The post mortem press conference for the Cleveland Browns 2022 season was every bit as inconsistent as the performance of the team this past year. Probing queries interested in understanding the thought process of the current Browns regime were put forth with some condescending and downright ignorant questions peppered in that were about as productive as handmade fart noises.
The first takeaway is that head coach Kevin Stefanski and general manager Andrew Berry should make themselves more available. Radio, podcasts (insert shameless plug for Browns Bytes here) or simply just sitting down with a beat writer or columnist and talking, they are their best advocates. Beyond simply selling what they are doing, far too much of these press conferences is dedicated to responding to questions that have already been answered.
For example, the Browns have been heavily engaged in analytics since 2016. It’s 2023 and Berry once again had to explain their value and usage. It’s embarrassing that this is still occurring.
Likewise, continuing to pester Stefanski as to who will call plays ignores the obvious. It’s a collaborative effort. Offensive Coordinator Alex Van Pelt as well as other members of the offensive coaching staff contribute to the calls going out the field both before the game as well as during. Beyond that, Stefanski has proven time and time again that he’s good at calling plays. In the event Stefanski decides to have Van Pelt or someone else do it, then it’s worth discussing.
The other reason Berry and Stefanski can help themselves by talking more is so they are the ones fans and media are hearing from. The absence of which too often results in biased parties speaking for them including reckless speculation.
Even if people don’t like the answers they provide, they really do try to provide a thoughtful, honest response.
One of the clumsier questions of the day did result in a helpful answer from Berry.
On the day of the FBS National Championship, Berry was asked if the Browns might feel the need to get back into the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. The draft starts on April 27th.
In fairness, the real point of the question was trying to ascertain whether the Browns feel they are further behind with the talent on this roster than they anticipated given the lackluster record this season. The question just rambled too long. As someone who often does this myself, I can relate, having essentially done an unintentional reenactment of Chris Farley show from Saturday Night Live when speaking to Berry at the Senior Bowl several years ago when he was still working as Sashi Brown’s top lieutenant. Nevertheless, Berry did provide the answer to the larger point.
“We will have more than enough in terms of resources, picks, dollars and cap space to fortify the roster in the areas that we need to.”
The Browns feel confident in their position to make the most of this window with quarterback Deshaun Watson. Inherently, the Browns are signaling they plan to further defer some of their premium contracts through restructures or simply converting salary into signing bonuses. It’s why contracts, especially Watson’s was structured in the manner it was. It looks as if the Browns will be cash strapped, only having a projected $2 million to operate with entering next season. The reality is they will have closer to $35 million to operate.
Perhaps the most interesting conversation revolved around leadership. It was brought up time and time again, justifiably. Whether it was players finger pointing, both literally as often was the case with the Browns secondary or figuratively as players spoke about what wasn’t getting done off the field, the defensive side of the ball often felt rudderless.
When asked about a perceived lack of leadership on defense, Berry disagreed.
“No. I think honestly when we are sitting here at this time of the year and we look at the unit’s performance, we didn’t necessarily have the right mix in all areas and you really look at everything. You really have to. That is not just talent or scheme. It is some of those other factors, as well. Kevin mentioned, this game is won on the margins. I think Kevin gave us a stat that half the teams are between seven and 10 wins. I think probably all 18 teams that are sitting here today could probably say, ‘Man, if we just had these five plays back during the year, our record could be from where we are now to something different.’ With the margins being so razor thin, you really do have to look at everything and make sure that everything is tied up in order to win football games.”
The disjointed nature of a press conference, this warranted a follow up because it sounds like Berry might be alluding to the youth on the defense. Even if the Browns felt good about having some of the right people on the defensive side of the ball, the sheer lack of proven players was a hindrance.
They don’t know what they don’t know. It was interesting to listen to some of the younger players on this team in their final press conferences feel reasonably good about the state of the team amid some of these issues. Contrasted against older veterans, there was a stark contrast.
John Johnson III’s two seasons in Cleveland don’t lend a ton of credibility as a messenger, but he often does have the right message. Johnson was part of a more mature team in the Los Angeles Rams and went to the Super Bowl. It’s not surprising he would a better idea of how teams should operate and be able to note some of the issues holding the Browns back. I just wish he’d stop getting in his own way so he can be a productive part of the solution.
Still on the topic of leadership, Berry was asked if they need more vocal leaders.
“I think the bigger focus is the effectiveness of leadership as opposed to necessarily style of leadership. Ultimately, are we getting the results and outcomes that are desired? I think also the other thing is people are different leaders in different ways. Again, I would probably focus more on effectiveness as opposed to, ‘Hey, you need X amount that are this way or X amount that are that way.’”
I’m inclined to agree with his overall sentiment. But that’s if the Browns were an established team with staying power and a winning culture. Particularly this past year, with so many young players who needed direction, the lack of credible vocal leaders proved costly.
Along the same line, players spoke about the little things being one of the things that hurt them during the season. Stefanski was asked about this through the vein of leadership.
“To your point on little things, this game does drill down to little things. The little things become the big thing is what we like to talk about. That can be alignment and as simple as alignment. It can be as simple as doing your job on a given play. That is the game of football. We obviously came up short too often this season When you get to where we are today, those are where you want to look at everyone and where can we give our guys the advantages that we can just go play fast.”
From my perspective, when I hear this, it’s so much bigger than details on the field. It’s details throughout the organization. Details in the offseason, minicamp and training camp that are drilled down so that when the season arrives, there’s no longer a question.
For the second year in a row, there were questions about player dedication and work ethic during the year coming from their own teammates. In other words, the little things aren’t being taken care of in March through August. That’s where it has to start and the Browns are going to have proceed with that in mind. There is this continuing question about the maturity of this entire team. It starts with ownership and their dedication to taking care of the little things, then making sure that occurs throughout the rest of the organization.
That’s a major part of winning on the margins.
I did think it was important for Berry to speak about accountability when it came to the dismissal of Joe Woods. Berry put it on himself, but just as importantly, he did say the players owned some of that as well.
“It’s never just about one thing. I want to be clear. This shouldn’t just be a coordinator issue. The defensive level of performance is not just about Joe. Part of it, there are- you look back to being at this point. , decisions that back to the offseason you would have done done a little bit differently and I also think there is accountability with our guys as well, right? Like we want our guys to seize the moment and we all share accountability with it as Kevin mentioned. a little bit earlier.”
This once again speaks to the maturity of this team and what it’s going to take to get where they want to go, even if they hire the best defensive coordinator.
Stefanski and Berry aren’t ignorant to the issues facing this team. They may have miscalculated how much some of those were going to impact them in the 2022 season contributing to a 7-10 record. Badly in some cases. Nevertheless, it’s always refreshing to hear them speak. Stefanski’s servant leadership is how most successful coaches operate and it’s important that people understand what it entails, so we stop hearing criticisms about coaching that sound like cliché-filled movie roles. Berry does a great job of communicating the vision of this team.
I freely admit I believe they are the right people to lead the Browns organization even if there are issues where I disagree, but I think if they spoke more, it would lead to more of these good questions that warrant being asked and there would be more people interested in seeing their vision through.
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