Cleveland Browns fire head coach Mike Pettine
By Thomas Moore
The Cleveland Browns fired head coach Mike Pettine on Sunday after just two years on the job as the team undergoes another rebuild under owner Jimmy Haslam.
The Cleveland Browns fired head coach Mike Pettine and general manager Ray Farmer on Sunday.
The team announced the move on its website and issued the following statement:
“We greatly appreciate Ray and Mike’s dedication and hard work while with the Cleveland Browns,” owner Jimmy Haslam said. “We’ve made this decision because we don’t believe our football team is positioned well for the future. We are all disappointed with where we are and I take full responsibility.
“We will approach the search for our next football coach and executives to lead our football operations with a clear vision regarding what we need to do to build a successful organization. We will be methodical in looking for strong, smart leaders with high character who are relentlessly driven to improve our football team, willing to look at every resource possible to improve, and who embrace collaboration to ultimately make the best decisions for the Cleveland Browns.
“We are fully committed to bringing our fans the winning organization they so clearly deserve.”
Pettine finishes his two years in Cleveland with a record of 10-22, which is the third-best mark by a Brown coach since the team returned to the NFL in 1999.
Pettine’s tenure reached its peak following a Week 12 win in 2014 over the Atlanta Falcons that put the Browns in first place of the AFC North Division with a record of 7-4.
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Since that day, however, the Browns have gone just 3-18 as Pettine had to deal with immature first-round draft picks Johnny Manziel and Justin Gilbert and, more importantly, a defense that got worse by the week under defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil.
Pettine becomes the fourth consecutive Browns coach to last two years or less on the job. He also joins Romeo Crennel, Eric Mangini, Pat Shurmur and Rob Chudzinski as Browns coaches fired after a season-ending loss to the Steelers.
Following Sunday’s loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pettine reflected on the reality of coaching in Cleveland, which has become a graveyard for coaches.
“I feel like we’ve done a lot of good things, but I’m the first one to tell you – you’ve heard me say it a million times – this is a pass/fail league, and the results aren’t there,” he said. “Nobody wants to hear it takes time. Nobody wants to hear it’s a process, but that’s the situation that we’re in. I feel there’s a good, young nucleus here. You don’t have to look any further than this past draft class. Especially as the year went on, a lot of those guys playing at a high level.
“Again, I’m a ‘what you see is what you get’ kind of guy. As I’ve said earlier in the week or the least two weeks, I love it here, passionate about football, passionate about the Cleveland Browns. I love the city. I think these are some of the best fans in the league, if not the best, and they deserve it. If it does go the wrong way for me, that’s my biggest regret is not being able to deliver for these fans that have suffered for a long time.”
The Browns will now undergo the third coaching search since Haslam bought the team in 2012. Haslam has repeatedly said he wants to bring a winning team to Cleveland but has continued to make moves that only ensure the team’s continued struggles.
As for the next head coach, Haslam will reportedly “go hard” after Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Adam Gase. The Browns made a pitch to Gase before they hired Pettine, but Gase wanted nothing to do with the team.
In addition to Gase, the Browns are reported to be interested in Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin and former Buffalo Bills head coach Doug Marrone.