I mean, it literally means you keep going forward and not backwards, and the rehire of the person in question is going backwards. Yeah man, an ancient Reeves would definitely work out.
If you want to be obtuse, and a jerk for the sake of it, go ahead. Rehiring Shanahan is actually the opposite of the success mentality we used when we hired him.
Oh, if you think I'm being cryptic, let me be blunt: hiring retreads isn't being innovative. Shanahan WAS innovative. It was bold to hire him. Now you're essentially admitting you have no fresh ideas, and are hoping against hope there's magic left in the guy.