After a despicable season on the football field by the Edmonton Elks, the Elks have made a commitment to the last head coach who won Edmonton a Grey Cup. On Tuesday, according to TSN, the Elks have named Chris Jones their head coach and general manager. Now the question is how much of a commitment will Jones give Edmonton?
Jones is 54 years of age, but has a history of not sitting still for one particular team. When he guided the Edmonton Eskimos to the 2015 Grey Cup, he left immediately to the Saskatchewan Roughriders the following season. There were even rumours prior to the 2015 Grey Cup game, which Edmonton beat Ottawa 26-20, that Jones had a deal with Saskatchewan already in place. To make matters worse, Jones took several people from Edmonton with him to Saskatchewan, who were under contract with the Eskimos at the time.
Then Jones was not in Saskatchewan long either. He was only there for three years before becoming the defensive assistant coach with the Cleveland Browns for a season. Since then, Jones has been the head coach for South Pittsburg High School in Tennessee and a defensive consultant for the Toronto Argonauts.
There is no doubt that Jones is coming into a situation in Edmonton that is an absolute mess. The Elks were only winners of three games this season and were outscored 378-246. Now Edmonton football fans have every right to question the hiring here. Jones’s success is exceptional, but it is his commitment and loyalty that needs to be questioned.
