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BEREA, Ohio – Part of being a good general manager is being a salesman.
The same is true in coaching or almost any position of leadership.
So it’s no surprise John Dorsey insisted the Browns coaching job “is very attractive.”
The general manager called it “very attractive” at least three times during his Wednesday press conference.
Is it true?
Is this a great job? A good one?
Or is it the same road to ruin that coaching the Browns has been for so many men in the past?
Dorsey started with the “unbelievable fan base.”
He talked about “young talent.”
He mentioned the “great” situation with the salary cap, and how the Browns have 11 picks in the 2019 draft.
He praised owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam for being willing to “invest” and how they have put together “the best support staff there is in the NFL.”
Finally, Dorsey explained: “Cleveland is a good place to be.”
WHAT IS REALITY?
If the Browns were the same rummage sale collection of overpaid veterans, underachieving young players and coaches looking to blame someone else for their failure – I’d yawn and roll my eyes during Dorsey’s discussion.
He’s talking about a team that has a 4-37-1 record since opening day of 2016. The Browns have not won a road game in that span.
Because of that legacy of failure, any victory seems huge.
The Browns upsetting Atlanta (28-16) has some fans wanting to hand over the team in 2019 to interim head coach Gregg Williams.
The veteran defensive coordinator will interview for the job, Dorsey said. He praised Williams: “He has done a really nice job.”
Dorsey had a lot of kind words for new offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens, and also for Blake (son of Gregg) Williams, who has taken over some of the defensive coordinator duties from his father.
But the Browns have played only two games under Williams.
Six more are left.
“It’s important for the organization to focus on those six games,” said Dorsey. “We have to continually win. The coaches have to continually teach. The players have to continue to develop.”
And Dorsey has to continue to sort through the various candidates to coach the Browns in 2019 – no matter how well the current coaches perform in this interim situation.
A GOOD JOB?
If you’re a coach thinking about the Cleveland Browns, you should indeed find it “attractive,” to quote Dorsey.
That’s because they have a promising young quarterback in Baker Mayfield.
As I wrote last weekend, Mayfield is — by far — the best rookie quarterback this season.
Nearly as important, the man who surprised many in the NFL by making Mayfield the first pick in the 2018 NFL draft will be drafting players for you.
The Browns have been looking for a quarterback ever since the days of Bernie Kosar in the early 1990s. Some such as Tim Couch could possibly have answered the QB question, but they were doomed because the organization didn’t properly prepare them or the team to take over.
One of the reasons Dorsey and the front office fired head coach Hue Jackson and offensive coordinator Todd Haley was due to their poor coaching of Mayfield.
That is obvious with Freddie Kitchens (a rookie offensive coordinator) calling plays in the last two games. In that span, Mayfield has completed 74 percent of his passes, five TDs compared to one interception.
Dorsey also has delivered an elite cornerback (Denzel Ward), running back (Nick Chubb) and an exciting pass rusher (Genard Avery) from this draft.
Perhaps the most important role on any NFL team is picking the right players. Dorsey has done that here, and his record of doing that the previous four years in Kansas City is impressive.
And that’s what makes this a good job…
The quarterback and a lot of other young talent is in place…
The front office is in position to add more good young players…
Furthermore, the lack of success for so long sets up the new coach to instantly be a success if he can produce a winning record.
Is Cleveland a good place to be?
For many football coaches, that is indeed the case.
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