Todd Haley’s hiring could be the sort of under-the-radar hire that’s more for the future than the present for Browns GM John Dorsey.
The Cleveland Browns are slowly turning into Kansas City East. Of course, they’re not exactly hiring personnel from the same time period, but it’s interesting to see former Chiefs general manager John Dorsey hire former Chiefs head coach Todd Haley to be the new offensive coordinator for the Browns.
On the surface, the Browns needed an offensive coordinator and hired a very qualified on in Haley after his six seasons spent with the oft-division leading Pittsburgh Steelers, the Browns own rivals. I refer to the “surface” because the story for most stops there. It’s a move that fills a need with a guy who makes sense in terms of experience and perspective.
Guy needs job. Job needs guy. It’s as simple as that.
But the Browns situation isn’t quite that simple, which is why I’m curious about what’s happening underneath the surface in Cleveland.
Here’s the reality that faced Todd Haley as he considered the job offer from the Browns.
- Certainly the Browns weren’t the only spot that he could have landed considering his name was also attached to potential coordinator roles with the New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals.
- Those two spots in particular had much greater security at head coach. For Arizona, there is no head coach, which means whoever would be hired over Haley would have 3 years, at least, with which to build a contender with his staff. For New York, Haley’s former workmate Todd Bowles was given a two-year extension in December.
- In Cleveland, the head coaching situation is tenuous, to say the least, as even Hue Jackson knows he’s likely a coin flip away from having been replaced already. The Browns have endured a ridiculous amount of turnover in every area of leadership, which is likely what saved the head coach for another year. Yet Jackson’s overall record with a single win (and locker room drama) to show for his two years of leadership is pitiful even by Cleveland’s standards.
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Of all of the scenarios presented to Haley, he went with the one with the most uncertain future—unless, that is, he was told that his own future was different than Jackson’s.
Let me explain: new general manager John Dorsey has been given significant leeway to make the team in his own image. He’s remade the front office to include several very impressive persons around him, including Alonzo Highsmith and Elliot Wolf. Dorsey also seemed to acknowledge that plenty of player movement was also on the way.
Yet for all of his early moves and/or his willingness to reflect honestly on the current state of the roster, he’s made zero moves at the place that it matters the most: the coaching staff. He’s spoken highly of Hue Jackson and he’s clearly given him 2018 as an audition for a new front office. What’s also clear, or what should be, is that Jackson’s leash has to be very, very short. An overall record of 1-31 will do that to a person.
If the Browns still resemble this year’s squad in terms of overall record, or even if they only win a few more games, it’s probable that Jackson is sent packing which leaves a significant leadership void. That’s not good for a team who is likely looking at a rookie quarterback atop this year’s draft.
Enter Todd Haley.
Haley has worked some level of magic in the past with Matt Cassel in Kansas City, coaxing a Pro Bowl season (and 10 wins) out of him in 2010 despite a pretty barren roster. He’s also coached the NFL’s most potent offensive trio for the last six seasons. There’s no guarantee that he could be a great head coach given another chance, but he’s as good a bet as most NFL hires these days. (Let’s not forget that all-time bests like Bill Belichick, Mike Shanahan and more were fired from their first gigs.)
The bottom line: the only thing that matters here is if John Dorsey believes that Todd Haley could be a good head coach in the right situation.
If so, it’s possible that Haley knows the team is his in the instance that Jackson is fired. Why else would he sign up to play for a coach already on the hot seat? It would also make sense to have Haley in place to continue to work with the young quarterbacks who will likely be on Cleveland’s roster through any potential coaching change, making sure that each season builds on the next instead of forcing scheme changes on a player already trying to make the leap to the pros.
It is possible, of course, that the Browns could start winning with a competent GM at the helm and that Haley remains an offensive coordinator for a resurgent Browns team. Even that doesn’t look so bad on a resume in his quest to be a head coach again. In that case, the Browns could be like taking any other OC position this offseason while knowing he could be head-coach-in-waiting if a worst case scenario plays out in 2018.