The latest re-rebuilding of the Cleveland Browns is off to a good start.
With Monday's signing of middle linebacker and team leader D'Qwell Jackson to a contract extension, the Browns are 1-for-1 in accomplishing offseason goals in 2012 and still have both salary cap room and the ability to use their franchise tag if they so choose.
"Signing D'Qwell was the No. 1 priority for us this offseason," Browns president Mike Holmgren said.
Jackson made it such a high priority with his play in 2011, when he was one of the NFL's leading tacklers and made a bunch of splash plays for a defense that made strides but still spent too much time on the field. Jackson finished with 3.5 sacks, 3 fumble recoveries and an interception.
He was voted in as a Pro Bowl alternate and finished second in voting for the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year Award.
It's fair to wonder if the team truly prioritized signing Jackson over fixing an anemic offense, but it has to start somewhere. Any offseason plan starts with a budget and a checklist and multiple plans when it comes to free agency, and the Browns can now continue to operate under their own Plan A.
Getting Jackson locked up means they can franchise kicker Phil Dawson for the second straight year or, possibly but less likely, use the tag on running back Peyton Hillis. There's still no clear indication if the Browns can work something out with Dawson, but losing his services because they had to franchise Jackson would have been a big blow.
The free-agent market opens March 13. The window to announce franchise tags opened last week.
Any window of success for a team that's won 18 games over the last four years won't truly open until the offense gets fixed, but the Browns have wanted to lock up their own good players as a a big part of eventually climbing out of the basement of the AFC North, which is arguably the strongest division though the Steelers and Ravens facing issues with aging and contractual uncertainties.
Jackson had played in just six games over the two previous seasons with two separate pectoral injuries. His play in 2011 showed not only how much he was missed but that he's best in the 4-3 defense. The Browns had played exclusively a base 3-4 defense since he was drafted in 2006.
The Browns got solid play from their big and gifted young defensive tackles in front of Jackson, Ahytba Rubin and 2011 first-rounder Phil Taylor. Rubin signed a long-term extension last season, so the foundation for a strong middle is in place.
The Browns need to be much better against the run and still have holes to fill. They need a defensive end, an outside linebacker and pass rushers in general, and the secondary could use an upgrade in speed and depth. But the Browns' moves over the last 16 months indicated that their free agency money was going to be spent on keeping their own players much more than it would be spent on bringing players in, and in keeping Jackson -- at an expensive but reasonable reported figure of $42 million over five years -- they've kept a good one.
"I know a lot is expected of me, and that's fine," Jackson said. "Now, we have guys that are in the building for the long haul."
The Browns still need to collect more assets but should feel good about having talent and leadership in Joe Thomas, Rubin, Jackson and Joshua Cribbs under long-term contracts. They have two first-round draft picks and a high second-rounder, giving them the flexibility to explore trade possibilities and add instant-impact players -- maybe both.
There are still plenty of questions to answer, and the Browns are miles from relevance in their own division, let alone the league. But they're sticking to their plan and are able to move forward knowing their defensive leader will be back.
Jackson is the kind of guy you can win with. If the Browns can keep building around him, this could prove to be a move that's looked back upon as a part of the team finally finding and sticking with a winning plan.
