Cleveland Browns

Cleveland Browns: Hue Jackson Still the Right Hire Despite Losses

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Though Hue Jackson doesn’t have a victory with the Cleveland Browns, the franchise still looks like they picked a winner

Things haven’t gone as planned this season for the Cleveland Browns and their newest head coach, Hue Jackson. Numerous injuries—especially at quarterback—have consistently hampered the team’s efforts and Cleveland remains winless as a result.

It’s impossible to blame Jackson for the Browns’ misfortunes, though. The offensively minded coach that Cleveland lured away from the Cincinnati Bengals last offseason can only control so much.

Jackson certainly cannot control the myriad of injuries that has plagued the team to this point. Six different quarterbacks have taken snaps so far this season, wide receiver Terrelle Pryor is dealing with a hamstring injury and first-round pick Corey Coleman has been out since Week 2 with a broken hand. Moreover, starting cornerback Joe Haden has missed three games with groin injuries and starting safety Jordan Poyer was recently placed on injured reserve with a lacerated kidney.

Let’s not forget about the offensive line, which has already lost guard Joel Bitonio for the season and has had three different players play at center.

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Cleveland is a young and inexperienced team and it was going to be difficult for Jackson to win often with this current roster anyway. When you look at how deep he has had to dig on the deep chart—and the waiver wire—it’s amazing that Cleveland has been close in any game this season.

Yet, the Browns have remained competitive, at least some of the time. Three of the team’s losses have been by less than a touchdown and one was lost by missed field goals. The team might have even had a realistic chance of beating the Bengals in Week 7 if not for a fallen defender on one Bengals touchdown pass and a Hail Mary attempt that found A.J. Green just before halftime.

Yet again, Jackson had to rely on two different quarterbacks against Cincinnati, as Cody Kessler was lost to a concussion.

It’s been tough sledding for the Browns so far, and it’s going to be tough for the remainder of the season. Yet, you can tell by the way players fight on the field and speak off of it that there is no quit in this team. This isn’t something you could always say at this point in the season with past Browns coaches.

NFL legend Deion Sanders has even been impressed by the fight on this team

The @Browns are the best sparring partner in the @nfl they will give u a good fight. @nflnetwork #GamedayPrime

— Deion Sanders (@DeionSanders) October 2, 2016

“I don’t think [Jackson] expected to be 0-7,” Browns tackle Joe Thomas said, per Eric Edholm of Yahoo Sports. “We’re battling and fighting to try to get a win right now, and that’s tough. You catch somebody after a game and there’s a lot of emotions, but I certainly expect to come back on Monday and he’s going to coach as tough as he always does. But then by Wednesday he’s going to bring that energy and that positivity that is needed every week.”

Cleveland might be the only winless team in the NFL, but it probably isn’t the worst overall unit. In fact, Pro Football Focus rates four teams—including Week 8’s opponent, the New York Jets—lower than the Browns overall.

The reality, though, is that we have no idea just how good this roster can be because it hasn’t been healthy or complete since the beginning of the year. We know that there are some building blocks in place for the future. Pryor has successfully made the transition to receiver, and he’s looking like a future star. Running back Isaiah Crowell runs hard and is on pace for a 1,000-yard season. Rookie pass-rushers Carl Nassib and Emmanuel Ogbah look like future mainstays on Cleveland’s defense.

Let’s hope Browns owner Jimmy Haslam is willing to show Jackson more patience than he showed Rob Chudzinski or Mike Pettine before him, because Jackson also appears to be a foundation the Browns can build upon. You might not be able to see it on the field, yet, but you can see it in the demeanor of the players and in the development of this young roster. At some point, Cleveland is going to turn a corner. Jackson is still looking like the right man to lead the Browns, even if they haven’t found that corner yet.

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