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Jimmy Haslam says he plans to stay the course

By Thomas Moore

Jan 1, 2017; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam (left) talks with executive vice president of football operations Sashi Brown and head coach Hue Jackson before the game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 1, 2017; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam (left) talks with executive vice president of football operations Sashi Brown and head coach Hue Jackson before the game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports /
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Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam says he is happy with the team’s current setup. But can he stay patient long enough to see things pay off?

The Cleveland Browns finished off a one-win season today with a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

But owner Jimmy Haslam says that anyone expecting or predicting major changes are in for a boring off-season.

Related: More front office changes coming?

“I think we have the right people in place,” Haslam said in multiple published reports following Cleveland’s overtime loss. “I could not be more pleased with the job that Hue and his staff are doing. You wouldn’t think this was a team that was 1-14 that was out there battling. What did we play today? 70-plus minutes of football? So really pleased with Hue and really pleased with our personnel group.

“I promise you this, we will work hard, I think we’ve got the right people in place and there’s really three keys going forward. It’s not that complicated.  We’ve got to execute and the three things we have to execute are this: No. 1 we’ve got re-sign our key players; No. 2 we’ve got to be appropriately aggressive in free agency; and No. 3 we’ve got to have a great draft.”

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Haslam’s comments go directly in the face of several rumors that surfaced Sunday morning that more changes are coming to the front office just one year into the latest rebuilding efforts. On the other hand, he has stated in the past that he won’t make changes only to back on his promise and blow things up.

But all that has led to is a team that is 20-59 since Haslam purchased the team from Randy Lerner in 2012 – including just four wins in the past two seasons.

Haslam continues to take responsibility for the mess he has helped to create, which is a good start, and with a bounty of draft picks to use in the 2017 NFL Draft, it is time to look forward, not backward.

“Our entire organization will be judged in how well we do going forward, by how well our decisions – it’s not all draft – which players do you keep, [do we] go out and be active in free agency or not?” Haslam said. “There are multiple people decisions that we’ll need to make and you need to get right.’

“Our record as owners is terrible, but we’re not giving up. Has it been fun? No. Is it discouraging at times? Yes.  But are we gonna give up? No. We’re more than ever determined to get this right. We haven’t made good decisions along the way so we’ll accept the blame.”

Next: Browns drop season finale to Steelers

It may be hard to see in the wake of a 1-15 season, but the Browns are on the right path.

It is now up to Haslam to keep his word and not push the team in yet another direction.

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