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What Browns are saying about John Dorsey’s scorched-earth roster

By Steve Doerschuk

https://www.cantonrep.com/sports/2019081...ed-earth-roster

Browns players and Freddie Kitchens weigh in on making a team out of a 90-man camp including only 12 pre-Dorsey holdovers.

BEREA Freddie Kitchens sees training camp as the only business where one hires 90 guys “just to fire half of them.”

John Dorsey’s “firing” rate could be closer to 90 percent by final cut day on Aug. 31.

Of the 90 Browns preparing for preseason Game 3 Friday at Tampa Bay, only a dozen were on the team when he started overhauling the roster in 2018. A few of the 12 are nervous.

One might fairly suppose Kitchens’ most daunting task as a first-time head coach is slapping together a contender with so many dudes so new to each other.

Tight end Demetrius Harris met Dorsey when the latter brought him to the Chiefs as an undrafted rookie in 2013.

“He always brings in competitors,” said Harris, who reunited with Dorsey via free agency in March. “He always has every position booked up. Everybody has to compete and bring the best out of everybody. He’s very good at that.”

While Kitchens goes about fitting everything together, Dorsey seems to fit naturally as one of the guys. He is a former Packers linebacker still built like a rock, and he never passes anyone in a hallway staring at the ground.



“He’s a very player-friendly GM,” wideout Damion Ratley said. “He walks through the weight room every morning. He walks around in meetings. He’s always out there at practice. He’s always chewing gum ... fixing his glasses.

“He’s funny.”

It’s Dorsey using his natural personality as a tone-setter in team building.

Ratley put in a little plug for the 2018 draft, Dorsey’s first in Cleveland after five drafts with Kansas City, and in which Ratley was a Round 6 pick.

“It was a really good draft class,” he said.

Look around practice and you never stop seeing evidence of Dorsey’s wide world of roster changes. Right tackle Chris Hubbard, a career Steeler, arrived in March of 2018 in free agency. Left tackle Greg Robinson, a former No. 2 overall draft pick who went bust, didn’t come aboard until just before the 2018 training camp opened.

Wideouts Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham came in trades in 2018 and ’19.

New defensive line starters Sheldon Richardson and Olivier Vernon arrived in March via free agency and a trade.

All 15 defensive backs in camp are Dorsey acquisitions, a mix of draft picks, free agents, trade pick-ups and waiver claims.

Kitchens acts as if fitting it all together is no big deal.

“In today’s NFL,” he said, “you always have new parts. It’s definitely a hurdle you have to get across. You have to get everybody to buy in, create a sense of togetherness, whether you have new guys or not.

“No two teams are ever the same. Even if you have everybody back, they’re going to be at different levels as a person, as a player.”

Kitchens says August is a different beast. He is busy trying to fit 90 players together as the preseason runs its course.

“Everybody’s fighting for a job right now,” he said. “We’ll start building a team at the end of all of it, but not until then.”

Dorsey’s most important acquisition was quarterback Baker Mayfield. Ratley, the young receiver, thinks Dorsey did Mayfield a big favor by having veteran quarterback Drew Stanton in place as a 2018 free agency pick-up.

Ratley said Stanton is a big reason Mayfield “is going to be REALLY dangerous.”

“I don’t think you understand how smart Drew really is,” Ratley said. “If Drew will tell you something is going to work, it works.

“Drew is as smart as you can get, probably the smartest football player I’ve ever been around. Baker truly learns from Drew.”

Kitchens appreciates what Dorsey did in signing Stanton. He was one of Bruce Arians’ right-hand men in Arizona when Stanton put up a 9-4 record in spot duty across the 2014-17 seasons.

“Drew is very valuable to the quarterback room, which is the most important room in the building to have continuity and to get the starter ready to play,” Kitchens said. “Drew does a good job of organizing that and making sure they stay on track.”

Mayfield will be learning on the fly how to get another big Dorsey pick-up into the flow.

Safety Damarious Randall, acquired by Dorsey in a 2018 trade that sent quarterback DeShone Kizer to Green Bay, is itching to see how THAT will look.

“Odell (Beckham Jr.) is Odell,” Randall said. “He’s a one-in-a-generation type of talent.”

Before Dorsey arrived, there weren’t a plethora of those walking the streets of Berea.

Very good article. The transformation of the roster under Dorsey's guidance might be the Eighth Wonder of the World.

Tremendous turnaround in a short period of time.

That kicker slot has me a bit concerned. I had fun reading the attached link. It lists all drafted kickers and punters going back to 1954.

Not all that many names really stand out. That is mostly because a good kicker has a long career. None the less, even if I disagree, maybe it is best to not draft kickers. Something happens to most between being one of the best in college to the NFL, and you would think it shouldn't or wouldn't, especially now. At one time, during the timeframe of the list, college kickers had maybe a 1" high flat tee for the holder and kicker.

We did draft Don Cockroft in the 3rd round of the 1967 draft. That was a pretty solid selection. My point is think of all the really good kickers who's names you don't see.

[url]http://www.nfl.com/draft/history/fulldraft?position=SPECIALISTS&type=position[/url}

Except for kicker, TE, and OL.

All positions I'm confident Sashi would have addressed.

I thought that the general consensus was to stop bringing Sashi's name up, either pro or con, because it always seems to derail topics into yet another argument.

It does?

Dream on, dude.

He's joking.

Zane wouldn't have gotten hurt, either, if Sashi were here.

Hue still sucks!

I still think Hue is a good coach. He is a good offensive coach which is his strong suit. As far as a HC and the way he handled the team from that position I'll admit he wasn't that good. Some guys aren't cut out to be a HC and leaders but are strong as assistants and coordinators. That seems to fit Hue.

I think this is where the popular opinion will settle on Hue when the fervor dies down (if ever).
That said, if Shurmer can get another head coaching gig, we're pretty much guaranteed to see Hue pop up again.

Hue made me forget how bad Romeo was... I will never forget how bad Shurmur was. He always looked like Charlie Brown on the sideline to me, Lucy was holding the ball.

It is known.

Sorry, but you cannot be serious.

The only coach to go 1-31.
The only coach to be fired by two NFL teams in the same season.


Hue Jackson was the worst coach to have ever stepped on the football field. Just about every stat and metric agrees. Calling a flea flicker from your own end zone - agrees. His play calling was horrid, his decision making was horrid, and his leadership style (or lack there of) was horrid. He only cared about himself, and gave a crap about anyone else.

The fact he still doesn't have a job, agrees as well.

To be fair, he doesn't have to work as we're probably still paying him. But yes, he is still turrible.

j/c

Who would have thought we would have had another Hue bashing thread?

Me for one. Some people can't admit they both sicked. Dorsey, who the thread is supposed to be about, nailed a lot of the problem when he came here. Something about getting real football players? And he had to pretty much rebuild this team from the ground up.

But yeah, the entire problem was Hue.....

My apologies for adding to the tangent. I do think, eventually, we'll be able to talk rationally about the Hue/Sashi era. Maybe not for a while.

I am curious how long Dorsey decides to hang onto a guy like Corbett (high draft pick, but really not showing much at all).

I'm not sure when it comes to Corbett. Most teams aren't quick to call it quits with a kid drafted that high. I just hope Dorsey doesn't end up sticking with players who can't cut it due to the fact he drafted them.

We aren't there at practice, but the kid doesn't look to be getting better.

We also are going to go with a set number of O-linemen so it isn't like Corbett is going to cut off some DB, so as long as he is better then any of the oline we cut, no problem.

‘1-goal. Trust. 6:15 AM. Don’t be scared.’ And more words John Dorsey lives by as he rebuilds the Browns — Terry Pluto

https://www.cleveland.com/browns/2019/09...erry-pluto.html

By Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer

BEREA, Ohio — It didn’t take long for John Dorsey to figure out what the Browns needed — beyond a major talent infusion.

As we talked in his office four days before the season opened, the Browns general manager stood up and wrote one word on the big white board:

TRUST.

“That’s what has to permeate through the building,” he said. “It’s incredibly important.”

Dorsey doesn’t want to discuss the situation he inherited when he took over for Sashi Brown as head of the team’s football operations in December of 2017. But he did explain:

“My first four weeks, I was able to study everything from the people in the building – the support staff, the coaches, players and to some degree, ownership. You do mental gymnastics about what needs to be fixed. Then you go about it in a non-threatening way.”

It’s more than replacing people and players.

“You need to make moves where you can can create the harmony you want,” he said.

Coach Hue Jackson and offensive coordinator Todd Haley were fired in the middle of the 2018 season. Browns owner Jimmy Haslam mentioned “internal discord.” That has been the Browns’ problem for decades.

Cleveland Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam seem to have found a GM they can trust in John Dorsey. (Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com)
Cleveland Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam seem to have found a GM they can trust in John Dorsey. (Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com)

A REASON TO TRUST

When Dee and Jimmy Haslam hired Dorsey, they brought in a man who played in the NFL with the Packers. He worked his way up from a lowly scout in Green Bay to being general manager of the Kansas City Chiefs. In Kansas City, he combined with coach Andy Reid to take a 2-14 team to the playoffs in their first season together (2013). They made the playoffs all four years.

Some say he lost a power struggle to Reid. Others say Dorsey was fired because of problems handling the salary cap. Regardless of the reason, he was dumped following the 2017 draft. His final big decision for that organization was to trade up and draft a quarterback named Patrick Mahomes.

So, Dorsey arrived in town with more credentials than many men who have sat in the general manager’s office.

The Haslams also were mentally exhausted by all the losing and turmoil within the organization. They were ready for a strong leader. So were most fans, who soon embraced Dorsey as they watched his front office work when it came time to draft and trade for players.

FINDING THE RIGHT COACH

Heading into the 2018 training camp, Freddie Kitchens was the new backfield coach. He was hired by then-offensive coordinator Todd Haley. Dorsey did not know Kitchens well. Who would’ve guessed a year later Kitchens would be the head coach of the team?

“Football is a very interesting game,” said Dorsey.

Kitchens never has been a head coach at any level of football.

“He is a leader of men,” Dorsey now says. How does he know?

He said it began in the final preseason game of 2018. That was when Kitchens was given permission to call the plays for Baker Mayfield.

“I walked away from that game and thought, ‘He’s got IT,’ ” said Dorsey.

He has what?

“IT,” repeated Dorsey. “IT is part of play calling. Everyone thinks play calling is a science. I see it more as an art. Preparation is a big part, but it’s still a feel of the game … an art.”

ONE DECISION AT A TIME

Other than drafting Mayfield, Dorsey’s most important decision since taking over the Browns has been the hiring of Kitchens.

It goes back to building trust. Dorsey wanted to move away from all the factions, second-guessing and finger-pointing that have torpedoed the team for years. That begins when owners trust the general manager. The Haslams have expressed strong faith in Dorsey and his front office people.

Then the front office and coach have to be together. Dorsey fixed the front office by hiring Eliot Wolf and Alonzo Highsmith as his assistant general managers. The three worked together for years in Green Bay. They shared a common team-building vision, as was expressed on his white board written in red:

1-PURPOSE

1-MIND

1-GAME

1-0.

For that to happen, there has to be one more thing…

Cleveland Browns GM John Dorsey took a gamble making Freddie Kitchens the head coach. Kitchens has never been a head coach before. (Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com)
cleveland.com

Cleveland Browns GM John Dorsey took a gamble making Freddie Kitchens the head coach. Kitchens has never been a head coach before. (Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com)

FINDING THE RIGHT COACH

When it came to hiring Kitchens, Dorsey looked beyond the play calling with these questions:

1. “Does he fit the cultural values you are trying to build?”

2. “Can the job be too big for him?”

3. “Can he establish the trust of the players by being the same guy, day in and day out?”

Dorsey saw how Kitchens brought the offense together in the final eight games of 2018. On the field, the Browns went from a bottom-10 offense in the first eight games to a top-10 offense in most categories in the final eight.

“He coaches the way a team should be coached,” said Dorsey. “You could see the offense come together, beyond the play calling. He established a trust factor with players by being the same guy every day ... Consistency.”

The John Dorsey front office got it right by making Baker Mayfield the top pick in the 2018 NFL draft. (John Kuntz, cleveland.com)
cleveland.com

The John Dorsey front office got it right by making Baker Mayfield the top pick in the 2018 NFL draft. (John Kuntz, cleveland.com)

PULLING TOGETHER

Also written on white board is this quote from former Green Bay Packers GM Ron Wolf:

“ALL OF US ARE VICTIMS OF OUR OWN SELF IMPORTANCE.”

As I started to mention how Dorsey now has “his guys” running things, he stopped me and said “It’s our guys.” That led to something else on his white board:

“MOST INFORMED DECISIONS ARE ABOUT WE, NOT I”

About four months before the 2018 draft, Dorsey had his main advisors rate the quarterbacks: Josh Rosen, Josh Allen, Sam Darnold and Mayfield. They were told not to talk to each other. Doing this exercise were Wolf, Highsmith and advisor Scot McCloughan. They also used the old Green Bay Packers rating system … a system they learned from Ron Wolf, Eliot’s father.

All three came back with Mayfield ranked as the No. 1 quarterback. They sought other areas of information. The analytics people loved Mayfield, based on the stats from his college career at Oklahoma. Then the meetings began.

“You get every piece of information you can so you can make a factual decision, not an emotional decision,” Dorsey said.

The general manager said if someone has an extremely strong voice, don’t let that person speak first. Open with the people whose personalities are more quiet. Let their opinions come out first so they aren’t intimidated by louder voices.

“God created us with two ears and one mouth for a reason,” said Dorsey. “Listen more than you talk. I don’t reveal my opinion until the end.”

Then they go over all the information again. It was the same process he used in Kansas City. The result? In back-to-back years, Dorsey’s front office drafted Mahomes and Mayfield … two of the best young QBs in the NFL. Neither were rated by most “experts” as the top QBs in their respective drafts.

TRUSTING BAKER MAYFIELD

I asked Dorsey if he was concerned about Mayfield having a fall off in his second pro season. It’s called the “sophomore jinx,” the result of a successful rookie not being as dedicated as in his first season.

“You always worry, that’s human nature,” said Dorsey. "But from what I’ve seen in camp on a daily basis, I’m ecstatic.”

Then Dorsey wrote this on the whiteboard:

6:15 AM

“Every morning, I drop into the quarterback room at 6:15 in the morning,” said Dorsey. “I see Baker there with Drew Stanton and Garrett Gilbert. All three quarterbacks. Baker isn’t a worker. He LOVES football. He has that football mindset.”

It’s more than work, it’s a passion … even an obsession … in the mind of Dorsey. It’s why he brought in veteran QBs Tyrod Taylor and Stanton a year ago to set the standard for Mayfield.

“He saw them and knew, ‘This is what a real quarterback room looks like,’” said Dorsey.

BIG EXPECTATIONS

The Browns finished 7-8-1 last season. That was a huge jump from 1-31 in the previous two years. But this is a franchise that has not had a winning record since 10-6 in 2007. Now, the Browns are being picked by many experts to make the playoffs. Some fans are starting to have dreams of a Super Bowl.

“We always start with being competitive in the AFC North.’” said Dorsey. “The expectations are set and they are challenging goals. There is a lot of hype out there, but the only thing that matters is expectations in the locker room — the players and coaching staff.”

The 59-year-old Dorsey has been around far too long to play the prediction game. Ask him about a record, and points to the “1-0 … 1-GAME … 1 … 1-PURPOSE” mantra on the whiteboard.

But Dorsey made big trades to win now, adding Pro Bowlers Odell Beckham Jr. and Olivier Vernon from the New York Giants. Only nine players are left from when he took over. His goal is to win soon, but not give away the future in the process.

A 2019 first-round pick was part of the Beckham deal with New York. Beckham is only 26 and under contract for five more seasons.

“Odell is one of the most prolific receivers in the NFL at a very young age,” he said. “When you have a young quarterback like Baker, why not surround him with enough playmakers to accelerate his progress?”

DON’T BE SCARED

That’s something else written on the whiteboard. It’s part of what Dorsey learned from watching Ron Wolf rebuild the Packers in the 1990s.

“If you really want to rebuild this thing and get it to the level it should be, you have to stay true to core beliefs,” he said.

That includes taking some chances. It could be with Mayfield, considered by some too short at 6-foot to be a big-time NFL QB. It could be drafting or signing some players with trouble in their past. It could be hiring a rookie head coach in Kitchens.

“I mention Ron Wolf a lot,” said Dorsey. “You go back on his moves, he wasn’t scared. He was aggressive.”

Sometimes, when an executive such as Dorsey is fired and lands another job, he could be more cautious. Not Dorsey.

“What, I’m going to get fired again?” he said, laughing. “When I did self-assessments after I was fired, I thought the way we built that model in KC was pretty good. There are some things to tweak. But for the most part, that’s the proper strategy in the rebuild.”

Then Dorsey sincerely thanked the Haslams for supporting him in some of the decisions he made.

THE BIG DREAM

Dorsey loves football history. He is in the process of collecting films and video of every Browns game back to the 1940s. For the interview, he was in his usual unofficial “uniform,” a gray Cleveland Browns sweatshirt and a “Brownie" baseball cap. It fits in perfect with the gritty fans of this city.

“This is a great football city, an iconic franchise,” said Dorsey. “I want the 2019 Browns to make you proud to be a Browns fan.”

Dorsey knows the schedule is demanding, especially the first eight games. He also knows he’s added a lot of new players and coaches. It takes some time for it to blend together.

“I ask the fans to exercise a degree of patience,” he said. “We are building this thing to last 10 years, not just have one good year.”

Then he paused, leaned back in his chair. He desperately wants the Browns and their fans to have something to cheer about … something good … something big.

“Why not us?” asked Dorsey. “Why can’t we have a franchise to make us proud? That’s what we’re all working towards.”

I like that Dorsey explained Kitchens’ knack for play calling; i definitely agree ... it’s sometimes just a FEEL for preparation and then on game day ... you either have that or don’t IMO

In a sea of crappy articles, that was very good.

As posted in the AB thread, Dorsey checked in with Rosenhaus on his availibiltiy

Based on today's performance Dorsey forget one important item. You need an OL to win in the NFL. Apparently he does not know that.

We had a shaky oline before he traded away a starter

Kush wasn’t the problem today. Hubbard was.

And Robinson....Dorsey on phone with Skins inquiring about Williams...JMHO

I have a hard time blaming Hubbard when he was playing out of position. The problem was Robinson not using that lump three feet above his butt and getting himself thrown out of the game

yea, we gotta do whatever it is to bring him here asap

Hubbard was a problem before he switched to left tackle.

Hubbard was a problem .. and then GRob had to get ejected and it left us screwed

j/c:

I am very surprised the OL is taking the brunt of the blame. LOL


The OL was really bad today, but who wasn't. Baker sucked. Freddie sucked. The entire D sucked. The team was undisciplined, but yeah, it's all on the OL.

baker had plenty of time to throw in the 2nd half. he stunk it up

Yeah, by no means is the OL to blame more than any unit ... DL, secondary, STs ... just pathetic

I do not think anybody is getting a pass. Chubb ran hard, I would give him a B, the scot punted well, i’d give him a B, but I do not think any other player or coach merits more than a D+.

Really the team all this hype. Hope it is not just hype. Come on need to do better Browns.

It's gonna take time for these guys to come together. Lack of reps in the preseason didn't help. That's behind them now. Time to go to work. Freddie needs to put boot to asses. Focus and execution need to be demanded. Press clippings don't win games. Undisciplined teams don't win games. Throwing the ball all over the field doesn't win games. Time to get to work NOW knowing that simply showing up in your fancy uniforms doesn't mean you win on Sundays. Everybody step back, take a breath and realize that this team isn't going to the playoffs just yet. Just getting off the plane in New York guarantees NOTHING. Be prepared. Winning in the NFL is hard. Get ready or get out.

John Dorsey better realize that you need to have an offensive line to succeed in this league, or his star QB is going to get killed.