Your Cleveland Browns are 0-6 to start the 2017 season and it’s time for owner Jimmy Haslam to be the leader his organization so sorely needs.
Reports on Sunday stated the Browns have started making overtures to football executives about taking a role in Cleveland. The Browns, unsurprisingly, have denied these reports.
This move isn’t leadership but it is what Cleveland has become accustomed to with Haslam at the helm. A potentially huge decision with far reaching implications that will likely set the Browns back before it can move forward.
Haslam can do something truly outrageous and surprise everyone simply by tinkering with the organization instead of taking a sledge hammer to it like he’s previously done.
Here is my path to success for the Browns to avoid “Same Old Browns” mentality and do the seemingly impossible; cease the dysfunction and cycle of incompetence in Berea.
Avoid Fan Thinking- Haslam’s greatest sin as owner has been his inability to avoid the noise from fans.
His own desire to win along with his willingness to listen to fan’s frustrations has caused him to react swiftly, emotionally and ham fistedly. NFL ownership requires the opposite of that.
He may share your outrage but Haslam has to remember the Browns 1-21 record is a product of his own decisions.
Jimmy Haslam fired 3 regimes in 3 years. (Holmgren/Banner/Farmer)
Jimmy Haslam studied how other organizations were built and decided to have the Browns to mirror organizations from other sports despite the unconventional nature of said decision.
Jimmy Haslam hired all of the involved principles.
Maybe it’s time for Jimmy Haslam to stick to his own decisions and improve upon what he has already built.
Pandering to fans may quell the rage and sell tickets but it doesn’t actually a single thing. It’s tearing down a built that might need a fresh paint job.
Analyze Why The Relationship Between Sashi & Hue Is Strained- Losing breeds contempt.
Jimmy has to realize while he’s fatigued after 5 years of losing, Hue Jackson and Sashi Brown have only been in charge for 2 years. They can’t be blamed for the sins of previous regimes.
Is there friction between the front office and Hue because of losing or is there a philosophical schism? This may be the single most important question the Browns have faced since 1999. They’ve yet to get it right.
If Hue Jackson’s frustrated with the front office because he isn’t used to losing, that itself isn’t irreparable. Even if this is a product of Hue worrying for his job, that can be solved.
If Hue Jackson doesn’t believe in the direction of the organization or the analytical process, that’s a true sign of derision that cannot be fixed.
You can smooth over egos and hurt feelings; you cannot mend a philosophical divide.
Analyze The Organizations Strengths And Weaknesses- Just because the Browns are 1-21, doesn’t mean everything is a failure. The front office and Hue Jackson all deserve to be graded fairly on their work beyond the record.
The Front Office should be graded off their draft efforts, player acquisition (free agency/waivers) and other roster decisions such as the Osweiler trade and contract extensions.
Are they drafted well enough or is another football voice necessary? Is the organizational structure driving the team to make the best possible decisions?
With Hue Jackson, player development is one area that should paramount. Game day management, consistency and leadership should all be fair game too.
Based Off Strengths & Weaknesses, Make Adjustments-Not Sweeping Changes- Fans can never truly understand the importance of the structure of an organization or the impact of stability for that structuring.
Two years ago Haslam fired almost every key decision maker and he set out to build a more suitable front office.
Even if he feels it needs another voice, the current setup should not be destroyed as it has been 3 times before since Haslam took over. Those level of changes create a power vacuum which leads to chaos which damages an organizations ability to operate in the near term.
Instead of firing Hue Jackson or Sashi Brown, what tweaks can be made to improve the current situation?
Control of the 53 man roster, adjusting job descriptions within the front office, coaching staff decisions and changing who runs the draft are all fair suggestions depending on what weaknesses are uncovered.
All 4 options allow the current structure to move forward without dramatically altering it. That type of stability would breed true culture growth in Berea.
Commit To Finding A Quarterback This Year- The loudest and most valid gripe people have about the Browns is their decision to pass up multiple young quarterbacks over the last two years in favor of a less desirable quarterback room.
RG3, Josh McCown, Cody Kessler, Kevin Hogan and DeShone Kizer have all tested the Quarterback Whisper label bestowed on Hue Jackson.
There cannot be a third year of ignoring the NFL’s most important position.
Teddy Bridgewater, Kirk Cousins and Sam Bradford are all currently scheduled to be free agents.
Names like UCLA’s Josh Rosen, USC’s Sam Darnold and Oklahoma State’s Mason Rudolph may be available via this year’s supposedly deep quarterback class.
This organizaation has the draft capital and cap space to add at least one, if not two of these options to the roster this offseason.
In the last 2 years this team has pinned their hope under center to the likes of an injury prone diva, a late second round pick and a late third round pick.
Hue Jackson may be the Quarterback Whisperer but he isn’t Jesus. Give him NFL ready talent and see if he can live up to his nickname.
Heavy handed emotional decision making based off the constant sting of losing doesn’t take skill. Any fan can do just that.
Leading an organization out of the great abyss of irrelevance the Browns continuously find themselves in takes patience, critical thinking and leadership. It’s about time Jimmy Haslam proves he possesses those traits.
Ceasing the endless cycle of ineptitude that has plagued the Browns for almost 20 years may take years. It will sure as heck take longer than 22 months.
Jimmy Haslam is the only man that can permanently shut down the factory of sadness. He has the keys, now we’ll find out if he has the constitution.
