2014 marks the start of the Chris Jones era as head coach of the Edmonton Eskimos and many, myself included, think they may have found the right one. If you ask Jones what he looks for in a player, his response is "aggressiveness with intelligence that play with a ‘liitle edge.” That is a good definition of desire but could also be a description of Jones himself. Being aggressive is always a priority for a player; there are not many situations where being passive is beneficial on the football field. Pro football is not a nice game. In many ways and at the majority of positions youre imposing your will on another player, another athlete, and quite often the player with the strongest will and desire wins that battle. Sometimes you qualify it as mental toughness, but an aggressive mind set wins in this sport as long as it is disciplined and under control. Speaking of mind set, it may surprise you but intelligence is as important as any aspect of performance there is. The best linebacker in CFL football just may be J.C. Sherritt, the Eskimos middle linebacker. By no means is he physically imposing or dominant but when it comes to football smarts there are few that are his superiors. Interesting this year in that the injury adversity Sherritt faced last year gave an opportunity for another linebacker to shine in rookie Rennie Curran. This year both could be playing side by side in Edmonton, a strength for the Eskimos as both are athletic and very bright; they do not make the same mistake twice. The third quality of a Chris Jones player is one that plays with a little edge. Note those three words, "a little edge," are not easy to define or visualize. Is it a player who is exceptionally aggressive or intelligent? Or perhaps it is an attitude or enthusiasm. I think it is a guy who has no fear, cant be intimidated and, either subtly or overtly, does the intimidating. I dont know if you can describe it in words, but I do know coaches, especially veterans, recognize and want it. So the Chris Jones era begins and the Mike Reilly era, still in its infancy, continues. What was interesting to watch last year was how the Eskimos fans embraced Reilly as their quarterback. Not for the beautiful touchdown passes from the perfect spiral, or the ultimate three-minute drill to lead his team to poetic victory; they embraced Reilly because of the courage he played with in each and every game. Reilly was pummeled last year for many reasons, sometime poor pass protection, sometimes too many predictable passing situations. Add in a poor running game Reillys penchant for taking too many risks, hes gambling with his longevity. But what I observed is the Edmonton football faithful recognize his courageous performances and genuinely respected and responded positively to it. In a time when maximum revenue is a key priority for many, Reilly demonstrated an opposite mentality of thought; risking all for the cause in many situations. Now he has to temper it down however and he will or hell still be a football hero in Edmonton, just not for 18 games. The West is pretty good this year. Winnipeg will be better, Calgary and BC have good personnel that just need to stay healthy and focused, and Saskatchewan is the defending Grey Cup champion. So where does that leave Edmonton? They will be aggressive, they will be intelligent, and they will play with an edge. They will pressure the quarterback relentlessly and take risks one-on-one in coverage. And of course, their quarterback will continue to play with the definable quality of courage each and every game. Edmonton may just be pretty good this year. Adidas Superstar Wholesale Uk . You can, too, Clay Buchholz, if we ignore the sixth inning of Game 2. Doug Fister and Jake Peavy, youre up next in Game 4 and theres a lot to live up to. Adidas Superstar Discount .B. -- Canadian pairs skaters Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford went from elated to frustrated in the span of a few minutes. http://www.superstarukdiscount.com/ . Roma has a game in hand but now second place is even at risk for the capital side as Napoli moved to within three points with the win. "The result is not always fair," Roma coach Rudi Garcia said. "If we play like this until the end we will win many matches. Adidas Superstar Clearance Sale . The Canadian tennis players first full season on the WTA Tour was a strong one. She has risen to No. 32 in the world rankings and will likely be seeded at the first Grand Slam event of the 2014 season. Cheap Superstar Trainers . Alen, 28, hit .315 with five home runs, 59 RBI and a career-high nine stolen bases for the Goldeyes last season. He is the longest serving catcher in Goldeyes history, having already spent five seasons with the organization.TORONTO a€“ The disappointment was evident all over his face. Attempting a re-launch of his NHL career this fall, Petri Kontiola, the former Blackhawks draft pick, was plainly dejected after his second exhibition game with the Leafs on Wednesday night. Kontiola, a 29-year-old who spent the past five seasons in the KHL, knew that what hed offered so far probably wasnt good enough. a€?Im not doing that well right now and I know it,a€? he said gloomily. a€?Thats about it.a€? Kontiolas biggest challenge in making the leap back to the NHL, as per Leafs head coach Randy Carlyle, was his ability to keep up with the pace of the game. And thats been precisely the struggle for the Finnish forward. His long, choppy stride appears just a step too slow for the high speeds of the NHL game, evident even at this early stage of the exhibition season. He teamed uncomfortably with Phil Kessel and James van Riemsdyk on a de facto top line against Ottawa, finishing without a shot on goal in about 13 minutes. a€?We try to use these games as assessment periods and sometimes people play themselves into situations and play them out of situations,a€? Carlyle said, not mentioning Kontiola specifically. a€?We tried to put people in situations where they can have the best possible chance for success and then thats when the evaluation process starts.a€? The evident fact of Kontiolas struggle, early as it may be in training camp, has made Torontos once uncertain centre dynamic become pretty clear pretty quick. With Kontiola seemingly out of the mix a€“ hes not getting faster overnight a€“ the final two centre spots would appear safely in the hands of Peter Holland and Mike Santorelli, an unproven duo in different regards. Given Carlyles stated intention of three a€?scoringa€? lines, Holland would seem the probable choice for third line centre duties beyond Tyler Bozak and Nazem Kadri. Just 23, the former first round pick has offered hints of promise in 68 NHL games a€“ albeit inconsistently a€“ including five goals and 10 points in 39 games with the Leafs last season. Making clear that he was just a rung above the American League in the spring, he went on to thrive with the Marlies in the playoffs, boassting 15 points in 11 games.dddddddddddd But can he fulfill his potential with the increased NHL opportunity likely to come his way? That will indeed be the question. Santorelli could certainly push him for some of those offensive minutes, but appears better suited (of the two) to absorb the difficult minutes left by Jay McClement, a Carlyle favourite whom the organization let walk in the offseason. Under the direction of since-deposed Vancouver head coach John Tortorella, Santorelli was utilized in challenging defensive situations, also killing penalties along the way. And he fared okay, posting positive Corsi numbers at even-strength. If Carlyle can find in him a player to handle those difficult assignments in the coming year he could alleviate some of the burden carried by Bozak and the teams top trio, which was often overloaded against top lines a year ago. a€?Hes going to get opportunities,a€? Carlyle said of Santorelli. a€?We brought the player in feeling that he could make a contribution.a€? Unlike McClement, who scored just four goals in 81 games, Santorelli also offers some offensive potential. Averaging nearly 19 minutes, he scored 10 times in 49 games with his hometown Canucks, adding a 20-goal campaign to the resume in Florida a few years earlier. a€?I think as a player you want to come in and help with the team any way you can and thats all Im looking to do here,a€? said Santorelli, who also won 51 per cent of his faceoffs. As for Kontiola, his fight to remain in the race for a job with the Leafs hangs by an apparent thread. Though the transition to North American-sized rinks would seem a challenge, even for a player who spent two seasons over here, he refused to touch it after Wednesdays game, brushing it off as an excuse. a€?No, a good player can play wherever,a€? he said. The team wasnt quite as dismissive. a€?Were watching him very closely,a€? Peter Horachek, the Leafs assistant coach, said before the game, a€?as we are with a couple of the other centremen and seeing where they stand because theres some questions to be answered for our team coming through training camp.a€? One at least appears increasingly closer to a solution. ' ' '