By Zac Jackson
FOX Sports Ohio
January 9, 2011
Thoughts, opinions and maybe even a fact or two regarding the Browns' latest search for a new head coach...
1. The Browns are searching and interviewing -- and wondering and hoping, too -- as they try to get this right. Mike Holmgren knows he essentially has one and only one chance to get this right, and he knows it's going to take a very good football coach with patience, vision and creativity to get this right. The Browns are basically starting from scratch. They're a team that doesn't have enough players to compete in a division that has lots and lots of good players -- and has two of the most stable, successful and well-run franchises in the league. The Ravens just went 12-4 and didn't win the division. Even the Bengals, a laughingstock of an organization on almost every level, have a roster superior to the Browns' and are just a year removed from running the table in the division. The Browns made some strides and some roster upgrades in 2010, but they again won just one division game and didn't make up any significant ground on the AFC North Division's Big Boys. They have a credentialed president and general manager in place, a blank check from the owner and at least a few players who could be building blocks. They need the right guy calling the shots on Sundays to start making significant progress and make that progress last.
2. Holmgren has become the public face and voice of the team, a role he clearly relishes. On the surface it makes plenty of sense that he would hire himself and return to coaching; few potential candidates can come close to matching his experience level, and none can match the three Super Bowls he reached as head coach of the Packers and Seahawks. Owner Randy Lerner gave Holmgren the keys to the franchise 12 months ago and told him to drive it forward. Holmgren has admitted he still has the coaching itch, but said he doesn't believe he's the right man for the job. He wants to stay in his advisory role and stay involved, but he doesn't want to be the head coach right now. He has a legacy to protect, and the Browns aren't good enough right now to legitimately think they can win and win big the next two seasons. Maybe those things play into Holmgren's thinking -- they probably do -- or maybe he thinks he can find the next Mike Holmgren and let that man grow into the job. I think he did well in hiring Tom Heckert as GM last year, and his track record says he deserves the chance and time to make more hires that turn out to be the right hires for the Browns. I believe that while Heckert is fine with Holmgren being the public face of the team, Heckert is every bit as involved in this coaching search as Holmgren is, and that Heckert's vote(s) will carry the same weight when the time comes. Heckert's NFL pedigree includes time with winning organizations and with the West Coast offense, and he has much more history with the first candidate to interview, Rams offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, than Holmgren does. This is the Browns' fifth search for a coach since 1999; the only constant in the organization has been change. Ideally, Heckert would love to have this job for years. Holmgren, at 62, would like to win soon and, say, four or five years from now, ride back into retirement. No one who's followed these Browns can honestly say they believe in a five or seven-year plan, but Heckert probably has to think and act with that mindset.
3. Fans, of course, want a splash. They want Jon Gruden; they might have even wanted Jim Harbaugh or Chris Petersen. There's some debate as to whether John Fox would qualify as a splash -- I lean towards yes -- but the fact is the Browns need results more than splash. Would it be nice to immediately energize the fan base and season-ticket sales and bring in someone who has a name and has colorful press conferences and is fiery on the sideline -- like, the exact opposite of Eric Mangini and Romeo Crennel? Of course that would be nice. But the Browns have to get the right guy. They need a guy who works with Heckert to upgrade team speed and is willing to play a 31-27 game every now and then. There's more, too. The new coach has to be comfortable with folks in the building calling Holmgren "Coach." Presumably, the new coach will have to be comfortable with Holmgren and trusted advisor Gil Haskell being involved, if even on a small level, in building the new offense and/or working with the quarterbacks. Splash? The Pat Shurmur Parade wouldn't exactly shut down rush hour traffic. Mike Mularkey has been a head coach before. He's a hot candidate again because he's the offensive coordinator for the Falcons, where he oversees an offense directed by a hot young QB who has a top tight end, an elite wide receiver and a unique, bowling ball of a running back to move the chains. Would he have any of those in Cleveland? People are always going to remember Marty Mornhinweg as the guy who went 5-27 in Detroit and didn't take the ball to start sudden-death overtime. If the Browns hire him, angry fans might turn into apathetic fans. And there's this: It sure seems like the Browns are set on going forward with Colt McCoy at the game's most important position. McCoy seems to be a fit in the West Coast offense, and we know he'll be the first guy in the building for the entire offseason -- assuming there's no lockout and the players are actually allowed in -- as he tries to learn every inch of the new playbook. If McCoy gets hurt or just doesn't play well early and the Browns start losing again, a fan base that's already cut back on the tickets it buys will again start calling for the head of the new coach. Like calling for a new quarterback and anticipating the following spring's draft before Thanksgiving, it's Cleveland tradition. The exact tradition Heckert, Holmgren and the new coach need to stop.
4. The chances Gruden takes the job? What's that line about Slim and None and Slim is on his way out of the building? Gruden has good gig right now. A really, really good gig that pays him well, allows him to be very involved with the NFL (and the NFL Draft, and college football) and allows him to watch his sons play football. He lives in Florida, travels the country and talks with people all over the league. He watches hours of film and analyzes it -- and doesn't have to agonize over it when it shows one team making mental errors, throwing interceptions or getting physically overwhelmed. If the Browns were closer to being a finished product, had more stability and had more players in place, I think Gruden would think long and hard about coming back and chasing another ring. Since the Browns don't exactly have those things, I think he'll gladly take a call from Holmgren and gladly end the conversation the way he ends those film sessions before the Monday Night Football games he calls -- by being grateful for the opportunity but content to not wake up at 3:30 a.m. and stress over the Ravens' punt return schemes. Those two times a year he hugs Mike Tomlin after Sunday night production meetings come without time limit, without television cameras and without thousands of Terrible Towels flying around. Coaches will always be coaches, and they'll always want to coach. Coaches who are already crazy-rich and successful and already have good gigs, like Gruden and Holmgren, probably appreciate what they have. Which means Holmgren probably has to find the next Mike Holmgren -- and give him the proper patience and resources to make a steady climb.
5. Reports say they have not, but I would think the Browns would be smart to at least reach out to John Fox -- that's just my opinion -- because he has extensive head-coaching experience and a unique view of the league. He's been around forever and just coached against the Browns six weeks ago. His background is in defense and that doesn't seem to fit the model Holmgren and Heckert are looking for, but he'd be able to use his resources and knowledge to build a coaching staff -- and we know assistant coaches and coordinators are awfully important, too --
