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Geroy has joined Chris Jones' team with the Elks and will now be the Assistant GM. https://3downnation.com/2021/12/23/gero ... er-report/ But what does this really mean for us?

I have to think that if there was a place for Geroy in the organization, he would have been promoted by now. Any idea what he had accomplished in his seven years here? I believe he was responsible for the 2021 Global Draft. Jake Ford was drafted 1st overall in the 2021 Global Draft, but I didn't think he was as good as Calgary's Cody Grace for example, taken at #7 in the same draft. Grace had a strong rookie campaign with a 45.6-yard average.

Our 2020 draft was sublime, taking Jordan Williams and Nathan Rourke in the first two rounds. Our other drafts though have mostly been unremarkable.


DH

It would appear that the Lions have chosen Rigmaiden as assistant GM over Simon, so I guess the Lions don't consider Simon going to Elks a big loss as they could have prevented it.

As a former start BC Lion, Simon would have had a certain start appeal/connection to BC fans, not so much in Edmonton.

David wrote: ↑

Thu Dec 23, 2021 5:52 pm

I have to think that if there was a place for Geroy in the organization, he would have been promoted by now.

That’s how I see it. He could have been a good ambassador for the team but he had a low-profile role as a scout and I don’t know what he accomplished. Maybe a new opportunity will be best for him.

Big loss in terms of losing a franchise icon. He's no doubt continued to develop in his FOPs roles. Unfortunately there gets to be a point where a person needs to move on to continue to grow and develop. While it would be nice to have Geroy spend the rest of his football life in orange going to a different organization IMO is good for his career.

Not surprisingly I don't feel as "dirty" about this move as I felt when he went to the Riders.

I never saw Geroy as Chris Jones type, but I guess I was wrong. Too bad that there wasn't the same opportunity here for Geroy, but it seemed that the writing was on the wall the last couple of years. I hope he will have success.

We'd be naive to assume The Godfather didn't have some role in brokering this deal for Geroy to land with Chris Jones. Seems a bit random to think that Jones would have arrived at this name on his own.

There are quite a few people online trashing the Lions organization for letting him go but I am genuinely uncertain if we are letting a good one go or not. In addition to what I posted before about the drafts, I do recall reading a lot of Geroy's Tweets where he was off to various US cities to scout. To Cromartie's point, we don't exactly have a lot to show for those trips (although there could be myriad reasons why).

At the very least we are losing a great ambassador for the club and one of the most recognizable faces of the franchise.


DH

David wrote: ↑

Fri Dec 24, 2021 12:45 pm

At the very least we are losing a great ambassador for the club and one of the most recognizable faces of the franchise.
DH

I love Geroy as a player.... in fact, I remember the exact instance when he became (IMHO) the best receiver that I had seen... taking over from Swervin Mervyn. But over the years, I don't think that he had a distinct role in management other than being a recognizable face and a BC Lions ambassador as David says. I really think he needs a change in scenery to build his career in football operations and not be (just) the focus of a public relations role.

I'm sure he will succeed and I wish him well.

David wrote: ↑

Fri Dec 24, 2021 12:45 pm

We'd be naive to assume The Godfather didn't have some role in brokering this deal for Geroy to land with Chris Jones. To Cromartie's point, we don't exactly have a lot to show for those trips (although there could be myriad reasons why).

At the very least we are losing a great ambassador for the club and one of the most recognizable faces of the franchise.


DH

That ambassador role is filled by Jamie Taras, currently.

I do think Geroy played point on US scouting, and improved it overall over his predecessors. That said, it was terrible for quite a while, so how good of a job he actually did I couldn't say for certain.

Regardless, this is clearly a promotion for him and I hope he does well at it. Though not too well, of course.

Don't forget that, to a degree, under the current Lions structure the GM role handles a lot of business side duties (Wally used to joke about having to call a plumber when there was a problem in the office) so that role may be a tad less desirable than an AGM who just handles personnel.

A three headed office looks something like this:

Campbell - Provides structure and guidance on the systems into which potential and existing players should fit.
McEvoy - Handles finances and cap management around specific players identified by...
Ringmaiden - Who leads scouting activities and, incidentally did US scouting through 2017.

It's a workable division of labor, I think. Obviously Ringmaiden needs an assistant to parcel out duties (Canada vs. US vs. Global) in addition to a scouting staff.

Have to admit I thought this might be a route Doman would go for a full-time GM when he bought the team back in August given he was a longtime fan of the team and it would widely be considered a popular promotion.

Instead Doman continues to show consider trust in the management team he inherited from LeLacheur to Campbell/McEvoy.

Was Geroy being held back? Under performing in his current roles? I guess time will tell given what he can accomplish with Jones in Edmonton.
Someone in the Lions current management system believed Rigmaiden was more valuable and deserving of a promotion than Geroy. LeLacheur? Campbell? Would he have bolted if it was Geroy promoted? I’m guessing yes and likely to Edmonton.

Geroy albeit brief post-playing role with the club reminds me a little of what the Canucks have done with Stan Smyl over the years. A franchise icon who would always have a role with the team but never considered as a future president or GM.

Took Hervey 6 years to become a GM. Simon just finished year 8 here.

Steve Ewen spoke to Neil McEvoy Monday about Rigmaiden, and got a no-comment about Geroy.

https://theprovince.com/sports/football ... wo-gm-jobs

SammyGreene wrote: ↑

Mon Dec 27, 2021 2:40 pm

Have to admit I thought this might be a route Doman would go for a full-time GM when he bought the team back in August given he was a longtime fan of the team and it would widely be considered a popular promotion.

Instead Doman continues to show consider trust in the management team he inherited from LeLacheur to Campbell/McEvoy.

Was Geroy being held back? Under performing in his current roles? I guess time will tell given what he can accomplish with Jones in Edmonton.
Someone in the Lions current management system believed Rigmaiden was more valuable and deserving of a promotion than Geroy. LeLacheur? Campbell? Would he have bolted if it was Geroy promoted? I’m guessing yes and likely to Edmonton.

Geroy albeit brief post-playing role with the club reminds me a little of what the Canucks have done with Stan Smyl over the years. A franchise icon who would always have a role with the team but never considered as a future president or GM.

Took Hervey 6 years to become a GM. Simon just finished year 8 here.

Geroy hasn’t produced much in his rolls. Under Hervey recruiting was a joke. They would bring in dozens of imports every year and couldn’t play at cfl level.

Within a month of rigmaiden coming back, he was signing all these guys, many become starters in 1st year, competition in camp was good too. Honestly he is the best gm candidate if campbell/mcevoy get fired after next year.

The Elks have confirmed the hiring of Geroy Simon as assistant GM.

https://www.cfl.ca/2021/12/28/geroy-sim ... istant-gm/

Lions chose Rigmaiden over Simon.
I presume with the Lions, Co-GM Campbell will mostly handle HC stuff and Co-Gm McEvoy will mostly handle GM stuff with Rigmaiden as his assistant.

With Elks, Jones will mostly handle HC, DC stuff, and Simon as his assistant GM will mostly handle GM stuff. Good situation for Simon as he will probably have more responsibility in his assistant GM position with the Elks than Rigmaiden in his BC assistant GM position.

Really interesting to read about the history of the professional relationship between Geroy and Chris Jones--I had no idea. JC Abbott does a nice job of connecting the dots, https://3downnation.com/2021/12/29/kal- ... roy-simon/

Gridiron Ernie wrote: ↑

Wed Dec 29, 2021 3:51 pm

Really interesting to read about the history of the professional relationship between Geroy and Chris Jones--I had no idea. JC Abbott does a nice job of connecting the dots, https://3downnation.com/2021/12/29/kal- ... roy-simon/

Another great article from JC Abbott; that is no surprise, but Geroy consulting with/getting advice from Jones during Geroy's post playing career is very interesting and does make him a good fit with Jones.