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February 19, 2015Mike Pettine makes me re-think a lot of what I thought I knew about NFL teams and their public relations strategies. I’ve spent a lot of time wearing the same path in the same road based on my experiences watching Romeo Crennel, Eric Mangini, and Pat Shurmur stand in front of microphones with little ability to represent the entire Cleveland Browns organization. The “ground zero” moment for me was watching Pat Shurmur hem and haw through pressers following Colt McCoy’s head injury and subsequent bungling of the concussion. At that time I reached a conclusion that it just wasn’t within the scope of a coach’s job to handle everything that the organization needs to have handled. While Mike Pettine does push the occasional question to Ray Farmer, he has helped change my mind. Through his first year on the job, I see a guy who shows that some guys can handle it.
This isn’t to say that Mike Pettine is the next coming of Bill Belichick. There are plenty of questions about Pettine that need to be answered, but in terms of handling his business with integrity and honesty, while also allowing himself to look human… Josh Gordon suspended? I have a comment to a point. Johnny Manziel in rehab? Compassionate, but understandably non-committal from a football perspective. His GM texting to the sidelines? Disapproving without needing to be scorched earth and burning the working relationship that the two sides need to share going forward.
It’s an overused phrase, but Mike Pettine appears to be the adult in the room. He’s the first such adult that the Browns have had since—I’m not sure when. Even in the past when the Browns had smart people there seemed to be far too much “cloak and dagger”1 or too much “old boy’s network”2 to have success. I don’t want to get any kind of a savior complex with the Browns again anytime soon because that’s been a problem for Browns fans for a long time, but I do get the sense that Mike Pettine’s voice is fresh and new. And it’s new in a good way.
This all fits into the real narrative that lives in my mind for the Browns right now: The Negative Nancy narrative is oversold. The Cleveland Browns’ biggest issues have very little to do with football or football players on the roster. They had a dust-up with an offensive coordinator who wanted out. They have two first-round draft picks who have failed them miserably in Justin Gilbert and Johnny Manziel. They have Josh Gordon who proved that he’s still Josh Gordon. I know that’s a lot of “bad news” but what’s lost is the substantiveness of this news. It’s annoying and it seems like an endless stream of bad news, but it might not be that big of a deal.
Teams make mistakes in the draft. Teams make mistakes in free agency. Teams make mistakes in hiring staff and in their organizational structure. Mike Pettine and the way he speaks about issues makes me think that the issues aren’t nearly as big a deal as perception may seem. Yes, you’d prefer not to see them and so would he, but it’s not going to end the team’s chances in the season. I also now know that whenever Mike Pettine is due to step in front of a microphone that I’m going to get useful information that almost invariably won’t add to whatever fire is burning, perceived or real.
51 Comments
I’ve shared this article with my Dad, a lifelong Browns fan who feels (justifiably) burnt out after 30+ years of season tickets. I watched Farmer, Pettine & several key players (Whitner, Dansby, Hoyer, and Haden, to name a few) provide me a sense of true optimism in the organization. All of them come off as thoroughly invested in the Cleveland Browns. I like their leadership – they are navigating the storm & I believe they can overcome. Thanks for a breath of fresh air & for reaffirming my inklings of hope as an invested fan.
Keep up the good work.