Lions off season News

Wally Buono and the B.C Lions are tweaking their strategy going into the 2009 season, at least when it comes to the starting quarterback position.

This training camp, instead of holding auditions and selecting the best performer for the part, the Lions have opted to declare Buck Pierce as the starter. So, as long as he doesn’t land a job with an NFL team, the position is his.

According to Buono, Pierce has earned the honour, completing the previous year as the Lions starter. There are at least six NFL teams that are interested in having a look at Pierce and although the 27 year-old admits it is a long shot, he feels that he owes it to himself to entertain the idea. Pierce believes he will have a clearer picture of the situation by the middle of February, after the Super-Bowl and Pro-Bowl.

Pierce told TSN: "Bottom line is, I want to play, and the Lions are giving me that opportunity. If they're naming me the starter then I would expect they would want me around for a while."

No workouts have been scheduled yet but Pierce is likely to throw for at least a few NFL teams within the next week.

If Pierce is back he will be happy to know that he will have standout slotback Geroy Simon catching his spirals. Simon will be back with the team, having signed an extension that will see him in B.C. through at least the 2011 season.

Last season marked the 8th for Simon as a Lion, and he had 82 receptions for 1,418 yards and 10 touchdowns. He has tallied at least a 100 yards in 45 games with the Leos. He has also caught a pass in 106 consecutive regular season games.