The 3 biggest mistakes by the Cleveland Browns this offseason
By Greg Newland
For the most part, the Cleveland Browns have hit the nail on the head, but there are still a few decisions that could haunt the team in 2020.
For years many fans have thought the best thing that could happen to the Cleveland Browns is for owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam to sell the team. No one doubts that the Haslam’s want to win in Cleveland, but there is reason to believe that they are less than average owners. Year after year it feels like the Browns are searching for a new general manager and head coach, and year after year Browns fans are disappointed.
For the younger generation, there is likely no bigger disappointment than the 2019 season. Yes “the drive” and “the fumble” were catastrophic in the late ’80s, but at least the team was winning games. Since 1999 the Browns have had 30 starting quarterbacks, two winning seasons, and one playoff appearance (loss).
In 2018, rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield brought hope to the city as the team appeared to turn the corner after getting their first win following an 0-16 season in 2017. After the spark in 2018, all was lost the following season with a lack of leadership from head coach Freddie Kitchens. Even with the addition of Odell Beckham, Olivier Vernon, and Sheldon Richardson, the Browns struggled to move the football on offense and couldn’t stop anyone on defense.
So far in 2020 it feels like the team finally doing all the right things. First, they hired the youngest general manager in the league in Andrew Berry. Berry has brought in a tremendous amount of talent thus far and has done so with team-friendly contracts. Second, the Browns brought in a tremendous head coach in Kevin Stefanski. Yes, Stefanski is a first-year head coach, but he has mentored multiple quarterbacks to career years and runs a scheme that should be helpful in rebounding Mayfield’s career.
Although the team appears to finally be headed in the right direction, they must prove it on the field. There are no rings for offseason champions. No team is perfect, and while the Browns have had a tremendous offseason, let’s look at a few decisions that will likely go down as mistakes.