Edmonton Eskimos announce new coaching staff

Edmonton – The Edmonton Eskimos sideline will look much different when the 2014 CFL season kicks off.

On Tuesday, Eskimos Head Coach Chris Jones announced his coaching staff.

Steve McAdoo has been hired as the Esks’ offensive coordinator. McAdoo has 14 years of coaching experience, most recently as the offensive line coach for the Toronto Argonauts from 2010 to 2013.

“Brings a wealth of knowledge, has won a ton of football games in this league, and I’m certainly delighted to have him. He’s one of my most trusted allies in this game,” said Jones.

“I think I’ve had the pleasure of being around a lot of guys that, with a wealth of knowledge, and being in those different systems, I think I bring a different variety of skills,” said McAdoo.

Craig Dickenson will take over the special teams duties. The new special teams coordinator enters his 15th season as a coach and his 11th as a special teams coach. Dickenson spend the 2013 campaign as the special teams coordinator for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

Jarious Jackson is the Eskimos new quarterbacks coach and pass game coordiantor. Jackson was the quarterbacks coach for the BC Lions last season. Prior to starting his coaching career, Jackson spent eight seasons as a quarterback in the CFL.

“He’s an ultimate team guy. I watched him throughout his career continually be the number two guy, and I don’t think there was ever a time, when called upon, when he wasn’t prepared,” said Jones.

Jason Shivers has been hired as the defensive backs coach. Shivers was a defensive assistant for the Toronto Argonauts in 2013, which was his first season as a coach.

Ed Philion will be responsible for the defensive line. Philion spent last season as the defensive line coach for the Argos, after spending eight seasons as a defensive lineman with the Montreal Alouettes.

“The thing that most impressed me when he came and guest coached for me down in a Calgary a couple years ago was his ability to teach the young players,” explained Jones.

Kez McCorvey is the Eskimos’ new receivers coach. McCorvey held the same title with the Argonauts in 2013.

Craig Davoren has been named Edmonton’s new offensive assistant. Davoren spent the past two seasons in Toronto as the Argos defensive assistant and quality control assistant.

Head Coach Chris Jones will manage the defensive coordinator duties. He doesn’t anticipate juggling the two jobs will be an issue.

“It’s old hat for me. Defensive coordinator is something I’ve done for an extremely long time. I feel completely comfortable with it.”

Jones admits one of the critical criteria in deciding on a coaching staff is loyalty.

“It’s inevitable when things are hard and if you don’t have guys that are extremely loyal to each other and to the head coach and to the organization itself then you don’t have much of a foundation.”

The announcement means Jones has a completely revamped the Eskimos coaching staff from last season.

“We’re going to bring clarity. We’re going to be very simple. We’re going to play fast. We’re going to practice fast. We’re going to practice long, and we feel like that’s going to bring effectiveness on the field,” said Jones.

The organization will likely still hire an offensive line coach.

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