If Browns Learn Anything, It Should Be The Current Structure Doesn’t Work

That the Cleveland Browns are 3-9 this season is bad enough for a fan, what might be even more frustrating is that there doesn’t seem to be a singular person to blame.

Owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam talk about a “collaborative” effort in running the Browns. Apparently, the decision makers would be the owners, we think their son-in-law, J. W. Johnson is in the group, along with GM Andrew Berry, Chief Strategy Officer Paul DePodesta, and coach Kevin Stefanski.

Is this a good way to run a football operation or any sports franchise? We would think it isn’t.

We are sure there are many people who are asked for input with both the Guardians and Cavaliers’ organizations, but we know who the final decision is made by. For the baseball team, it is team president Chris Antonetti and GM Mike Chernoff. And with the Cavs, it is president of basketball operations Koby Altman.

If things aren’t going well, they are the people fans and media alike can point the finger at. And at least in the Guardians’ case, when the team isn’t playing well or questions need to be answered, Antonetti faces the media and provides answers.

And although Altman doesn’t conduct a lot of pressers, everyone in the basketball world understands he and GM Mike Gansey are making the basketball decisions.

In both of these cases, we are sure the ownership is aware of what is going on and gives the final okay, but as owners, that’s the way it should be.

With the Cavaliers, it wasn’t always that way. Dan Gilbert went through coaches and general managers on what seemed to be every other year basis, but since his health issues, the basketball operations are more front and center.

This odd structure for the Browns leads to a lot of questions, particularly earlier this season, when there were questions (and rightly so) about who made the decision to trade for Deshaun Watson and why was he continuing to play?

We still don’t know, and that’s a problem for people wanting a fall guy. Let’s face it, whoever was the person in the organization thumping the loudest for the former Texans’ QB should be fired. It was that bad of a mistake.

Instead, Stefanski has to answer questions as to whether or not he, the coach of the team, can make a decision to bench the player. And although Stefanski says he can, we think even his critics know he’s a smart man, and surely, he cannot think Watson was the best option if the Browns wanted to win.

If you want a laugh, type “bad quotes about committees” into your search browser. There are tons of comments from smart people about how the worst way to make a decision is to form a committee to discuss them.

The best thing the Haslams can learn from the Watson situation is they need to have someone in charge of football operations and let that man make the football decisions, including having the coach and GM report to him.

When John Dorsey supposedly in charge here, the head coach at the time, Hue Jackson, supposedly reported to the owner.

All that does is encourage an “it’s not my fault, it’s his fault” scenario.

The Browns need someone to answer the big picture football related questions. And too often, that role falls in Stefanski’s lap, because he’s the only guy who talks to the media (he tries not to say anything) regularly.

The collaboration method hasn’t worked. Hire someone with a vast knowledge of the game and let all football people report to him. And have his voice and only his voice tell ownership what needs to be done.

The wise man knows what he doesn’t know. And a committee didn’t come up with that quote.

Browns Turned Back The Clock To 2023 Thursday Night

The Cleveland Browns turned back the clock to 2023 for at least one night in their 24-19 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in a winter wonderland on Thursday night.

Kevin Stefanski’s crew seemed to be embarrassed by a real or perceived lack of effort in the loss to the Saints in which Taysom Hill ran, threw, and caught all over the Cleveland defense, leading New Orleans to three fourth quarter touchdowns.

There were no major glitches in the operation, showing the Browns can win football games if they eliminated silly mistakes.

Myles Garrett spoke to the team before the game and then went out and backed it up on the field with his second three sack game in the last three, and one of the sacks caused a fumble which Cleveland recovered.

Jameis Winston gave the Browns solid quarterbacking play completing 18 of 27 passes for 217 yards. It was the kind of performance that Cleveland has received since Stefanski became the head coach, except for when P.J. Walker was at the helm.

Oh, and that other guy. Deshaun Watson.

It was Winston’s fourth straight game with more than 200 yards passing and we mention this because in the seven games Watson started, he never reached that figure.

We wondered after the game, playing the great “what if” game, what would have happened if the Browns replaced Watson at QB after the third game of the season, a loss to the equally woeful Giants, when Cleveland gained just 212 yards in total offense.

Or the following week after a loss to Las Vegas, or the following week after a terrible non-competitive loss to the Commanders.

Would they have two or maybe three more wins right now? Heck, we believe if Winston would have been the back up against Cincinnati instead of the bizarre decision to have it be Dorian Thompson-Robinson, they may have defeated the Bengals.

And despite an analysis of the game which asked why Cleveland threw the ball so much in the snowy conditions, it was about a fifty-fifty split, with 27 running plays, although one of them was a scramble by Winston (which resulted in a TD).

Nick Chubb’s numbers were up to his stats in 2020-2022, but he carried 20 times for 59 yards and two touchdowns, his most carries of the season. He still hasn’t busted one for 25-30 yards, but the flashes are there.

One group of people who probably weren’t happy with the win were the people expecting a coaching change perhaps after a loss to the Steelers, and definitely after the season.

Several national football writers have said that is not imminent, but although we would not fire Kevin Stefanski, who by the way, seems to have the Browns competitive within the division, but we would not run it back with the same group in 2025.

We would definitely consider a new offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. And you have to question why the organization has ignored looking for a replacement/back up for Chubb, and why they can’t find a pass rusher opposite Garrett.

The remaining schedule is tough, without a doubt, but there are winnable games remaining, and the Browns need to continue to show the effort and mistake free football they played with Thursday night.

Do Browns Get The Most Coverage Because There Is More To Complain About?

With the Cleveland Browns going through another difficult season (and that’s putting it mildly), it brings to mind how sports are covered in northeast Ohio.

The best part of the Browns’ organization is probably the public relations department and whoever makes the decision on the broadcast rights. There are two sports talk stations in the city and the team decided to partner up with both of them, so both the AM and FM entities can claim to be “Home of the Browns”!

It is difficult to find a radio station on a Sunday morning that doesn’t have some sort of football programming on air. And because both stations are tied to the team, they dedicate airtime every day to the Browns, at least when Kevin Stefanski conducts his daily press conferences, in which he says pretty much nothing.

The question is why does the franchise with the least success in the area get talked about the most?

The Cleveland sports fan hasn’t had a lot of reason to puff out their collective chests over the last 60 years. The 2016 Cavaliers have the only league championship since the Browns won in 1964.

That’s a long time without a title parade in downtown Cleveland.

Because the basketball team had the best player in the sport in this century, the Cavs have played for the league championship five times in the last 18 seasons. They lost in the conference finals twice more, meaning they’ve been in their sports’ final four seven times since 2006-07.

And after James left, the organization has rebuilt and put themselves in a position to compete for another shot at a title in a relatively short amount of time.

As for baseball, the Indians/Guardians have been to three World Series in the last 30 years, getting to a seventh game twice in 1997 and 2016.

In a sport that is the toughest to get to the post-season (12 of 30 teams make the playoffs in MLB-40%, compared to 44% in the NFL and depending if you count the “play-in round”, two-thirds of NBA teams make it), the team on the corner of Carnegie and Ontario has made it to the playoffs 14 times since 1995.

They’ve reached the post-season six times in the last nine seasons.

As for the Browns, we understand the attachment for the team because it was ripped away from the city in 1995, but the team has never played in the Super Bowl, one of four teams that have never been there, and two of them (Jacksonville and Houston) weren’t in existence 30 years ago.

The other franchise, the Detroit Lions, may reduce that number to three after this season.

The Browns haven’t played for an NFL championship since before the merger in 1970, and that occurred in 1965. Since their three AFC title appearances in four years (1986-89), they’ve won two playoff games.

However, those two playoff wins are more games that they won in the 2016 and 2017 seasons combined, when they famously went 1-31 and 4-44 over a three year period.

Someone asked me once if it is easier to write about a team when it is winning or losing. Without a doubt it’s a losing team. More things to complain about.

Perhaps that’s why the Browns dominate the sports media in northeast Ohio. Based on the recent past, there are umpteen things to be dissatisfied with.

In Support Of Stefanski

With the Cleveland Browns unexpected struggles this season, many in the media and fans as well have to have a scapegoat for their poor record. The easy target for their angst is head coach Kevin Stefanski.

Look, we aren’t saying Stefanski is a great coach. We also don’t think there are many great coaches in the NFL currently. The only people in charge we would put in that class are Andy Reid, John Harbaugh, and Mike Tomlin.

There are others who could ascend to that level, including Stefanski, but they aren’t there yet. But to be fair, this is the first non-competitive season for the current Cleveland coach, who has won 11 games twice, but his worst season to date was a 7-10 mark in 2022.

Stefanski is among the newer age head coaches. They are younger, didn’t play in the NFL and look more like college professors than “football guys”. Others in that category would be Mike McDaniel in Miami, Matt LaFleur in Green Bay, and Shane Steichen in Indianapolis.

There are others too.

They were hired because teams were looking for their Sean McVay, a young coach, full of energy, and a football savant. He took the league by storm at age 31, going 11-5 in his first year and taking the Rams to the Super Bowl in his second year. He won the title in his fifth season.

We think perhaps these guys don’t get a long rope from the fans because they don’t resemble the coaches they grew up with. Coaches like Vince Lombardi, Mike Ditka, Bill Parcells and Bill Cowher. Emotional men with fire in their eyes and not afraid to confront players.

We forget about people like Tom Landry, Paul Brown, and the last Browns’ coach to win a title, Blanton Collier, who were quieter and more refined on the sidelines.

Both types have had success winning in the NFL.

Another thing that irritates the hard-core football folks is Stefanski’s press conferences after games. At this point, we don’t know why anyone is surprised the coach says nothing in these settings. Our guess is he has told his players he will not do that. He will take the blame when things go bad.

To go along with this, we have no doubt errors are addressed and handled in the locker room. We don’t think players get to do whatever they want.

Usually, there is a one-year grace period for a coach after a successful season, and even though they didn’t win the Super Bowl, last year was a great season for the Browns. That would indicate Stefanski is safe this year, but a slow start in 2025 puts him firmly on a hot seat.

It does become a different story if Stefanski loses the locker room, and the players are no longer putting out an effort to win games. And that could occur if moves are made to play younger players who aren’t ready to compete.

Remember, the players don’t care about next year, nor do they care about draft picks. And that’s not just players who feel they won’t be back with the Browns next season.

Would people like Stefanski more if he got in players’ faces on the sidelines and ranted and raved at the officials? Probably, but that’s not him.

Stefanski deserves to come back next year and reverse what happened this year. Even if the losing continues unless he loses the players.

2024 Has Been A Year Of Mistakes For The Browns

The Cleveland Browns seemed poised to at least tie up their game against Philadelphia in the fourth quarter, trailing 20-13 and having a first down and goal at the Eagles’ 8 with four and a half minutes left.

But then the mistakes occurred. A false start on rookie Zak Zinter on 3rd and goal from the three moved Cleveland back. Then as the Browns were going for it on fourth down, Jedrick Wills jumped and push the team back to the 13-yard line.

From there, Kevin Stefanski thought it was too risky to have a fourth and goal from over 10 yards and kicked a field goal, hoping the defense could get the ball back one last time.

It was just another couple of mistakes in not only a season plagued with errors, but an entire off-season of decisions being made that have backfired on the organization.

In their playoff season a year ago when they went 11-6, the Browns ranked 10th in the NFL in offense. But apparently, that wasn’t good enough for the brass, and they replaced Alex Van Pelt, who had been the offensive coordinator since Stefanski was hired, with Ken Dorsey, who worked with “dual threat” quarterbacks at Carolina and Buffalo.

Offensive line coach (and guru) Bill Callahan left because his son Brian was named head coach with the Titans, and the Browns went outside the organization to hire Andy Dickerson, who they interviewed for the OC job.

Why they didn’t go with Scott Peters, Callahan’s assistant is a question that should be answered by the front office. In the name of continuity, it might have been the wiser choice.

They also dismissed long time running backs coach Stump Mitchell and brought in Duce Staley.

The point is there were a lot of changes on the offensive coaching staff considering the offense performed pretty well last season, especially when you factor in the number of different starting quarterbacks the team played.

After Joe Flacco’s very good play down the stretch last season, the Browns could have brought him back to be the backup quarterback, but they feared the fans’ reaction if Deshaun Watson didn’t play well, so they passed on him.

He went to Indianapolis where he has a 102.2 passer rating with seven touchdown throws and just one interception in three games. For a frame of reference, Watson has five TD passes in six contests.

All of these changes were made with the idea of getting Watson to perform as he did when he was with Houston, in 2020. Instead, he is playing worse than he has ever played.

During his partial seasons with the Browns, 2022 due to suspension and 2023 because of injury he wasn’t this bad. In six starts this season, the quarterback has yet to throw for 200 yards in a game.

Even worse, he’s now started 18 games in a Cleveland uniform and has yet to throw for 300 yards. As a frame of reference, Flacco had four such games in the five he started for the Browns last season.

It’s been a year filled with mistakes starting with the front office trying to fix something that didn’t need to be fixed. It’s continued on to the playing field where penalties, dropped passes, and coverage breakdowns are causing the Browns to lose every week.

The players need to play better. The front office needs to admit their mistakes as well.

Time To Make A Tough Decision On Watson

And the Cleveland Browns thought they were finished with dysfunction when they hired Kevin Stefanski and Andrew Berry as coach and general manager, respectively.

But we guess a leopard can’t change its spots, and the franchise is back to being talked about by the national NFL media, and not for a good reason.

Of course, all of the controversy and discussion surrounds the team’s quarterback, Deshaun Watson. The Browns gave up a tremendous amount of draft capital, primarily the three first round draft picks, and guaranteed his entire contract when they made the move to get Watson from Houston, and they have received little return on their investment.

This season, Watson isn’t even playing at an average level, ranking 28th in the league in passer rating, ranking ahead of only Jacoby Brissett, Will Levis, Bo Nix, and Anthony Richardson. His QBR rating? Last among qualified passers.

However, there are many people who believe the choice to start Jameis Winston or Dorian Thompson-Robinson for that matter, doesn’t rest in the hands of the head coach. That’s how dysfunctional franchises behave.

That’s amazing to us because of the success Stefanski has had here. We know he hasn’t won any Super Bowls or even advanced to a conference championship game, but he has won the most games since the Browns returned to the NFL in 1999, winning 38. The next best? Romeo Crennel and Butch Davis with 24.

He’s been the NFL coach of the year twice in his four seasons at the helm.

We know publicly Stefanski has defended Watson, saying every aspect of the team has to get better, and saying it is his decision as to who starts at QB. But we also know he doesn’t say anything in his dealings with the media. He doesn’t criticize his players in the press, so he’s certainly not going to say the front office is holding him hostage.

And if the front office is indeed telling Stefanski he has to make it work with Watson and the new offensive coordinator brought in to improve the quarterback’s performance, maybe they should come down and make it work.

Instead, they should be working on what is the best and least painful way out for the franchise. If the team were to release him right now, they would be stuck with a $200 million bill in dead money on the salary cap.

If they were to tell him to go home and he will be released after June 1st next year, that dead money amount falls to $119 million. That’s the best option.

Why should the Browns bench Watson? The best reason would be to see if the problems on offense are truly because of the quarterback, and to identify any more glaring holes that need to be fixed this off-season.

We understand the problem that could be developed if you bench Watson and have him watching from the sideline, it would be awkward and could be divisive to the team. That’s why you make a clean break.

A trade is out of the question because no one is taking that kind of cap hit.

Look, you have to pay Watson no matter what. You can either pay him to have a negative effect (by his play) or you can send him home and he would have no effect. Which is better?

And the worst thing you can do when you make a mistake is to keep trying to justify the move. Admit you made a bad move and proceed.

Can the season be salvaged? Probably not, but let’s say Winston starts this week and the Browns win, and then they come home and beat Cincinnati. They’d be 3-4 and have hope.

Isn’t that worth making the change?

Browns’ Season In Ruins? All Signs Point to Yes

It is hard to believe that just nine short months ago, the Cleveland Browns were getting ready to take on the Houston Texans in the playoffs and hopes were high after they won four of their last five regular season games, scoring over 30 points in three of those wins.

We bring that up because we highly doubt the man who coached that team, Kevin Stefanski suddenly lost the skill to lead this team during the summer.

On the other hand, we asked this question all summer long. This Browns’ team to win now, and what would happen if the team got off to a poor start. Would the organization have the stomach to replace Deshaun Watson if he were not playing well?

Well, that time has arrived and at least after the game, Stefanski said he would continue with Watson at quarterback. He is staying with him despite him not throwing for over 200 yards in any of the five games Cleveland has played this season.

Several members of the media, both local and national, have wondered if Stefanski even has the authority to make the change, considering the amount of draft capital and money the franchise has invested in Watson.

If that’s the case, it should tip everyone off as to why this franchise has trouble winning consistently. Presumably, Stefanski, GM Andrew Berry, and the rest of the front office, save for the “strategy department” were hired because of their football acumen, yet their ability to make decisions is compromised.

It seems that the focus of the franchise has shifted from a year ago. Last year, it was about winning, making the playoffs. Over the off-season, it shifted to making a player happy and justifying a bad trade.

That’s the only reason for firing Alex Van Pelt as offensive coordinator and bringing in Ken Dorsey. By the way, could the latter be the first OC to be fired in mid-season two years in a row?

That’s not to hold the coaching staff blameless. The number of stupid penalties grows every week. We don’t believe they are coaching players to commit errors, but maybe there needs to be more accountability.

Sunday was no different. Mike Ford was flagged for running into the return man fielding a punt when he clearly signaled for a fair catch. There were multiple occurrences of having 12 men on the field, causing either a penalty or Stefanski having to take a timeout.

When you are losing, those mistakes are glaring.

Washington came into the game with one of the worst defenses against the pass in the league. The Browns threw for 108 yards. The Cleveland defense allowed 215 yards on the ground, another recipe for defeat in the NFL.

The defense started very well, getting an interception on the goal line by Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and confusing rookie QB Jayden Daniels, who came into the game completing 82% of his throws.

He hit on only 56% Sunday, but had completions of 66, 41, and 33 yards, and the Commanders had runs of 50, 34, and 28 yards. There were big plays all over the place.

And really, the game turned on the 33-yard run by Daniels on 4th and 3 with the score 10-3 and a little over three minutes left in the first half.

The road show continues next week in Philadelphia, but if there anyone left in the fan base or worse on the coaching staff that the Browns can generate any offense with Watson playing quarterback?

Trying to bring out the best in him when it wasn’t there to begin with seems to have derailed a season that should have been ending in a playoff berth.

A Browns’ Functional Offense Can Win Games

When the Cleveland Browns were in negotiations to trade for Deshaun Watson, it was reported that the quarterback’s interactions with head coach Kevin Stefanski went amazingly well.

The two talked football, x’s and o’s, and Stefanski showed him ideas and the concepts of what he would like to do, and Watson appeared to be in agreement that it would be a beneficial relationship for both of them.

There is no doubt in our mind that Stefanski was excited. That’s how coaches are. Without any negative baggage people are aware of, coaches think they can get the best out of any player, that’s how they are wired.

Stefanski has had success running offenses as a coach in Minnesota and Cleveland, and we are sure he felt what he liked to do would mesh well with a passer who had several big seasons and a couple of playoff appearances in Houston.

And we are sure Watson was equally excited to have a coach whose offenses have had plenty of success in the NFL.

But offenses have changed in the NFL since 2018-2020, Watson’s heyday in Houston. The Kansas City Chiefs, who have won three Super Bowls since that period, do not run the same attack as they did in Patrick Mahomes’ first year as a starter.

So, hoping the Watson who played for the Texans is magically going to return wearing a Browns’ uniform is probably a wish that isn’t going to come true.

Meanwhile, while Watson was out due to suspension and injury over the last two years, the Browns’ offense has performed pretty well, ranking in the middle of the pack in ’22 (18th) and landing in the top ten (10th) last season.

Stefanski likes to run the football and throw off of play action. That usually means the QB has to play under center. Watson prefers to be in the shotgun. Stefanski likes to be ahead of the chains, usually going with a short pass on first down to gain five yards or so, and then be able to run the ball on 2nd and possible 3rd down.

Watson likes to take shots down the field, usually after he buys time in the backfield by using his legs. He also takes a lot of sacks, leading the league in 2018 and was sacked over 40 times in both ’19 and ’20.

That puts his team in obvious pass situations. Stefanski doesn’t like those situations.

The point is in spite of both people’s intentions, what they both like to do is in direct contrast with each other.

After last season, the organization decided to bring in a new offensive coordinator, Ken Dorsey, who has experience with mobile QBs, but physically, Cam Newton and Josh Allen, the players Dorsey worked with, are much bigger and would seem to be able to take more hits because of that size.

With the injuries on the offensive line, it would seem the best offense for the Browns to win with would be to run the Stefanski attack, keep the QB out of bad down and distance situations and running the football and take downfield shots with play action.

Can Watson run that offense effectively and better yet, can he be fulfilled running the attack in that fashion?

We think the Browns can have success if the offense plays at a league average level. The defense is that strong. Winning is the object of the sport, no one should forget that.

A Week One Stinker For Watson And The Browns

It’s just one game.

That’s the best thing we can say about the Browns’ 33-17 loss to Dallas in their season opener on Sunday. There are 16 more games and hopefully, Kevin Stefanski’s squad played their worst one in week one.

Under Stefanski’s tenure, the Browns have always had a strong running game, led by Nick Chubb. Last season, when Chubb missed most of the season, Cleveland ranked 12th in the league in rushing.

Early in Sunday’s contest, the Browns couldn’t run the ball, and that led to Dallas being able to ignore the possibility of a ground game and they put all kinds of pressure on Deshaun Watson, who didn’t handle it well.

Yes, we know the Browns were missing both of their starting tackles. But Dallas was starting two rookies on their offensive line, and Dak Prescott was sacked three times (Watson was sacked six) and gained four yards per carry when running the football.

Cleveland had one first down in the first half. One! Watson seemed confused and hesitant at most times during the game. As we said earlier, he was sacked six times, but a few of those times he sacked himself because he didn’t get rid of the football.

The Browns didn’t get the ball to their primary playmakers either. Amari Cooper caught two passes for 16 yards. David Njoku did catch four passes and was involved in the longest offensive play for Cleveland, 29 yards, but he left with an ankle injury.

Heralded off-season acquisition Jerry Jeudy caught three passes for 25 yards and did score the Browns’ first touchdown.

The Cleveland offense gained just 230 yards, most of that in the second half when the game was already decided.

Let’s not forget the special teams, which gave up a 60-yard punt return to KaVontae Turpin which pretty much iced the game for Dallas, making the score 27-3 early in the second half.

The defense wasn’t dominant, but actually played the best of any of the units. They held Dallas to just 265 yards of total offense, but gave up two long scoring drives, both in the first half, allowing a TD drive of 70 yards and a second one of 74.

Otherwise, as we said before, the Cowboys scored on a punt return, and field goal drives of 17, 1, 19, and 20 yards. Cleveland wound up winning the time of possession, but again, stats were misleading. When your offense gets one first down in a half, your defense is on the field a lot.

They weren’t great, but they were far from being awful.

However, fair or not, it still comes down to quarterback play for the Browns. Remember, it’s been four years since Watson has been one of the better passers in the NFL, and he didn’t look any different than the way he’s played normally since coming the Cleveland.

He was 0 for 10 in throws of more than 15 yards on Sunday, making him essentially a dink and dunk passer. Those guys are a dime a dozen in the NFL. Watson is paid to make big plays.

There has to be improvement on offense, and it needs to begin next week in Jacksonville. And not just Watson, the running game has to be better, and the offensive line needs to be do the same. Perhaps either Jack Conklin or Jedrick Wills will be back.

We would also like to see D’Onta Foreman and Pierre Strong get some more carries from scrimmage.

It’s just one game. Hopefully, we will have the same thought about Sunday after next week’s game.

Three People To Watch For Browns Not Named Deshaun Watson

With the Cleveland Browns’ season starting today, it is clear that the player with the most pressure on him coming into the season is QB Deshaun Watson. The Browns paid a hefty price for the quarterback, giving up three first round draft picks and paying him a ton of guaranteed cash, and have received little return on their investment.

However, there are others under the microscope for us as the 2024 season kicks off today.

Offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey. Let’s face it, the Browns’ offense hasn’t exactly been broken over the last four seasons with Kevin Stefanski and Alex Van Pelt running it. Since Stefanski became head coach, Cleveland has ranked between 14th and 18th in yards gained, right in the middle of the pack.

Dorsey’s offense in Buffalo, where he was offensive coordinator in 2022 ranked 2nd in yardage, but he was let go during the season last year.

He did have Josh Allen, one of the better QBs in the NFL guiding his attack. He comes to town with a reputation for getting the most out of “dual threat” quarterbacks, having worked with Allen and Cam Newton during his time in Carolina.

His job here is to get the most out of Watson, get him back to the player he was in Houston. However, let’s not forget the Browns’ offense hummed under Joe Flacco late last season and Stefanski has gotten the best out of pretty much every quarterback he has worked with. Except one.

Offensive line coach Andy Dickerson. He’s replacing a legend in Bill Callahan, recognized as one of the best line coaches in the business. Callahan left to coach with his son Brian in Tennessee, and the Browns made the right decision in allowing that to happen.

If the offensive line has issues this year, no doubt Dickerson will be under scrutiny because he’s not Callahan. The interior of this unit is solid with guards Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller, and center Ethan Pocic.

Right now, the tackle spots are up in the air, but that’s due to injury and not the coaching. As we write this, we don’t know who will start at left tackle.

Much of the Browns’ success under Stefanski has been the ability to run the football, much of that due to Nick Chubb of course, but also Bill Callahan. Can Dickerson maintain that level of excellence, especially has injuries occur?

And that brings us to…

Running back Jerome Ford. The third-year back got his first extended action last season when Chubb went down and averaged a little less than four yards per carry. Chubb, of course, is one of the best in league history, averaging 5.3 yards per carry for his career.

However, remember D’Ernest Johnson? He got 100 carries in 2021 for Cleveland and averaged 5.3 yards per carry. Last year, Pierre Strong picked up 4.6 yards per attempt.

If the Browns are going to run the ball effectively, and yes, they will need to, Ford has to do better than four yards per attempt.

For us, he seems to hesitate when he approaches the line at times instead of putting his head down and getting two yards, he looks for the big gain and loses yardage.

Perhaps that comes with experience, and we will see that in ’24. But no doubt, the Browns need the running game, especially if they have leads going into the fourth quarter.