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I wish I could give you somewhat of an informed opinion on which direction Haslam will go on this but alas I do not.

The one thing I believe to be true but it's based on nothing more than an opinion and key factors............... Is that it was Haslam who was the driving force behind the watson deal.

I base that on a few things. It hamstrung this FO from having three first round draft picks and a second round draft pick. It also hamstrung them from a financial perspective which limited Berry's ability to sign top FA's. I understand that under those circumstances it makes it virtually impossible to build a good roster. That's why both top draft picks and top FA's are so critical to building a roster in the NFL. Those are the only resources you have to build a roster at all.

It's my belief and makes sense that if Berry and Stefnaski were the people mainly responsible for creating the watson disaster Haslam would have already fired them. I mean this is one of the worst if not the worst trades ever in NFL history. The only other disaster of a deal on this magnitude I can think of is when in the Ditka traded the Bears entire 1999 draft class and first- and third-round picks in 2000 to the Washington Redskins to move up from the 12th to the 5th overall pick to select Ricky Williams. And we all saw how that ended up working out for Ditka.

So my opinion is the only reason Berry and Stefanksi are still here now is because Haslam knows he is responsible for the shape the Browns are in now. That it's he and nobody else that bears that responsibility.

Whether that makes any difference moving forward I have no idea. But it's my firm belief is that if it were Berry and Stefanski behind the watson trade they both would have been fired at the end of last season or even sooner.

Isn't it hard to see how much improvement they need since they haven't had a first round pick in years and were hamstrung by the salary cap situation the watson deal put them in? I mean whith a full bevy of draft picks the results thus far look favorable in the last draft.

I'm not sure what you think the Steelers "know" but as of now during the 2025 season George Pickens has recorded 49 receptions for 764 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns, while playing for the Dallas Cowboys. He's also averaging 15.6 yards per reception and has a total of 63 targets.

Sam Darnold's contract with the Seattle Seahawks is a three-year, \$100.5 million deal that includes \$55 million in guarantees.

Daniel Jones signed a four-year, $160 million contract extension with the New York Giants in March 2023, which includes $82 million in guaranteed money and $35 million in incentives.

I'm not sure where you think Berry was supposed to get the money for those contracts with all of the watson money weighing things down.

And I get that list of draft picks but some of those names are later round picks who have very low odds of success no matter which teams draft them.

Hudson was a 4th rounder

Ford was a 5th rounder

Felton was a 6th rounder

I mean i get it. I'm not going to lose any sleep if theses guys get fired. But some of the reasons being given simply don't add up. That's my point with some of this.

Nice Piece by Jimmy Watkins


By

Jimmy Watkins, cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Only 61 days remain until Browns owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam tell us the truth about this mess.

By Jan. 5, aka “Black Monday” in struggling NFL circles, we will know who to blame for the most recent dark chapter in franchise history.

As is tradition, the Browns will start a strange quarterback (think Jeff Driskel and Dorian Thompson-Robinson) during their regular-season finale in Cincinnati (Jan. 4). They will likely lose that game, as they have eight times in the last 10 years. Then ownership will assign blame for the worst transaction in modern football (sports?) history.

Who traded for Deshaun Watson? Browns fans have been asking since their team sacrificed three first-round picks, two fourth-round picks and one third-round pick for Watson in March 2022.

He also cost the franchise $230 million guaranteed over five years, plus whatever price you pay for asking a fan base to discount over two dozen sexual misconduct accusations. And the person(s) responsible for this move deserve to be held accountable.

Because whoever they are, they ruined everything.

Pick your favorite roster flaw or management glitch of the last few Browns seasons, and we can trace it back to the Watson trade and/or contract and/or performance dip.

General manager Andrew Berry hasn’t drafted an offensive lineman or wide receiver in the first two rounds since the trade, in part because he’s only held three such picks in that span (all used in 2025). You see the holes in Cleveland’s 29th-ranked drop rate (5.6% of passes) and league-worst pass blocking grade (34.4 on a 1-100 scale), per PFF.

Coach Kevin Stefanski, hired and awarded for his offensive acumen, just forfeited play calling for the second straight season. Last year, fans struggled to sift between Watson’s inaccurate passes or bad reads and Stefanski’s bad play calls. And this season, the quarterback room is broken because Stefanski’s presumed starter — no, star — has both regressed and torn his Achilles.

Cleveland pictured Watson leading this offense for the rest of this decade. The vision lasted (parts of) three seasons. Without a plan at quarterback, you don’t have a plan at all — or, as a result, much job security.

In most cases, no context can save a regime from the 5-20 record that Berry and Stefanski have authored during their fifth and sixth seasons. In this case, however, the “buts” hold more weight.

Berry has mismanaged Cleveland’s draft capital and cap sheet, but we don’t know how much control he harbored over the picks and money that define his tenure.

Stefanski’s offense ranks last in success rate for the second straight season, but trading for and extending Watson has sapped his offense’s talent over the last three seasons.

Whoever traded for him deserves to be fired, but fans are still wondering who to blame three years later.

Just wait until Jan. 5. If the Haslams retain Stefanski and Berry past then, consider it a tacit confession: Ownership catalyzed the Watson deal, and it feels it owes Berry and Stefanski the chance to rebuild on their terms. If not, then the coach and GM wear 5-20. They own their part in the Watson trade. And they probably don’t work here anymore.

Nobody should root for firings, but Browns fans can, if nothing else, cheer for clarity. At 2-6 this season and 5-20 since ‘24, they’ve spent too much time booing recently, not enough learning where to direct it. This weekend’s game in New York may be the last time Cleveland (-2.5) is favored this season, and fans may not even want the Browns to win. Draft position is precious this time of year.

But their path to April looks bleak. The Browns play nine more games this season, and many will be hard to watch. The quarterbacks are too young; the offensive line is too old and injured; the receivers aren’t good enough.

Just know that, at the end of this slog, fans have a date to circle. Closure doesn’t win games or fill roster holes, but it can help people process their emotions. And come Black Monday, fans will know who to blame for the latest round of Browns ruin.
The Haslams have 61 days to get their story straight.

- This story has been updated to reflect the proper amount of time remaining until Jan. 5.

My question is would smart business people put all of their eggs into one basket based on a hand full of good performances and risk the future of the franchise based on that?

Often times when opposing teams get enough game film on a QB they figure out how to defend him and neutralize their effectiveness.

I'm certainly not one who would be willing to take such a gamble. Too small of a sample size.

The word "promise" is what I'm afraid of. I certainly agree that he deserves a chance to start and wouldn't mind all of the remaining starts after Flacco left being divided evenly between he and Gabriele giving them both an equal opportunity.

What I worry about is that he shows just enough "promise" to prevent the Browns from drafting a franchise QB. Like I said, after six or seven starts opposing HC's and DC's get enough film on a QB to be able to recognize his strong suits and learn how to exploit his weaknesses. That "promise" you speak of may evaporate after opposing DC's get enough tape and time on Sanders. For me it boils down to whether they keep Gabriele or Sanders as the backup moving forward.

As a Browns fan I have certainly learned what happens when fans get enamored with a back up QB only to see how that plays out after other teams get more film on them.

In a perfect world the scenario you describe would be the best possible outcome.

But as I think you can see with the difference in "Bengals Flacco" this season verses "Browns Flacco", our O isn't a place conducive for even a wily veteran to flourish much less a 5th round rookie QB. With this battered and bruised OL and a lack of WR's I see what you are describing as more of a pipe dream. One I wish to we would see happen but I'm pretty sure that would have to beat some very long odds.

If I were Sanders, I'd be thanking my lucky stars every day I don't have to stand behind this Oline and throw to these receivers.

My understanding is that the offense could potentially benefit from his long ball, but more than likely he'd look like he did in the final preseason game where he kept reverting back to old bad habits that will result in taking a lot of hits and sacks.

One thing for sure, we know that Depo won't be part of the deal now. I'm wondering if Berry or KS will be?

All I know for sure is, that I wish they'd have put a good product on the field before asking us for Billions to move the team out of Cleveland.

Re: that Watkins article. I think it’s wrong to assume that Haslam wouldn’t fire Ski & Barry even tho he pushed for the DW pick. Owners can do whatever they want. Coaches and GMs that want to work again don’t spill tea or air dirty laundry. At least not quickly if they want to work again. I think Haslam has finger prints all over most of our worst decisions since his tenure began. Manzel, Hugh Jackson, Freddie Kitchens, DW, etc. There is zero reason to believe he (or any billionaire) wouldn’t delude himself into believing the problem is anything but himself.

And another thing. It cannot be understated just how much of a fork in the road the DW decision was. You could say with pretty strong confidence that Mayfield stays, we have 3 Barry drafts replete with with 1st round picks, no awful $230m anvil around the neck, hampering trades, preventing us from keeping our talent from walking, and crapping the bed with the fanbase and this team is consistently in the playoff picture every year, maybe even Super Bowl convos.

But we took the other road. In other words, that one fateful decision changed literally everything about this franchise ever since. Truth be told, I don’t think Haslam is ever NOT going to make decisions like that. So I won’t be at all surprised if Ski & Barry are gone even tho Haslam was the one.

The DW trade will haunt us for years. It already has started its haunting-ness.

Clean house, I hate saying that but this crap is beyond ridiculous.

Bubba needs to be axed just out of principle. What an embarrassment today with the two kick returns for six.

Setting aside that Dillon Gabriel is a rookie. Does his skill/set make you think he’d be the next Burrows, or Herbert with the Chargers? Or Drake Maye? He’ll be a solid backup to the QB we draft next spring.


It’s 2025, not 1975, and 5’9 QBs can’t play in the national football league.

We also need to upgrade the OL, big-time, and the WR position.

The Jags lost today so that was a bright spot.

So much time is spent talking about "The Trade"...who was/is responsible...how we hamstrung ourselves...yada yada yada. No time is spent talking about what in the hell was the plan for AFTER the trade.

They knew they traded away (3) #1s plus...they KNEW they would have to improve the roster without those #1s. It's not like it should be a surprise to everyone/anyone. Nevermind the audacity of the trade itself and the stupidity of punting on a FQB...look at what has been done/not-done to this roster since then. It's a joke...whatever that 'Plan' was has failed miserably and that is plenty of reason for moving on from the entire lot.

They have done this - all of this - to themselves.

Agree totally. That would be repeating the mistake after Baker was drafted. It was easy for Stefanski and Berry to move off Baker because he was not their handpicked QB. If they make that selection, they need to stay 3 to 5 years after that selection and their fate then should be tied to the QB selected. If you do not want them drafting that QB then they must be fired before next years draft.

A lot of comments are based on pure conjecture. And I get that. None of us really have a clue what went on behind the scenes. But for all any of us know it may very well have been Haslam that made the call to move on from Baker and get watson at QB. The Browns did meet with Deshaun Watson in March 2022 while Baker Mayfield was still their starting quarterback. We have no idea who the driving force was behind that.

I don't claim to know either but Haslam being the one who wanted to go after watson is just as good of a guess as any other one.

All of the above have some merit. As WSU said, the Browns knew (from top to bottom) that they traded away (3) #1's plus...they ALL KNEW they would have to improve the roster over the next 5 years without those 1's. Keep in mind, both Stefanski and Berry were given a playoff caliber team in 2020. Their job was to improve that playoff caliber team. In the last 5-years, how have they done? You don't go 31-46 @ a .402% concurrent and believe they have been successful.

Name me one player on the offense right now that they acquired or drafted that's better than any of the players they had in 2020 on offense? Don't forget to take into effect that the Browns have had the highest or close to the highest spend for a team in the NFL the last 3 years. How many backups do the Browns have that are ready to move into a consistent starter position? What the heck has Berry and Stefanski been doing then?

Finally, I don't see a single justification for these two guys to have any level of participation in next year's draft. Their record alone shows it's a bad plan. This past trade deadline has created a couple of more potential problems for next year's draft. The Rams now have 2 first round picks next year. They also have high caliber players to help by bundling them for a higher pick. The NY Jets now have two 1st round picks in 2026 and two 1st round picks in 2027. The Jets also have two second round picks each year. The Cowboys also two 1st round picks in 2026. Could it be they are ready to move on from Prescott?

The longer that Haslam delays the inevitable, the longer the recovery time to field winner.

If any of these are still available we should GRAB TWO --
Practice squad OT’s

HOLLIN PIERCE, Eagles
LUKE FELIX-FUALALO, Eagles
TYLER MCLELLAN, T.B.
LORENZ, METZ, T.B.
MARCELLUS, JOHNSON, Colts
GERAD LICHTENHAN, Ravens
GARETH WARREN, Steelers
MASON MILLER, Lions

Then start ZAPPE

I saw Conklin get just destroyed at least 2 or 3 times in the game. At least. One of their guys, Will McDonald, did a Myles Garrett impersonation with 4 sacks. They has, IIRC a total of 7 sackas as a team, and it could have been more if Gabriel hadn't run out of a couple more.

Our OL is terrible, and needs replaced. Bleh. We can't count on DeWand Jones, as hee seems to be following in Conklin's "break down all the time" mode.

I don't even like Gabriel all that much... as I see a future backup, at best, but man, he has had a tough go of it so far ... with awful play calling, and inept personnel around him. I look at how Flacco performed here, and how he is doing in Cincy, and it's astonishing. He has 2 TD and 7 INT here. Don't look at how he's doing in Cincy unless you want to get sick.

I want everyone fired. If it was possible to also fire Haslam, I'd be all for it.

According to Jason Lloyd/The Athletic is the Browns cap situation even worse in 2026. That will probably quite dramatically dictate how the Browns will approach the 2026 draft.
There’s a very high possibility that the 2026 season will also end in a similar way to 2024 and 2025.

Do we really think that the owner, pressured by the fans and the media will accept three losing seasons in a row without making changes?

The problem from a PR standpoint is that if this season continues in a similar fashion as it started the social media, local and national media can make so the atmosphere around the Browns gets really ugly.

Don’t underestimate the importance of how the media will frame the story. Sponsors and partners are sensitive to constant bad news.
Right now nobody cares about who’s right or wrong, who’s responsible or not, they just want to see changes. That’s how it works when the media dramaturgy starts rolling.

I can’t see a scenario with Gabriel continuing playing if we lose the next two games.
If the ax fall on Gabriel then it will affect Stefanski too. If the head coach also gets chopped then the GM stands next in line.
The cat on the mouse, the mouse on the rope.

If Dillon isn’t answer then Stefanski will be under constant pressure until he makes this team successful again.
2025 is lost. 2026 doesn’t look better.

How big are his chances?
I can’t see him survive another 25 games without significant improvements.

Jason Lloyd needs to proof his own stories, that’s a badly written article.

Been there.
Did he write that or did you kinda play with it, Flo?

The cap situation seems to be legit as far as I can understand.

If anyone has the exact numbers then feel free to share it because I don’t think a senior writer on the Athletic just fiction stories without back checking facts.
I mean almost all numbers are public so prove him wrong if you think he’s lying.

If we go back to the future of the Browns it’s just common sense to believe that changes will come.

The critic, especially against Stefanski and to a lesser extent to Berry, is massive. It’s everywhere and we have come to a point where most people just shake their heads. Explanations aren’t needed any longer because film clips, stats or screen shots says it all.

The dramaturgy is well known.

First it’s legitimate criticism. Then if the criticism is unanswered it’s the questioning , week in and week out. If that continues too long without any solutions on the field or serious answers the laughter and the jokes will replace the criticism until it just gets tragicomic, and it’s at that point that the head shaking is what’s left.

We’re there now. The laughters has been replaced with head shaking, no smiles, just a long silence.

Just to be clear this is the same Jason Lloyd that Mac posted about that has/had no clue about What Depo did with the Browns.

Saw this comment posted on one of the online webpages - and I agree with it and I don't see how you argue with it:

The Browns aren’t a QB away. They’re not a LT away. They’re not even a new head coach away, although Stefanski needs to be gone at the end of the season.

They’re just not even close. Garbage teams don’t even have to play well to beat us. There’s so many problems at so many levels in this organization, making wrong choice after wrong choice since 2021. A total, full rebuild is in order.

The legacy of the Berry-Stefanski tandem will be the Watson trade, which destroyed the team’s potential, made the fans across the league hate us, and made Northeast Ohio, who has always been there no matter what, finally reach a point where they care less about the Browns. What an accomplishment!

As for the cap - I didn't see the Jason Lloyd article. I do know lots of posters have praised Berry as a Cap Guru smarter than the rest of the NFL and that the salary cap just isn't a factor .... I'll continue to believe that is not true. Case in point with so many needs all across the team and Watson/Garret projected to be taking up 26.5% of the cap space for 2026 .... it will limit what we can fix, who we can keep.

Browns 17 free agents in 2026:

*David Njoku - Starter
*Wyatt Teller - Starter
*Joel Bitonio - Starter
*Martin Emerson - Starter
*Alex Wright - Starter
Shelby Harris
*Devin Bush- Starter
*Corey Bojorquez - Starter
Jerome Ford
DeAndre Carter
David Bell
Cam Robinson
Teven Jenkins
Cam Thomas
Jerome Baker
Rayshawn Jenkins
Damontae Kazee

If we are incredibly lucky we might be fighting to be a 0.500 team in 2027....

Which is incredibly sad.

You missed a couple:
Browns 17 (18 with 1 retired) free agents in 2026:

*TE David Njoku - Starter - Dead Cap Charge - $13,935,000
*RG Wyatt Teller - Starter - Dead Cap Charge $19,404,000
*LG Joel Bitonio - Starter - Dead Cap Charge - $23,504,000
*RT Jack Conklin - Starter - Dead Cap Charge - $12,659,327
*C Ethan Pocic - Starter - Dead Cap Charge - $4,368,000
*LB Devin Bush- Starter - Dead Cap Charge - $1,440,000
*CB Martin Emerson - Starter
*DE Alex Wright - Starter
*P Corey Bojorquez - Starter
DT Shelby Harris - Dead Cap Charge - $2,043,000
RG Teven Jenkins - Dead Cap Charge - $1,200,000
RB Jerome Ford
WR DeAndre Carter
LT Cam Robinson
DE Cam Thomas
LB Jerome Baker
S -Rayshawn Jenkins
Damontae Kazee
CB Tre Avery
WR David Bell - Retired
TOTAL POTENTIAL ADDITION 2026 DEADCAP CHARGE - $78,553,327

Existing 2026 Ded Cap Charge: $31,607,811
Dalvin Tomlinson - $12,109,000
Juan Thornhill - $5,668,000
Ogbonnia Okoronkwo - $4,750,000
Joe Tryon-Shoyinka - $2,780,000
Dustin Hopkins - $2,776,500
Jordan Hicks - $1,974,000
Joe Flacco - $1,396,000
Cameron Mitchell - $84,307
Lamareon James - $13,334
Ralph Holley - $13,334
Brent Matiscik - $10,000
Gage Larvadain - $6,667
Jaseem Reed - $6,667
Dom Jones - $6,667
Kole Taylor - $6,667
Jason Ivey - $3,334
Dartanyan Tinsley - $3,334

Remember, all of the 2026 players above become FA's on the first day of the new League season. When that occurs, the Dead Cap Charge immediately applies for 2026. It CANNOT be deferred or split.

TOTAL 2026 POTENTIAL DEAD CAP CHARGE ON or ABOUT MARCH 1, 2026 = $110,161,138 or about 35% of proposed Cap.

I like Dan Orlovsky - he seems to be a straight shooter without the need to create fake controversey. I don't expect to see KS land a HC gig ... if he does I expect him to have good years followed by down years and as time goes on the performance to regress instead of improve. I don't see him as a brilliant tactition and he most definately isn't Mr Motivator. So hard to see where his niche is as a HC ... being a solid guy that can talk well and is well organized doesn't differentiate you from the other 95% of people who are qualified to do the job... doesn't even raise you into the top 50% in my view (regarding KS) he's average/below average in just about everything he does.

If you wish to blame Stefanksi for this lack of talent, the huge burden that is watson and this FO lack of providing a decent roster for him to coach then I would agree. But I think that's reaching some rather wild conclusions.

If he's responsible for all of that why did Halsam even have Berry, DePodesta and an entire scouting department on the payroll and what were their jobs?

They are all equally bad so I actually agree, why single out one of them.