Adversity a good thing?

[lion24]

Just a thought but with the rash of injuries and the early struggles on offence is this the kind of adversity that may be good for the Lions as they fight any perceived complacency that many thought may hinder the Lions as Grey Cup Champions? The Lions strength has been their depth at almost every position and this is definitely being tested right now. It may be that some players in a backup role may step up and some may fail but in the end this could end up being a good test for the Lions.

Luckily, i guess, the injuries are occuring in the early part of the season and hopefully don't continue at the end. The fact is that football players at one time or another in the season are definitely playing at less than 100% and that is basically accepted by most players. The Lions can hopefully rally around this injury adversity and maybe at the end be a better team because of it

[Toppy Vann]

Adversity can do wonders for a team and so far the Lions defence has faced it well.

The same can't be said for the offence and this has been since the start of the year when their QB, DD, came out and questioned their OC committee game calling moments after he came out of the game where his play was less than stellar himself. While in the context of what he said, I found it personally not to be an attack on his coaches nor an excuse for their offensive efforts in the opener in Toronto, it became clea that the HC and the club right up to Ackles felt otherwise and were down right annoyed.

It is good that this hitting early not late but there is a fine line between adversity as a motivator for the guys now getting their chance to shine and an overall deflation of expectations on the part of the decimated unit.

The bigger issue for the Lions is this undercurrent we keep hearing about that some on that offence are not fully happy with the OC situation and their touches on the ball or so the rumour goes. If this is true, then this is not about adversity but selfishness that is not likely to breed good results on the field and all this compounded by execution issues by key players.

If there are ongoing issues with the OC in the personna of Kruck with some on the offence then this doesn't bode well for their team at all. Hopefully this is just rumour and conjecture with little or no substance.

It is one thing to face adversity from injuries, it is quite another to have it self-inflicted. Again, this is not substantiated that it is a big issue, just that it keeps getting mentioned and leads people to think that where is smoke, there is fire.

[cromartie]

Yes. If anything, some degree in adversity early in a post-championship season can be a very good thing.

Let's you know you're human, and beatable.

Makes you retrench.

And if you must endure injuries, it's always better to do so early in a season than late.

Injuries are part of the game.

The OC thing I have my reservations about, but if it's going to be a problem, better it come to a head earlier rather than later also.

[Blitz]

The same can't be said for the offence and this has been since the start of the year when their QB, DD, came out and questioned their OC committee game calling moments after he came out of the game where his play was less than stellar himself. While in the context of what he said, I found it personally not to be an attack on his coaches nor an excuse for their offensive efforts in the opener in Toronto, it became clea that the HC and the club right up to Ackles felt otherwise and were down right annoyed.

The OC's were questioned for running the footall too much in the first game. Last game players questioned not running the football more...on one way a good sign that they understand that the football needs to be run more in today's CFL. However, it was also a negative in that criticism was still being leveled.

The fact is that a few players and only a few didn't give these guys a chance to prove themselves right out of the gate..saying they missed the Chap publically at Game 1. They are in their first season as our offensive coordinators. They'll make mistakes like they did last game. The Chap was fired after his first year in Calgary and everyone except Wally wanted him gone from all accounts. It's not easy play calling at the pro level and while I've been frustrated at times I also realize I need to provide some time for a learning curve.

I wish Geroy and Paris were more like Milt Steggal. He gets it done no matter how much they double or triple cover him and he is the consumate professional, no matter how good or bad his offensive coordinators have been. It's time for leadership from our key offensive players.