The 2024 season has not gone according to plan for the Browns, and moves at the quarterback position in particular will be an interesting offseason storyline surrounding the team. Owner Jimmy Haslam has already backed head coach Kevin Stefanski and general manager Andrew Berry, and his latest remarks on the organization confirm no rebuild is being contemplated. 
“We need to get through the season and we will look at everything,” Haslam said at the league meetings (via ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler). “We’re all disappointed. We’ve got a lot of work to do. We’ll go back and go to work. I’ve learned not to get too emotional during the season. We will sit down after the season, go through everything for next year.”
Stefanski and Berry each signed extensions in June, a sign of the organization’s commitment to continuity on the sidelines and in the front office. That tandem has been in place since 2020, and the Browns have posted winning seasons twice during that span. On both occasions, Stefanski has earned Coach of the Year honors, and expectations were high entering 2024 given Cleveland’s playoff berth from last season. Quarterback Deshaun Watson‘s struggles continued prior to his Achilles tear, however, and competition for the starting role is expected to be added this offseason.
Watson remains under contract through 2026, and with all of his remaining compensation guaranteed in full the Browns do not realistically have the option of releasing or trading him. Jameis Winston has likely upped his value given his level of play since taking over from Watson, but he is a pending free agent. Keeping Winston in place or adding a different veteran passer will be an option this spring, as will selecting a quarterback in the draft. The Browns’ 3-11 record has them on track for a high pick during the first round in April, the first time since 2021 they will own a Day 1 selection.
Other issues have contributed to Cleveland’s poor showing in 2024, of course. The team’s defense still has Jim Schwartz as coordinator, but the unit has experienced a major regression compared to last year. Nick Chubb‘s return to action has not sparked a resurgence in terms of rushing efficiency, as the four-time Pro Bowler is averaging 3.1 yards per attempt in 2024. Chubb is also a pending free agent as a result of his offseason restructure.
A number of key decisions will need to be made over the coming months if the Browns are to return to the playoffs in 2025. An organizational reset will not be part of that process, though, so expectations will remain high for Cleveland’s top brass and the core players who will be in place come the start of next season.
It’s a little bit like rebuilding Hiroshima. Whatever you do to move forward, there’s going to be a toxic crater in the middle of it for a while.
The problem with your analogy is that Hiroshima wasn’t self inflicted. The Brown’s disasters always are.
Some sailors in Pearl Harbor might beg to differ.
Hiroshima is history’s ultimate FAFO.
I’m pretty sure those child civilians who ended up with fatal burns and cancer didn’t do the FA part.
All is fair in love and war…
The Geneva conventions would argue with one. Pat Benetar would confirm the other.
Fantastic! Another losing season is on the horizon. Maybe Shad will follow suit as well.
There’s a reason they’re drafting in the top 5-7 range. It’s not because they are one player short of really competing.
Draft Milroe and rebuild bro
They might want to rebuild their tackle situation first.
All of the above
That’s because they’ve been a constant rebuild for 50 years. Definition of poverty franchise.
Well, they can’t really, not yet at least. The roster could be good with a few adjustments, but the Watson contract is holding them hostage. Until that can be cleared, it’ll be an albatross enslaving their salary cap.
The only option they have right now is to draft a rookie to play while Watson is on the roster. Given the QB options this year, I don’t think that it’d be worth it, especially coupled with their cap situation. The Browns just can’t do it this year. If they want, they could try to sell off their talent for future picks (again), but they won’t be able to capitalize on those selections until Watson’s not holding them down.
This is why a rebuild is needed. Trade some of the high-dollar players for more draft picks, which will result in a younger team that may need a year or two to develop while improving their cap situation for the future. No need to pay big dollars when they know they’re a long way from a championship-level team
I agree, but they can’t really do anything until the Watson deal is off the books. Sure, you could trot him out there with a skeleton team, but the guy who’d be doing the selling here is the same guy who got them into this mess to begin with. Tanking and rebuilding has obviously been done before (it’s how Cleveland got so many of these talented players, after all), but there does at least need to be some projection of competition on the surface.
The Factory of Sadness is still going strong. Somewhere Ernest Byner is crying.
Since Watson’s contract is what’s holding us back for the next couple years, how about dumping the man responsible for convincing the owner to fully guarantee it?
That would be a great start.
Which man was that?
What phase are they in now if not perpetual rebuild centered around the worst contract ever
Why would they? Their team of has beens, castoffs, and missed draft picks is on par with the Browns we have come to loath.
They will have to figure out how to massage their way out of the Watson contract to even consider any type of rebuild.
There’s probably a pretty good legal case that Watson has violated some of the commitments or has other undisclosed cases outstanding.
The Browns should – very quietly, behind closed doors – put together a settlement agreement and release of DeShaun Watson. The cost of the settlement should depend on how precarious is Watson’s position.
If Watson is way out of bounds legally, there could be no additional monies with threat of a clawback if the case goes to court. If Watson is marginally out of bounds and cooperative, the settlement could go as high as half of what’s left on the contract.
Anything you want to say about the Browns being a total and complete joke forever is true…and yet, Steelers fans whine more than Browns fans.
Just FTR.
Watson will comeback next year and throw for 5000 yard and over 40 TD’s.
On Xbox
No rebuild just gonna let it fester n hope it works its way out. Go Browns !
Had a good thing going and you poisoned the well with Watson. Good luck salvaging this..
idiots cannot manage even a small part, let alone an organization.