Can Jaime Elizondo fill Jason Maas' shoes in Ottawa?

While the debate about if the Ottawa Redblacks will receive compensation for losing offensive coordinator Jason Maas to Edmonton is still before a mediator, the team has managed to hire a replacement, Jaime Elizondo. Elizondo is a known CFL figure; he spent 2015 as the Toronto Argonauts' receivers coach, and previously worked with them from 2010-2011 as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach before leaving for a three-year Ivy League stint as Columbia's OC and QB coach. He also worked as Montreal's receivers coach and assistant special teams coach in 2008. However, he has big shoes to fill, as Maas played an important role in turning the Redblacks' offence around in 2015 and helping them to a Grey Cup appearance. How will Elizondo do as Maas' replacement?

Elizondo was born in Aquascalientes, Mexico and grew up in El Paso, Texas. He played varsity tennis at Maryland, where he majored in physiology and neurobiology, and he also earned a law degree from American University in 2002. He has impressive overall coaching experience, starting as a high school coach, then working at Catholic University in 2001, at William and Mary from 2002-2003 and at Hofstra University from 2004-2007. In 2007, he worked as the New Orleans Saints' s

pecial teams/wide receivers assistant coach thanks to the NFL Minority Internship Program. Since then, he's worked in the CFL (2008 with Montreal, 2010-2011 with Toronto, 2015 with Toronto) and the NCAA (2009 as wide receivers coach at Syracuse, 2012-2014 as Columbia's offensive coordinator and QB coach). That's not a bad overall background at all, but not a lot of it's directly comparable to what he'll have to do in Ottawa. However, his two seasons as Toronto's OC and QB coach may be more directly relatable, and even although there are some caveats that must be considered, they provide an idea of what an Elizondo-led offence might look like. Here's a look at how the 2010 Argonauts' offence, the 2011 Argonauts' offence, and the 2015 Redblacks' offence stack up in some key metrics, and how they compare in league-wide ranks (a lower number is better):

Now, this doesn't necessarily mean Maas is a better offensive coordinator than Elizondo. It's hard to isolate an offensive coordinator's performace; although Maas' unit was much better than Elizondo's 2010 or 2011 ones, that has a lot to do with the general manager, the head coach and the players, too. In particular, Maas was working with league Most Outstanding Player Henry Burris at quarterback, plus four receivers who each notched over 1,000 yards (only two other teams even had two players reach that mark). By contrast, Elizondo's primary quarterbacks in Toronto in 2010 and 2011 were Cleo Lemon, Dalton Bell and Steven Jyles, a group generally cited as some of the worst quarterbacks to start in this league. The Argonauts' top receiver in 2010 was Jermaine Copeland, with 639 receiving yards, and their top receiver in 2011 was Chad Owens, with 722 receiving yards. There was some talent with that group, but the Redblacks' offensive cast in 2015 (and their 2016 lineup) seems far superior to anything Elizondo had to work with in Toronto, especially in the passing game. (The Argonauts did have a better ground game for much of that time, led by Cory Boyd, but eventually released him midseason in 2011 over pass-blocking concerns.) It's also worth mentioning that the CFL has generally shifted more towards the pass since 2010; seven of eight teams averaged over 100 rushing yards per game that year, while only three of nine broke that barrier this year.

What will be interesting to see is if Elizondo attempts to cue up a run-focused attack in Ottawa. Rushing was a key part of the 2010 Argonauts' offensive game plan, and it helped them pull off a surprising 9-9 season (impressive, considering that they were coming off a 3-15 campaign) and a first-round playoff win, but it's unclear if Toronto's focus on the run was thanks to Elizondo's preferences or the talent he was working with. That Argonauts' team had a great running back, but next to no production from their quarterbacks. By contrast, Ottawa has excellent personnel for the passing game, but more questions about what they can do on the ground. If Elizondo can adapt to that (and perhaps strengthen the ground game, too), he might be a decent fit for the Redblacks.

Overall, Elizondo doesn't seem like a bad hire in Ottawa. It certainly may be helpful that the Redblacks have grabbed someone who already has experience as a CFL OC, as those guys aren't that plentiful right now. He also has a good variety of experience both inside and outside the CFL, and it's notable that his stints as receivers coach came in pass-focused offences in Montreal and Toronto, so he has experience with more than run-heavy offences. It is worth noting that he has big shoes to fill in Ottawa, though, given how well Maas's unit did last year. Moreover, Elizondo's offences in Toronto certainly weren't great, especially in the passing game. Whether that's on him or the personnel he was working with is debatable, and how much of Ottawa's 2015 success was thanks to Maas and how much was thanks to personnel is also debatable, so the Elizondo hiring isn't certainly doomed. It's still worth discussing his previous CFL OC tenure, though, and how much of a gap there is between it and what the Redblacks did in 2015.