June 18, 2013

Browns Coaching Search Concerning, Not Doomed

January 21, 2011 by 27 Comments

I have been on record defending Mike Holmgren’s process of hiring Pat Shurmur… to an extent.  I will never turn any situation like this into a completely black and white situation though.  It is nearly impossible with so many moving pieces as the transition takes shape.  Would Rob Ryan stay, or would he go?  Well, now we know he has moved on to Dallas.  How about special teams coach Brad Seely?  Adam Schefter cast some doubt about his return to Cleveland with some 49ers news yesterday.  While I can still defend the process of hiring Pat Shurmur, I would be lying if I said I didn’t have some doubts and fears about what is going on right now.

First the good things though.  Dave Wannstedt and Dick Jauron are still in the running for Browns’ defensive coordinator.  I liked Rob Ryan, but if anybody was going to replace him, I wanted it to come down to some really experienced candidates to help this first-time head coach.  These two coaching vets fit that bill for sure.  Part of my desire to see Holmgren find a young hungry guy to be head coach was bringing big-time experienced coordinators to help him.  In my mind that is a perfect environment for developing a head coach.  Holmgren at the top and at least two more experts flanking Shurmur on his right and left.

Unfortunately though, Holmgren decided to let Pat Shurmur call his own plays.  That pretty much eliminated the chances of that wish getting granted.  I find it difficult to imagine one of the premier, experienced offensive coordinators deciding they want to come to Cleveland and do all kinds of work, and then not get to call the plays on Sunday.  Based on the interviews for offensive coordinator, it seems that fear might be pretty well founded in truth as the Browns talk to QB coaches looking for a promotion.

That’s not to say that the Browns’ coaching staff is doomed.  Far from it.  Maybe the plan is to bring in an offensive coordinator who can be Shurmur’s support staff and Mike Holmgren is going to mentor the entire offensive side of the ball from the President’s office.  I don’t have any information that this is the case, but I hate to just call out negatives without acknowledging that we aren’t privy to the whole plan.  If everything in this world that I didn’t understand was doomed to fail, we wouldn’t live in a very good world.  Trust me.

We’ll just have to see how things play out.  Still, I am wary that a first-time head coach is going to be so embroiled in the offense and calling plays that some other part of the job may suffer like in-game management.  If there is one thing I will be furious about with any coaching staff it’s problems with clock management and challenges.

One thing’s for sure.  No matter how this plays out, Shurmur will have a lot to prove.  That was going to be the case no matter who the Browns hired as head coach, including if Holmgren had named himself to the post.

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  • EdgewaterJoe

    Well, word is out that Wanny’s going to Buffalo …

  • Jason

    Dave Wannstedt to the Bills. Looks like it will be Billy King or Dick Jauron

  • http://exiledclevelander.wordpress.com AMC

    And word is also that Seeley is gone to the 49ers, which is really bad news. I’d say so far, this has not gone well for the Browns. They also missed out on Musgrave from ATL, who was their first choice as OC.

    I’d say I’m a little more than concerned at this point.

  • ben

    Dave Wannstedt and Dick Jauron are terrible coaches. Why the [expletive deleted] would anyone want them in Cleveland?

    I live in Western NY, about 2 hours from Pittsburgh, and have had about all the Jauron and Wannstedt I can handle. The are bad, bad men. It is a boon that the ‘Stache is going to Buffalo, b/c it means we won’t lose to them anymore (when we inevitably play them year in and year out b/c we are both bad…i mean rebuilding teams).

    Coaching staffs are overrated IMO. There is always so much turnover, that eventually, you’ll get it figured out. Just don’t keep a guy like Daboll on staff for 2 years so that you lose your job, and you should be fine.

    Losing Ryan sucks ’cause he was good. But he’ll be a HC in a year or two anyway (which is why he went to Dallas as a jumpoff).

    /rant

  • Charlie

    Agree. We NEED experienced coordinators. Unfortunately, the day Shurmur took over we automatically took ourselves out of the running for that on the offensive side. Things may work out, I’m holding out hope but the second I heard he was going to be calling his own plays my head dropped.

  • http://footballtailgate.weebly.com FBTG

    As far as the defensive side is concerned I definitely agree with you about bringing in a guy who has been there before. Too many times (whether with Romeo or Mangini), when a big decision is needed you see the shot of the coach on the sideline where the coach just looks bewildered and as though he has never been there before. Bringing in a guy who has had to make the decisions will help more than ever to bring a rookie head coach up to speed. Especially a guy like the Wan-Stache with all of his experience.

    Don’t be too concerned about an O-Coordinator either.. as the Browns don’t even need a guy to call the plays, just to get the offense set and running. If worst comes to worst I’m sure that position could be given to “special assistant” Gil Haskell ..

  • bobby

    I still like Jauron, so hopefully Reid wants to go younger at DC. On O im not as worried since you have Holmgren and Haskell in the FO to help mentor Shurmur. You can bet Holmgren will do everything he can to not let him fall flat on his face. Whipple wouldnt be an awful decision since the OC here will basically be a glorified QB coach anyways.

  • MrCleaveland

    There has to be something non-football-related going on. Otherwise, why on earth would Wannstedt choose the Bills over the Browns? I’m starting to slide toward Doomsville.

  • C-Bus Kevin

    I’m not sure about all this concern over who will be the coordinators.

    First off, I’m not sure how much of a loss it was to see Ryan go to Dallas. It’s not like the Browns were intimidating anyone, and the stats bear that out.

    Secondly, what’s so wrong with the coach calling the plays? Doesn’t old what’s-his-name up in Green Bay call the plays? They’re a win away from the Super Bowl.

    Thirdly, we’re concerned about losing our Special Teams coach…really? This falls into the category of “only in Brownstown would we be concerned about (insert minor problem)”. I guess my point is that other fanbases are concerned about major player positions or getting over the hump against a big rival. The Browns have been so bad that we’re concerned about holding on to ANYTHING that has shown a minimal ammount of promise.

    Special teams are a small part of the game. As long as you have a good punter, a dependable kicker, and your kick coverage isn’t terrible (see: San Diego Chargers), your special teams will be fine.

    In conclusion, I’m not that worried that our Browns team that lost 11 games two seasons in a row might lose their special teams coach. What’s next? Are we going to panic when the administrative intern goes back to school for Spring quarter?

  • Harv 21

    I want us to find an experienced, successful DC, not because we are playoff contenders and need someone with experience right now but more because it is one less thing that our first-time-head-coach-on-any-level has to worry about.

    Similarly, I do not understand why Holms is letting Shurmer call offensive plays rather than just letting him learn how to direct traffic, consult with coordinators and oversee the big picture during the game. Even if he turns out to be a great HC, his transition will be more difficult with him running the offense. Predict his first season will feature in-game snafus, maybe followed by the OC calling plays after all.

  • C-Bus Kevin

    Also, for those of us pining for Wanny to come to Cleveland, let me throw the metaphorical bucket of cold water in your face.

    Wake Up!!!!

    Dave “The ‘Stache” Wannstedt is an AWFUL coach. I’m sure he’s a nice guy, but this is the same coach that couldn’t find a way to put up more than 7 points against my alma mater Ohio U a few years ago.

    I think we all need to recognize that sometimes we fall in love with the idea of bringing in a coach simply because we know his name.

    Sorry for the rants, but the snow in C-Bus has me all fired up. Central Ohioans have no idea how to drive in and/or remove snow. Longest. Slowest. Commute. Ever.

  • bobby

    Apparently Wannstedt is going to be the LB coach in Buffalo. I am hoping its because of his relationship with Gailey.

  • bobby

    C-Bus- Wannstedt was wanted for DC, not OC.

  • Harv 21

    C-Bus: check out Wannstedt’s record as a DC in the NFL, which we were asking him to do. He was excellent.

  • ben

    he’s still terrible though

  • BrianRut4

    It seems like the plan is to have Shurmur call the plays for the first 1-2 years in order to establish an offensive identity. Once this has been accomplished, he will hand the reigns over to a young OC who has had two years of training.

    This seems very reasonable and I don’t understand why everyone is freaking out.

  • Believelander

    why precisely are we defending the hiring of Pat Shurmur? Besides optimism for the sake of optimism, there is literally no reason to be happy about/defending this move. There was no plan, and we just lost perhaps the league’s best ST coordinator and a fine DC. We are getting turned down by qb coaches. Welcome to the disaster (Take 7).

  • C-Bus Kevin

    @ ben…thank you.

    @bobby & harv…I understand this, but a bad coach is a bad coach, and after a series of failed attempts to be a head coach, it’s not like we would have been getting Wanny on a hot streak.

    I just wanted people to recognize that it is possible for someone with less experience to succeed. After all, these known coaches have to start somewhere.

    Also, I’m pretty sure finding better players will have a much larger impact on the success of this team.

  • B-bo

    The Shurmur hiring, while not flashy, was just fine by me. And I saw no issue with the perceived brevity of the search, as I have little doubt that the move was contemplated in advance and the search in the works well before this season ended. However, the issues with assembling a staff to surround the young HC do have me quite concerned. I strongly oppose the “HC as OC” model, because some part of the team’s performance is bound to suffer at some point as a result. Given the comparable quality of players on the Rams and Browns offenses, I’m not exactly psyched having Shurmur pulling the strings and doing the scheming. We likely ruined our chance at nabbing a top-quality offensive guy thanks to the pronouncement that Shurmdog will be calling plays, but we could still grab someone to groom for that later. DC is an even greater concern, because whoever comes in has to be a first-class guru on that side of the ball, given the offensive leanings of the HC and Holmgren himself. Defense is the calling card of the AFCN, and we need a top-quality unit to compete with any regularity in this division. I have no problem with Rob Ryan being gone–the 3-4 was a failed experiment here in Cleveland anyway, particularly with the way we forced guys from positions of strength to new positions, failing to make use of their maximum potentials as a result. Jauron would be a great get for us. Wanny, for all his faults as a HC, would have been a great DC. This is something we have to get right, or we risk setting ourselves back even further. As for the (possible) departure of Seely? That one hurts. A top-flight special teams unit can be a powerful trump card in football, providing field position advantages to both sides of the ball. The idea that special teams is inconsequential or that “only in Cleveland” would we worry about this aspect of the team is absurd at best, particularly when this team has the quality of ST personnel that it does, personnel that should be taken advantage of.

    Doomed? Not yet. But there is definite cause for concern here.

  • nj

    Lot of Wannstedt hate. The guy was an average NFL head coach with some pretty good, pretty bad years, and very average years. But even when his teams lost, defense was never the problem. And like Harv said, his record as a coordinator was even more impressive.

    What does it say that people would prefer to be assitants in Buffalo rather than coordinators here?

    As Dylan said, you don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows.

  • nj

    A bad coach can be a good coordinator. There’s plenty of examples.

    A less experienced person may do fine, but the fact that the guys at the top of Holmgren’s list apparently don’t want the job? That’s disconcerting.

  • 6thCity

    It is now widely reported that Jauron has been hired as the Brown’s DC.

  • mike

    If the Jauron report is true, great hire. Wonderful D coordinator in Chicago, not a great HC, but decent. I am going to love the switch to the 4-3. Rogers and Rubin as our interior linemen? Sounds good to me. Roth at one D-End spot, need another though. I would love Fujita, Healthy D Jackson, and Marcus Bernard at the other OLB. I like that different front 7 already.

  • Believelander

    @23: that’s the same front 7, just with two linebackers playing outside line pass rush.

  • pepe

    Matt Roth is not a DE and Rogers is not even close to an every down starter any more.

  • bobby

    @25, Just because a player was hurt means hes not an every down player anymore? I think Rogers can be just fine. Also, I think Roth has enough size to be a DE. Him, Rubin Rogers and Coleman/ Smith could be decent, and I would have Fujita, Gocong, and look for a OLB (Matthews?) Trusnik, Bowens can still be reserve.

  • paulbip

    DOOMED! First pick next year.