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Cleveland Browns: The 2016 rebuild was needed

By Steven Kubitza

Dec 13, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns center Alex Mack (55) makes a block for a Cleveland Browns third quarter touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers at FirstEnergy Stadium. The Browns defeated the 49ers 24-10. Mandatory Credit: Scott R. Galvin-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 13, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns center Alex Mack (55) makes a block for a Cleveland Browns third quarter touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers at FirstEnergy Stadium. The Browns defeated the 49ers 24-10. Mandatory Credit: Scott R. Galvin-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Cleveland Browns are undergoing a much-needed rebuild in 2016.

The goal of any professional sports team should be to win a championship. Teams like the Denver Broncos, Golden State Warriors, and Kansas City Royals all faced struggles as respective franchises, but were able to stick with a system and become champions.

As hard as it is to believe at times, the Cleveland Browns are a team trying to compete to one day win a championship.

All the turnover at the top of the organization has set the team back many years from winning, or even competing to win, a championship. But the goal with each new regime is to build a team to win and do it fast.

The fast part is the problem, as each new regime has had to deal with the failings of all those who served previously, never getting the chance to start over and fix the problems before trying to move forward.

This would be like someone shooting a car every year since 1999 and then handing you the keys and telling you to go win the Daytona 500. Oh, and the car was originally built with used parts that other car owners didn’t want anymore. There were a few new parts, but the yearly shots took their toll and did so fast.

The new members of the front office are doing what has to be done by rebuilding the Browns so the team can one day become successful.

It is hard to cringe when players like Alex Mack and Mitchell Schwartz are allowed to walk without much resistance. The same feelings come up when Karlos Dansby and Donte Whitner are released, but these were moves that were done to begin the process.

The Mack and Schwartz moves are still a bit puzzling, but releasing Dansby and Whitner allows the team to build up the defense through the draft, and get rid of players who are on the tail ends of their respective careers. They both could have contributed to the Browns in 2016, but they were not part of the long-term plans.

Getting rid of talent may seem like a curious move, but the Browns have not won more than seven games in a season since 2007. There is no need to keep a core intact when the team has one of the worst records in the NFL year after year.

This new style of building the team means 2016 may be a rough season for fans to watch, but it will mean the team is one year closer to being successful.

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