Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

[BUCK]

You know, I have not been around this board that long so I would ask you vets -- is this really the "Eskimo way" ???

First example: I am talking about the absolute unprofessionalism involved in the release of Jason Barnes. The guy has an injury that was life threatening and then before the first game of the preseason the team releases him without even giving him a chance. Really, how can that happen in the professional ranks? Does the Eskimo management team (especially ET) not realize that the press would be all over this one simply based on the severity of the injury that Barnes sustained. Well, maybe he did not deserve the professional consideration because he is just another import wide/slot receiver and those guys are a dime a dozen. Would JB have received more consideration if he had been Candian? See Second Example for your answer on this question...

Second example: Also consider the recent release of Elliot Richardson and Saleem Borhot less than twelve hours before the start of training camp. The decision to use an import at safety had been made some time before Richardson and Borhot were both released. Borhot landed on his feet and was picked up very quickly after his release. Not the same for Elliot Richardson. To me it is very obvious that both stood a much better chance of being signed if they had been released when the decision had been made that there services were not going to be needed. By the way -- I am willing to bet a nickel that Richardson ends up with Richie Hall in Sask in the very near future.

Third example: The release of Jason Maas before he was given a legitimate chance to retire. That brings up the question. Was Jason Maas really no longer able to compete or was he simply shown the door because of his affiliation with DM? And now they bring in Kerry Joseph who is nearly as old as dirt...

Fourth example: Insert one of your favorites here...

Once again, I ask the question: Is this the Eskimo way?

[Wilkie12]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

I agree it has been messy lately. Zabransky was another example. Tillman and Reed need to communicate better so they are on the same page at the same time.

While their football management and coaching skills are their strength (and still to be proven), the employer/employee management skills need work.

[glenvb]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

Tillman and Reed need to communicate better so they are on the same page at the same time.

Right now, they're on the same page at different times.

[EsksTMac]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

I don't really understand why this is such a big deal.

I totally understand the "Eskimo Way" when it relates to the players and how carry themselves on and off the field. I also understand the passion, tradition, etc that it involves.

But off the field, in this day and age where player movement is so constant (unlike the older days) with free agency, trades, changes every year, it's hard to maintain a "nice guy" business off the field. At the end of the day, you have to do what you think is right for your football team.

With Barnes, he had an issue that was unrelated to what happened last year, there were initial concerns (they don't know him as well as the previous regime), and s**t happens. Period. Don't like it? Don't play professional sports. I've heard many times, from many different leagues, that professional sports is "a great game but a crappy business." And that's the way it is these days. It's unfortunate to the people who have families, mortgages/rents, etc, but that's just the choice you make when you step foot into the world of non-guaranteed contracts and professional sports.

[ben_the_eskimo]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

Second example: Also consider the recent release of Elliot Richardson and Saleem Borhot less than twelve hours before the start of training camp. The decision to use an import at safety had been made some time before Richardson and Borhot were both released. Borhot landed on his feet and was picked up very quickly after his release. Not the same for Elliot Richardson. To me it is very obvious that both stood a much better chance of being signed if they had been released when the decision had been made that there services were not going to be needed. By the way -- I am willing to bet a nickel that Richardson ends up with Richie Hall in Sask in the very near future.

They WERE released when the decision was made. Up until rookie camp, they had only thought about the possibility of an import safety but weren't able to know for sure weather or not they had the tools to do it. After getting a chance to see some of the new guys in person at rookie camp, they determined that they did in fact have the personnel so they pulled the trigger on the import safety experiment and cut ER and SB, up until that point there was still a chance they might try to jam those guys into Stubler's system.

Don't get me wrong, I didn't want to see them go either (especially not in that fashion), but I put much more stock in the opinions of Rich Stubler than I do my own, so I'm at peace with the moves.

[BeaverSports]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

Did we really need yet another thead about this? Seems it has been covered again and again.

[Sectionq]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

They WERE released when the decision was made. Up until rookie camp, they had only thought about the possibility of an import safety but weren't able to know for sure weather or not they had the tools to do it. After getting a chance to see some of the new guys in person at rookie camp, they determined that they did in fact have the personnel so they pulled the trigger on the import safety experiment and cut ER and SB, up until that point there was still a chance they might try to jam those guys into Stubler's system.

See this kind of stuff drives me nuts and is what Opus has been hammering me on. They released richardson. Why is this an issue?? In ln all seriousness!! WHY??? The guy started for the esks a bit. Who F-ing cares!!! It's pro sports. People get cut all the time. No one person is a clone, everyone is a bit different. One DC runs a different defense vs another DC. We have a brand new DC. Does it not stand to reason that a previous DC would have the GM and coach keep certain players that meet a certain skill set that goes along with their particular package and style of defense. Being a well educated person, I would agree with that statement.

So as an example for people that disagree with me like Opus. Stubler is our new DC and here are rumors that he wants to run a 3-4. Does it not stand to reason that since he wants to run a completely different style of defense, that some of the former personal on the Esks would not fit that style of defense due to a variety of factors like size, or skill set?

I am saying this because Opus hammered me on my talk about the cutting of Richardson. Does it also stand to reason that a new HC and a new DC would look at the personal and decide who stays and who goes based on the style of schemes they want to employ. So regardless of the fact that Richardson under a previous HC and a previous DC might of been ok to start at a certain position. Might it not be case that a player under a different HC, a different DC and a different scheme simply not have the required ability, size or skill set to play in a certain position?

[gizmo fan 2]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

I don't really understand why this is such a big deal.

I totally understand the "Eskimo Way" when it relates to the players and how carry themselves on and off the field. I also understand the passion, tradition, etc that it involves.

But off the field, in this day and age where player movement is so constant (unlike the older days) with free agency, trades, changes every year, it's hard to maintain a "nice guy" business off the field. At the end of the day, you have to do what you think is right for your football team.

With Barnes, he had an issue that was unrelated to what happened last year, there were initial concerns (they don't know him as well as the previous regime), and s**t happens. Period. Don't like it? Don't play professional sports. I've heard many times, from many different leagues, that professional sports is "a great game but a crappy business." And that's the way it is these days. It's unfortunate to the people who have families, mortgages/rents, etc, but that's just the choice you make when you step foot into the world of non-guaranteed contracts and professional sports.

I agree with that. It shouldn't necessarily be a "nice guy" situation all the time.

But one should be professional and/or consistent about it.

Messing with Z about "forgetting" to invite him to the camp here, or the bit with Barnes' medical, or whatever like that...like I've said elsewhere, that's not professional, and in the end it makes the club look bad. No one wants that.

The cut of KP, while one can argue to death the merits of it...at least the transaction was done in a somewhat professional manner. It hasn't been brought up for quite a while.

[gizmo fan 2]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

Once again, I ask the question: Is this the Eskimo way?

Short answer: No.

[quake]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

In my opinion

The Eskimo Way has been slowly dying for a very long time. The hiring of you know who was the end.

[PDO]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

In my opinion

The Eskimo Way has been slowly dying for a very look time. The hiring of you know who was the end.

Yes and No.

While there's no draft prize in the CFL like there is in the NHL, NFL or even the NBA... I sincerely believe the best chance of redemption this franchise will have will be back-to-back 4-14 seasons followed by the firing of Tillman and naming Ed Hervey GM.

I don't think we're in a position of the damage going too deep (and the additions to CW will certainly help that).

This franchise is certainly a shadow of itself, but it still has history, and it still has a lot of "names" to call on... given the right circumstances (see the Chicago Blackhawks, for example), it's possible to return to glory and respectability...

[BUCK]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

They WERE released when the decision was made. Up until rookie camp, they had only thought about the possibility of an import safety but weren't able to know for sure weather or not they had the tools to do it. After getting a chance to see some of the new guys in person at rookie camp, they determined that they did in fact have the personnel so they pulled the trigger on the import safety experiment and cut ER and SB, up until that point there was still a chance they might try to jam those guys into Stubler's system.

Don't get me wrong, I didn't want to see them go either (especially not in that fashion), but I put much more stock in the opinions of Rich Stubler than I do my own, so I'm at peace with the moves.

Looks to me like the decision to go with imports at safety was made long before the rookies went to their camp. Pretty much all they needed to do was to show up and prove that they could move and they were going to get the job. Like I said Borhot landed on his feet so it seems. Richardson has not yet landed. There was little chance that either Borhot or Richardson were going to win the job. It was a done deal and the team should have gone ahead and released both long before they did. For Richardson he went from starting in the Eskimos last game on Nov 6th to not even being able to compete for his job. I know for a fact that Richardson spent many, many hours working in the off-season to ready himself to fight for his job in June. To qualify this as simply that "football is a great sport but a lousy business" does not do justice for the players involved. This is not the NFL where you may not have the sympathy for a player that is released but who has gotten rich over his career. The CFL does not pay like the NFL -- few get rich and guys like Richardson have to reach deep in their own pockets to finance off-season workouts. The players in the CFL (at least most ot them) must have another job in the off-season in order to survive. In the end the players are no more than assets to their owners and not human beings. Every move that the Eskimo organization makes reminds us of that truth.

[cmbuk]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

I don't really understand why this is such a big deal.

I totally understand the "Eskimo Way" when it relates to the players and how carry themselves on and off the field. I also understand the passion, tradition, etc that it involves.

But off the field, in this day and age where player movement is so constant (unlike the older days) with free agency, trades, changes every year, it's hard to maintain a "nice guy" business off the field. At the end of the day, you have to do what you think is right for your football team.

With Barnes, he had an issue that was unrelated to what happened last year, there were initial concerns (they don't know him as well as the previous regime), and s**t happens. Period. Don't like it? Don't play professional sports. I've heard many times, from many different leagues, that professional sports is "a great game but a crappy business." And that's the way it is these days. It's unfortunate to the people who have families, mortgages/rents, etc, but that's just the choice you make when you step foot into the world of non-guaranteed contracts and professional sports.

good post

[quake]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

Yes and No.

While there's no draft prize in the CFL like there is in the NHL, NFL or even the NBA... I sincerely believe the best chance of redemption this franchise will have will be back-to-back 4-14 seasons followed by the firing of Tillman and naming Ed Hervey GM.

I don't think we're in a position of the damage going too deep (and the additions to CW will certainly help that).

This franchise is certainly a shadow of itself, but it still has history, and it still has a lot of "names" to call on... given the right circumstances (see the Chicago Blackhawks, for example), it's possible to return to glory and respectability...

All they have right now is history

[Beerfish]

Re: Is this the "Eskimo Way" ???

Winning and winning with class is the Eskimo way, it has nothing at all to do with keeping established players or not. Nice ole Hugh Campbell would dump players every year if he thought he could improve the team. As a vet you get the benefit of the doubt if your team wins or has won recently, if you have been losers like the Esks have been for years you get no benefit of the doubt.