On Sunday, the Eagles made another stunning move, but it was far more of a head-scratcher. Former Browns head coach Pat Shurmur, who interviewed for the Jets offensive coordinator job last week and was rumored to be in the mix for the same job with the Panthers, is expected to join Kelly’s staff in Philadelphia. As for his role, it is likely that he will be the offensive coordinator.

For Browns fans, this is some scoff-worthy material. Shurmur didn’t exactly light up the scoreboard when he was in Cleveland, but in his defense, he wasn’t dealing with a lot of great offensive weapons. However, his version of the West Coast offense never caught on with the Browns and he’s more well-known for ultra-conservative play calling and punting at some fairly inopportune times than for being much of an innovator.

However, the idea of Kelly and Shurmur running an offense together is pretty intriguing. It’s a nightmare scenario for Browns fans, but it will be fun to see how it plays out.

Shurmur finished 9-23 as the Browns’ head coach, which makes the decision to move in a different direction a relatively easy one. For Heckert, who oversaw the reinvention of this team, parting ways was likely a little more difficult.

A lot of it comes down to philosophy. In CEO Joe Banner and owner Jimmy Haslam’s press conference Monday, they stressed how important it was to have flexibility in the hiring process. As they look to hire a new coach first, they will then hire a general manager/player personnel type to match his philosophy and personality.

The Browns won’t be without options in their search. As they comb through both the college and professional ranks, there are a number of attractive candidates who should be interested in the job.

But the fact remains that both Shurmur and Heckert were given nearly impossible circumstances in Cleveland and nearly rose above them. They will latch onto other teams quickly, and quite possibly find plenty of success. Should that happen, Joe Banner and Jimmy Haslam better hope they made the right decision on the Browns’ next organizational regime.

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Sources say that both Shurmur and Heckert are expecting to be fired sometime after Sunday’s game.

This has been coming for a while now. When new owner Jimmy Haslam III took over and hired new CEO Joe Banner, it was clear that changes would be made, and that they would be bringing in their own personnel.

But as the Browns went on a three-game winning streak late this season, faint glimmers of hope remained that maybe, just maybe, the front office would be wise to keep the same coaching staff and general manager.

However, the Browns’ typical late-season self-destruction has made it all too apparent that Shurmur and Heckert will be gone.

The case for keeping Heckert has been made many times, but his solid track record in Cleveland doesn’t appear to make a difference. It may just come down to a matter of philosophy more than anything else, as Heckert has always had final say over the team’s roster.

The Browns have one more game this season. After that, big changes will be coming, and the Browns will be battling with a number of other teams for prized coaching and general manager candidates.

At this point, the only name that seems to draw the ire of Browns fans is Michael Lombardi. Whether or not he comes to Cleveland remains to be seen, but a lot of people will be sweating it out in the meantime.

One wishes this regime – which faced a lot of adversity, from a lockout in Shurmur’s first year to easily having the most starts by rookies this season – would go out on a better note than having to start Thaddeus Lewis and Montario Hardesty, but a second win against the Steelers is about as good as it can get.

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