Haslam's Golden Gut Triumphs Over DePodesta's Black and White Analytics

 

Paul Depodesta is going to the Colorado Rockies, where they might listen to him.  The Browns would listen for a year, get impatient, and do things Jimmy's way (thank you Mac the Buffalo). 

You can stick a fork in our Cleveland Browns.  We're done.  Jimmy Haslam III hated being told what to do by numbers geek Paul DePodesta anyway. Now he doesn't have to feel guilty about ignoring him.  He's gone, off to oversee operations of the Colorado Rockies.  

This is a disaster, in this analyst's view.  It seems to me that Browns ownership has been divided between Mr. and Mrs. Haslam, with Jimmy preferring to trust his own instincts, and Dee preferring to rely on the best available advisors.  DePodesta was the best possible advisor and had the right idea, making evidence-based decisions. Realizing that the Browns were inferior to the Steelers and Ravens as evaluators of talent and team builders, the way to overcome the gap was to hoard draft picks and cap space for a few years, and then outspend and out-draft the rest of the league for about five years in a row, building a stronger organization in the process. However, it was going to be a cycle, and the team would have to be restocked at some point.  The Browns have been at that point for a few years now but will not admit it.  4-13 and no cap space for free agents is the result.

DePo's plan was working in 2018 when they drafted three Pro Bowl talents in one draft:  Baker Mayfield, Denzel Ward and Nick Chubb.  However, then they reversed course and started using the Jimmy method, figuring they were going to win the Super Bowl in 2019. They overspent and traded away first round draft picks for the likes of Odell Beckham, Jr., and hired Freddie Kitchens, a guy with zero coaching experience, as head Coach. That was a disaster, so they went back on the DePo plan, what was left of it, hiring analytics-based Kevin Stefanski and made the playoffs.  Ah, now we've got it!  But then they shifted back into Full Haslam mode by overspending on Deshaun Watson while simultaneously obliterating their draft for three years. Hence they have re-established themselves as "loveable losers" which is where they find themselves today, mired in salary cap hell, and trusting the owner to find the right quarterback.  

This year the Browns used four draft picks on quarterbacks: two to draft Shedeur, a Round 3 pick on Dillon Gabriel plus a Round 6 pick (plus Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who they were ready to give up on) for Kenny Pickett, and also signed Joe Flacco.  Pickett and Flacco have been fired, with Flacco currently averaging 313 yards per game for Division rival Cincinnati, and Pickett serving as second string at Las Vegas. This is classic Jimmy Ball. 

The Browns salary cap is in shambles. They still owe $130 million to Deshaun, plus they have multiple long term guaranteed contracts to aging veterans, causing them to already be overspent for 2026. They will have to restructure or cut multiple veterans just to get under the limit, and there won't be money to add new big time free agents, so forget about those fantasies right now. 

With the possible exception of the New York Jets, the Browns are the most quarterback-obsessed team and fan base in the NFL, making multiple trades and signings this year.  As a result, our best guy, Joe Flacco, is tossing 300 yard games for rival Cincinnati.  

Our talented rookie quarterback, Shedeur Sanders, is also the one furthest away from running an NFL offense.  He will get his chance later this year, but his career with the Browns may already be over. Jimmy and the Dawg Pound can't wait to get their hands on a new quarterback in the upcoming draft.  The Browns will not be able to offer much in the way of pass protection, as they are contractually committed to the same old guys who are currently ranked number 32 in the league out of 32 teams.   It's a total mess, and it's going to get worse. 

Remember, you wanted this.

Browns Patented Method for Ruining Young Quarterbacks--Good for Shedeur??

Many fans pooh-pooh the notion that Shedeur Sanders fell in the draft because of fears that he would get Front Office people fired in the organization that drafted him. But in Cleveland, many fans are calling for Coach Stefanski to be fired for not playing Shedeur.

The Cleveland Browns are famous for ruining young quarterbacks by sending them into battle before they are ready and having them learn bad habits--mainly trying to apply college offense methods to the Pro game--then giving up on them. 

This is what is wrong with the Shedeur Sanders debate. It's a false issue whether Shedeur is better than Dillon.  Of course Shedeur is better than Dillon. The question is whether putting Shedeur on the field now, behind an aging offensive line and with Jerry Jeudy as the only credible wide receiver, helps his career in any way.

I laugh at those who claim the Browns "need to learn what they have in Shedeur in the second half of the season."  What nonsense.  How much did the New York Jets learn about Sam Darnold in three years?  How much did the Browns learn about Baker Mayfield in four years?  How much did the Giants learn about Daniel Jones in six years?  Answer:  Absolutely nothing.  They did, however, learn to blame their problems on the quarterback.   

 I thought Dillon was a stupid draft pick by Andrew Berry and I said so at the time.  That's not the issue.  Just because Dillon is going to struggle, doesn't mean the best thing is to put Shedeur into a bad situation. 

The quarterbacks are not going to put up numbers until the Browns draft a stud left tackle and replace the old men on the offensive line.  They also need professional wide receivers.

Shedeur has not learned to play within structure.  One piece of evidence is that in the preseason, according to Pro Football Focus and Yahoo, Sanders' Time To Throw (TTT) was 3.96 seconds, the longest of any player ever recorded in preseason.  

https://sports.yahoo.com/article/shedeur-sanders-showed-true-character-125802268.html

That's not good, though it is correctable with time. He had issues hold ing the ball too long in college, and in his last preseason game he got sacked five times, after which fourth string QB Tyler Huntley came in and marched the team down the field and scored. 

So no, I don't think Shedeur will play well on this team in 2025.  He needs to grow in 2025, and the Browns need to upgrade their roster for 2026. 

I don't see the point of watching him suffer through some bad losses this season. He might win a game or two, but it is much more likely that he is going to be as bad or worse than Dillon this year. Shedeur will generate lots of sacks and interceptions and not that many passing yards if he starts this year. 2026 is the more realistic goal to convert him into a Pro style passer.  

Drafting a few offensive linemen and wide receivers might help, too.     

Note, however, that Haslam and Andrew Berry are carrying massive financial commitments for 2026 and will be unable to improve the roster by adding glamor free agents.  They will still owe $130 million to Deshaun Watson, and they are carrying several huge guaranteed veterans' contracts  that will prevent them from signing new veteran free agents. There will likely be dead money charges over $100 million dollars in 2026.  It remains to be seen whether they will have the resources to provide personnel to adequately protect a young quarterback in 2026.  

The vicious cycle may never end for Jimmy Haslam III, who loves quarterbacks so much that he may destroy his team finding the next messianic savior at the position.

A good team can win with a backup quarterback, and in fact Super Bowls have been won about 10 times with backup quarterbacks over the years.  So if your team can only win 4 or 5 games a year, it's probably not just the quarterback that needs fixing. There are probably half a dozen below average players on that unit.    

The Browns are just not a good offensive team.  Seeking to upgrade the quarterback position is a nice idea, but there are many more upgrades that are needed besides the quarterback. The Browns should try to field an NFL-caliber offense in 2026 and if they have that, they could consider starting Shedeur and try to score some points.