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With the Cleveland Browns hiring of Andrew Berry, Jimmy Haslam must change

Updated 9:53 AM; Today 6:00 AM
TOGETHER AGAIN

By Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer
CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Cleveland Browns now have a 32-year-old general manager and a 37-year-old coach.

That’s what I was thinking when the Browns announced the hiring of GM Andrew Berry, who now is to be aligned with Coach Kevin Stefanski.


I’m not going to make fun of analytics, “alignment” or any other Browns buzzwords under Chief Strategy office Paul DePodesta.

Will it work?

Probably not, if Owner Jimmy Halsam keeps acting like Owner Jimmy Haslam.

Berry/Stefanski is the fifth GM/coach combination put together by the Haslam family since buying the team in 2012.

Neither man has had experience in his current job.

So let’s admit mistakes will be made. Former GM John Dorsey made some big ones, and he is a veteran and respected NFL executive.

How did the Browns end up with these two bright but still very inexperienced guys in key positions?

Because Haslam continually firing people has made the job off-limits for some men who might otherwise be intrigued by a chance to turn around the Browns. I don’t know if Minnesota Assistant GM George Paton pulled out of consideration after his second interview because he wasn’t going to get the job . . . or he didn’t want it.


I do know the Browns are a hard sell to some family members of candidates when no coach or GM has even lasted three full seasons under Haslam. Furthermore, no coach or GM has left here after being fired by Haslam and been hired elsewhere to a comparable position.

You can argue that’s because Haslam hired the wrong people in the first place. In some cases, that has merit. Former head coach Freddie Kitchens is the latest example.

But this has to stop.

WHAT’S NEXT?

That brings us to Berry and Stefanski.

Berry has a good pedigree, having worked for the Colts and then was the No. 2 man behind Philadelphia GM Howie Roseman.

Berry was with the Browns from 2016 to 2018, but it’s hard to know how much influence he had in the major personnel decisions.

Former Colts executive Bill Polian has raved about Berry. DePodesta and Haslam were impressed with Berry when he worked under V.P. Sashi Brown.

But now, the drafts and free agent signings go next to his name – along with major input from Stefanski.

By stressing their age and inexperience, I’m not writing off the Stefanski/Berry combination.

I am underlining what should be obvious: These guys need and deserve patience.

So fans say, “So what if they get fired? They have 5-year contracts. They’ll get paid.”

Nearly all of these guys are multi-millionaires by the time they become GMs or head coaches for the first time. They like the money, but they love a chance to win.


TIME TO GO YOUNG?

Given the poor reputation of the Browns in the NFL, the idea of taking a shot with Stefanski and Berry makes some sense.

Granted, my policy is to give nearly anyone in a new job a fresh start and a fair chance.

It’s possible Berry is the next smart, savvy, young executive to take over an NFL team.

It’s possible Stefanski is the next Sean McDermott or Kyle Shanahan.

The odds are against it, but both young guys are anxious to prove they can succeed together and they avoid singing the Browns Blues.

But if they are to make beautiful football music together, they need an owner who will not only support them with resources and cash (as he usually does), but with a healthy dose of patience that lasts far more than the usual two years.

I agree, and as usual I think it will.

I was hopeful with Holmgren, until it was clear he just wanted the check.

I was hopeful with Petine...until he kept sticking with the goofy DC.

I was hopeful with Sashi and Hue, until it became apparent it was a toxic mix from the beginning. I leaned towards Sashi because I didn't like looking at Hue and him telling me to trust him. A perfect example of why alignment is important. Everybody on here leans one way or the other between those two. We were all wrong.

I thought Dorsey was finally the guy, until it was evident he doesn't know how to hire a football coach and couldn't listen to opposing views. His short pants and sweatshirts got a bit old too. Maybe it is just me, but I like people to look the part. A coach can get away with it to a degree. Not a senior executive. Dress up once in a while.

The way he dressed?

I had high hopes for all our hires. But it's easy to see why they were destined to fail.

I disagree with Pluto. Although he briefly touched on it, but Jimmy's problem isn't necessarily giving time to regimes he hires, it's hiring the "correct" regime to begin with... Jimmy has already changed based on his hires and this is the first time we've had everyone on the same page.

Giving them time will not be an issue for Jimmy.

I'm not sure if they are on the same page or not. It might be the first time they legitimately work to get on it. There was always lip service to team efforts, but lots of I drive the bus/I flexed comments that suggested otherwise. Don't get me started on the apparent Kitchens/Monken mess.

Here's hoping we get everybody rowing the boat the same direction. Stefanski's staying in Minnesota through multiple staffs indicates an ability to adapt and work with different people. People with different approaches on the front office side have had nothing but good things to say about Berry.

No guarantees on success, but I think they'll at least work together.

Using the word I saw in another post, his trajectory has not been good in that department. We have zero evidence to this point that you are correct.

Although very rare, I've been known to be wrong in the past.

Most of the time when I've been wrong is when I thought Haslam was going to stick to a plan.