A year ago, the Argos blew a 29-3 lead in Calgary. The team stayed out in Alberta before winging it to Vancouver.
Braley, who deserves credit for keeping the Argos afloat by paying the bills, reached out to his well-heeled media puppets to spread the word on how he was prepared to fold the Argonauts franchise.
Members of the Argos got wind of it and proceeded to play their best game in Vancouver, a site that hasn’t been kind to the Scullers. But Toronto would win, 40-23, by playing inspired football in all three facets of the game.
In the end, Braley helped the Argos cause by expressing his views on the future of the franchise. In other words, the Argos were motivated to spite Braley.
Fast forward to this year, a very odd and awkward season for the Boatmen with new owners, a new chief executive, a new place to call home for next season.
GM Jim Barker and head coach Scott Milanovich have been signed by the club’s new regime, even though, technically speaking, Braley can fire both this season. In theory, it can happen. From a practical perspective, it won’t because that means Braley would have had to dip into his pockets to find replacements, which is akin to Rogers Sportsnet providing some kind of coverage of the Argos that doesn’t involve a controversy.
Pro football teams are always looking for some edge — real and imagined.
No one particularly likes Braley within the team and you just know the Argos are going to summon their best this week after a sub-par performance in Calgary. Braley’s heart has always been in B.C., where he has approved changes to the Lions’ football facility, while forking over some $100,000 in technological upgrades.
For the Argos, he’s provided nothing, other than the minimum duties of owning a team. The joke in Argoland stems from the hiring of yoga instructors who works with the team’s injured players. Braley, it’s believed, wasn’t even aware of this initiative, even though he’s paying for it. Barker must have approved the move, which has been universally endorsed by players.
Even if Braley wanted to get rid of Barker, Barker will be back next February when the new ownership group officially takes over. With the Argos preparing to play the Lions, the Braley backdrop remains, which is a shame, and his open disdain for the Toronto Argonauts. The worst thing the CFL has ever done, which is saying a lot, was to allow Braley to own both the Lions and the Argos.
There’s no retrospection required because the prudent move would have involved the league taking over operations before Bell finally realized how it needed to take advantage of its support for the CFL by owning the Argos. No other owner had the financial wherewithal and ties to the CFL like Bell. Larry Tanenbaum’s Kilmer Group has joined Bell, but Tanenbaum was tied up earlier being part of the group chasing the NFL’s Buffalo Bills. For the Argos, everything gets wiped clean beginning next season.
For this week, the Braley effect remains in play.
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