Insider Talk is a weekly feature on 3DownNation that includes anonymous quotes from people around the CFL — players, coaches, personnel people, executives, agents, etc. — regarding the latest news around the league. It’s a combination of insight, analysis, rumours, and friendly gossip.
This week’s Insider Talk is full of discussion regarding the pressure surrounding Khari Jones in Montreal, Larry Tanenbaum’s displeasure with the structure of the CFL, Dane Evans become the face of the franchise in Hamilton, Toronto’s depth, and the league’s development of quarterbacks.
Enjoy this week’s quotes and come back next week for another edition of Insider Talk.
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I think (Montreal Alouettes’ head coach) Khari Jones needs to start the season strong or he’s going to get fired. I’m serious. If that team’s not in line for a home playoff game when that bye week comes (at the end of August), I think Khari will be gone and (general manager) Danny (Maciocia) will take over.
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It’s rude for (MLSE chairman Larry) Tanenbaum to be gaslighting the community-owned teams that are cutting him an equalization cheque. Now that his longtime friend (Dale Lastman) is out as the chair of the Board of Governors, I wonder if Tanenbaum feels like he’s just not going to be listened to anymore.
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I’ve been around Dane Evans and he’s a lot tougher than people give him credit for. He doesn’t have (Jeremiah) Masoli around as a safety net anymore but he doesn’t need one. He’s ready to lead a team on his own.
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We need to invest more into our quarterbacks as a league. Most if not all of the quarterbacks currently starting in the CFL were third or even fourth-stringers at one point. Every team should be carrying a minimum of three quarterbacks, preferably four.
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What makes Toronto dangerous is they have depth everywhere. It doesn’t matter which of their ‘ones’ get hurt. They’ve got good ‘twos’ at every position.
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The only way franchise valuations increase overnight is with direct access to global or American markets. (Larry) Tanenbaum’s fixation on valuation is a sign that other CFL teams just want to focus within Canada, which is a bad sign for the Global initiative.
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Antonio Pipkin’s issue is that he’s not consistent enough and he makes too many mental mistakes. I’m not saying he’s bad – he’s got a big arm and he runs well. But to me it’s clear at this point that he’s just a depth guy. He’s an elevated version of Dakota Prukop.
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(Saskatchewan Roughriders’ national defensive end Nick) Dheilly should figure into their pass rush. He looks like he’s changed his body and added some new tools. He’s a good player.
