running back and the O-line and a lot of change overall, they need everything to go right to get to a 10- or 11-win season.

I have to agree with your points, just too many variables that are unknown right now. However over an entire season another team may have everything go wrong as well. Where the Lions place according to Suitor is significant in that he avoids negative predictoons like the plague. For him to point that out on the Lions has to suggest that he believes that the Lions are behind therest in the West by a large margin.

[B.C.FAN]

This is a quarterback-driven league. If you had to base your team's 2015 hopes on Bo Levi Mitchell, Mike Reilly, Darian Durant, Drew Willy or Travis Lulay, who would you choose last?

[sj-roc]

There was an Edm writer, forget who it was, who accurately predicted (to much skepticism from this board and I'll grudgingly include myself in that group) a 4-0 Eskimos start last year. Has this person weighed in on the matter? (he asked half-jokingly.)

David posted a recent episode of Rouge Radio in the marketing thread the other day. I listened to most of that audio and they had someone on there (don't think it was Jim M but another guest) who predicted the Lions would go either 7-11 or 8-10.

[squishy35]

I'll go out on a limb. Tedford is introducing a fast pace offence with tight ends to mess with the smaller LB's of the CFL. The camp tempo, by all reports, is fast and emphasizes speed. I would predict that if the offence can get a tangible hold on the new offensive system (It is new for all the QB's), that the Lions could conceivabley have a fast start to the season (say 3-1, 4 -2). Tedford, I am sure has built in options and wrinkles for this offence as the season goes on. Our defence is solid. I am really looking forward to see how Partridge, Mc Ghee and Jennings run the basic offence in pre season.

[WestCoastJoe]

With a healthy Lulay and a healthy OLine the sky is the limit.

Otherwise, anywhere from 8-10 to 10-8 might be reasonable expectations.

And, who knows, one of our young QBs might be the next star of the league.

[Blitz]

This is a quarterback-driven league. If you had to base your team's 2015 hopes on Bo Levi Mitchell, Mike Reilly, Darian Durant, Drew Willy or Travis Lulay, who would you choose last?

It's a huge change from last season, when most pundits chose us to win the Grey Cup and this season, where most expect us to not make the playoffs in the West.

Certainly Tedford looks like a huge upgrade at the Head Coaching position. Cortez is certainly an upgrade on Khari Jones. Cortez has been a spread offence coordinator who is now being asked to run an H-Back style of offence. He can also be prickly or worse but Cortez has coached under Tedford before and they had success together in California. Greg Malone should be a big upgrade on Dorazio. Washington had a very good defense for most of last season until the wheels fell off at the end.

Therefore I believe we will be a better coached Lions football team in 2015 than last year with an experienced pro at the helm and with the additions of Cortez and Malone.

However, all the Western teams have very solid coaching or better. Hufnagel is an outstanding coach and Dave Dickenson and Rich Stubler bring experience and a background of success. Jones showed how good he is with a huge turnaround season in Edmonton last year - Jones first season as a HC. In Riderville Cory Chamblin has won a Grey Cup in his four seasons with the Riders. Saskatchewan is an interesting story this season. With Chapdelaine they will move more towards a possession type passing offence and with Greg Quick, their new defensive coordinator, they will blitz a lot more and be much more aggressive on defense. However, losing Malone and bringing in Dorazio as offensive line coach will prove to be interesting. Mike O'Shea has two experienced coordinators in Marcel Bellefeuille and Richie Hall to support his goals.

All Western teams have solid coaching staffs who will be well prepared and all Western teams have improved from last season in terms of personnel.

The big question marks for our Leos are at quarterback and offensive and defensive line. Behind Travis Lulay, who has played very little for a season and a half due to his shoulder injuries are an unproven group of quarterbacks with little or no game experience in the CFL. Our offensive line was a disaster last season and losing Steward right now is a big loss. Our defensive line is also in limbo and will go into the 2015 season with rookie defensive tackles as well as moving Westerman/Menard outside. (Westerman and Menard can rotate inside).Khareem Smith, almost ready to start collecting an old age pension cheque, in football years is first on the depth chart at rush end and he is backed by the undersized Alex Bazzie at this point.

If new signings like Minter and Jackson can step in effectively, if Mrabure-Ajufo can develop quickly, and if Westerman/Menard can make the adjustment, we should see improvement this season on the defensive line. I'm hoping that someone like Roh can impress. We really need a rush end who can get to the quarterback.

If we can get improved offensive center play to shore up the interior of our offensive line and also be able to replace the injured Steward at left tackle well we should see improved offensive line play. I also anticipate that we will see less assignment break downs. Olifoye is a talented right tackle and we have Canadian depth at the guard position.

Both Malone and Robin Ross, as our two offensive and defensive line coaches have challenges as they attempt to turn around our offensive and defensive line play this season but I'm confident in both. Ross has a ton of college experience, has worked with Tedford before and he also coached for the Oakland Raiders for two seasons and Malone has proven he knows his stuff.

In the defensive backfield we will go with a new starting Canadian safety and Rwabukamba will be an upgrade over LaRose and Parker and Brinkworth (if he makes the cut) bring depth. Lee will also attempt to replace Parks at the tough short side halfback spot. But with Parks and Yell at corner and Phillips still a good cover guy we should be fine in the defensive backfield.

I see our strengths at the linebacker position, at receiver, and at defensive back. Our offensive and defensive lines will take time to gel as units and hopefully they will. We have a new offensive system, new coordinator and new offensive line coach. Lulay does not look, at this point, that he is fully recovered.

Its going to be a lot of change and there are a lot of question marks. Right now I have us fourth in the West. But I like our direction. I like that we are attempting to address areas that were problems last season....at center, at safety, and at defensive tackle. I like that we have addressed coaching at the HC position, offensive coordinator, offensive line, and defensive line.

I hope that we can do some innovative things with our linebacker talent and that the use of a hybrid tight end system will pay dividends. I hope Tedford's talent in working with quarterbacks will pay dividends for both Travis Lulay is he can stay healthy and in developing our next starter.

But I am hopeful and I believe we will need to be patient. Certainly, I feel more confident, longer term, than I did at the start of last season, with Benevedes as our HC and Jones as our OC, with Dorazio still in the mix. I also believe that Tedford will be his own man and we will be better off with Wally meddling less and focusing on the GM job more.

I can't wait until our first game. Its going to be tough in the West this season. But we've got a chance and more importantly we have promise for the future. Its a better feeling than last year, even though some thought we would win the Grey Cup in 2014.

Go Leos! Most are not giving us much of a chance this season. Perhaps we'll surprise.

[David]

From "most concerned" to "least concerned" by position group:

Quarterback- Not much more needs to be said here. Lulay is the lynch-pin for the club's fortunes. I wouldn't mind seeing him platooned to take some of the pressure off that shoulder. My gut tells me Partridge is the guy to watch as possible #2 material with a bullet. Beck still isn't in Kamloops which is a mild concern - if for nothing else than Lulay is probably throwing more balls than he should at this point.

Defensive Line - Lots of good pieces here, but do we have a nose tackle? Zach Minter could be that guy - we need someone who's going to be double teamed and be able to stop the run. At 307lbs with a big motor, he could be that guy. Tim Jackson has apparently looked good as well (Defensive Tackle), but let's see these guys in game action. Westerman/Menard and either Smith or Bazzie should make for strong, serviceable ends, but not spectacular.

Offensive Line - Steward re-injuring his foot is a big concern (everyone is raving about his talent BTW!). Jon Hameister-Ries Pt 2? I am sure we can find 3 International studs among which will be an upgrade at centre. I am perhaps less worried about this position group (than other fans) over the long term, but it may take a period of adjustment for the vets to learn Malone's blocking techniques and "unlearn" Dorazio's. Pretty decent depth at Guard (but with potentially starting 3 imports there should be!!).

Receivers - There is such a massive offensive brain trust on this team (Tedford, Cortez, Jones, Simon), it's hard to believe we can't cultivate a strong receiving corps. I like the new H back concept. Manny should be better at the short-side wideout position, but is there enough depth behind him there? Can our Nationals Iannuzzi/Gore have bounce-back seasons? I don't think **right now** we stack up to Calgary at receiver, perhaps even Edmonton, but we'll keep on eye on this position as camp moves along.

Defensive Backs - There is quite a lot of talent here and a mixture of vets (Phillips/Parks) and youngsters (Lee/Yell). God-given cover abilities and speed are going to be huge now (as you can't touch a receiver after 5 yards). Have we found a reliable safety in Rwabukamba? Can Parker or Brinkworth push him?

Running Backs - Tedford gave Harris a GLOWING review. Very effusive in his praise. Very slight concern here it's going to take awhile to be 100% and be able cut like he used to. Very solid talent behind him in Bigelow who's going to push Keola Antolin. Murray-Lawrence is intriguing given that he's only 5th on the depth chart. Tremendous speed.

K/P - Is this the year that McCallum is unseated? He's conceded the young bucks Leone and Fera have stronger legs for punting and kick-offs, but don't bet against the wily, reliable old vet for field goals, even though Tedford wants one guy for all duties. With McCallum or without we should be in good hands. Both Fera and Leone have extremely impressive college resumes. These were top-notch signings.

Linebacking - The strongest position group on the team. Please. Which running back/slot wants to face Elimimian and Bighill entering their prime? Throw in a very solid Josh Johnson at nickel and the emerging Bo Lokombo. This is the best linebacking group in the CFL. Slight concern regarding Elimimian's recent surgery in Europe which was under-reported.


I would be ecstatic with 12 wins, happy with 11 wins, satisfied with 10, expecting 9, disappointed with 8 or fewer.


DH

[Blitz]

Great read David

I believe we are going to try to get some games out of Lulay this season as we try to buy time to develop the next quarterback. Whether that happens or not will be determined by Lulay's ability to start the season and how long he can stay healthy.

I am optimistic that Minter and Jackson will be able to get the job done at tackle. I agree with you that we don't have a pure rush end yet but hopefully we can develop one or get one in. Right now Smith and Bazzie don't seem like the answer for that role. Bazzie is too light. NFL cuts may be the longer term answer here.

I believe we have upgraded at receiver. Morrah/AC Leonard offer intriguing matchups. Taylor is being pushed by Burnham and Jeffers-Harris has been brought in to provide even more push. Arsenault will provide more of a deep threat outside. Gore and Iannuzzi have Austin Collie, who looks like the real deal and a Canadian to boot, along with Adekelu and Tomasiuk pushing. I found it confidence inspiring that Tedford said goodbye to Poblah before training camp opened. Poblah should never have been given reps over Adekou last season.

I'm guessing that our receiving core has been under-rated in part because our offensive line in the past has not provided the time needed and Lulay's shoulder injury and Glenn's penchant to ignore the outside were also factors.

The kicking game should be improved. McCallum had a 90% field goal average last season but we didn't use him often for long attempts. We have two kickers in Fera and Leone and either could make this Mc
allum's last kick at the can if we decide to go with one player for punting and field goal kicking.

Fera was a finalist for the Lou Groza Award and named the best kicker in the 2014 class by draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. and Richie Leone was a Ray Guy semi-finalist selections from 2011 to 2013. Both look to be very promising.

No question that we have the best linebacking unit in the CFL and we need to take advantage more of this talent than just having them drop into coverage as they mostly did last season. No question that last year we put a lot of pressure on our defensive backs and linebackers due to a poor pass rush. This year, with the inability to put hands on receivers after 5 yards downfield necessitates that the pass rush has to be better. Its tough enough to cover for too long on the wide CFL field and it will be even tougher with the new rule this season. We have to get to the quarterback with pressure quicker in 2015 - no question.

Overall, I'm impressed with the players we've brought in. We have some real burners at running back and the return game. We improved our depth in a lot of areas.

My only disappointment so far (outside of injuries) is that it does not seem, at least, at this point, that we've found a pure pass rusher.

[WestCoastJoe]

Great detailed stuff, David and Blitz. Thorough coverage and analysis.

The interest level amongst our hard core fans is huge, even if our expectations are modest. But we have hope.

We sure did slip from the pedestal of "flagship of the league," a few years back.

It is somewhat horrifying to think of how far we might have slipped if Tedford and Cortez had not fallen into our grasp. Our Xs and Os were stilted, outdated and pedestrian. The confused preparation of our O Line was pain that kept on giving. We were constantly out-coached. IMO ...

Even now, with our hope, I would have to think that we are behind Calgary, Hamilton, Edmonton, possibly Saskatchewan and Montreal, perhaps on a level with Toronto and Winnipeg, ahead of Ottawa.

But we have hope. And there is a chance, perhaps an outside chance, that Tedford can speed up the process of resurrecting our team. As noted, Kent Austin has done very quick turnarounds in our league. And Chris Jones was a revelation last year. It can be done rather fast in the CFL, with the right staff.