LAS COLINAS, Texas — Jimmy Haslam confidently stepped through the halls of the Ritz-Carlton Las Colinas near Dallas on a Wednesday in December, unhurried but with purpose.
The 70-year-old Cleveland Browns owner wore orangish-brown slacks with an off-white blazer, a folder curled in his right hand, the contents of which are reserved for NFL billionaires. The league’s owners meetings had just adjourned. Between greetings to the reporters and league officials scattered in the hotel hallways, Haslam, still on the move, was asked about the state of his team.
He acknowledged the three-win Browns had a lot of work to do. When asked what that work looked like, he chuckled slightly, an acknowledgement of the heavy lift ahead.
“Yeah, I mean, I think we have a lot of needs as a team,” the Browns owner told ESPN. “We have to prioritize those. We went from 11-6 and making the playoffs to 3-10. So, it’s a little perplexing exactly what happened.”
Roughly 1,200 miles away at the Browns’ training facility in Berea, Ohio, coach Kevin Stefanski and general manager Andrew Berry were preparing for that Sunday’s matchup with the NFL-leading Kansas City Chiefs, trying to identify hope in a lost season and pondering some of the same questions Haslam cited. Stefanski and Berry will likely be at the forefront of an effort to turn around one of the NFL’s storied but notoriously star-crossed franchises, moving the organization, now 3-13 headed into a Saturday contest at the Ravens (4:30 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC/ESPN+), in the general direction of what would be its elusive first Super Bowl.
Meanwhile, near his home in Miami, injured quarterback Deshaun Watson rehabbed the surgically repaired torn right Achilles that ended his season Oct. 20. No diagnosis of what has gone wrong in Cleveland, and no prescription for fixing it, can ignore Watson’s presence in the matter. It was Haslam who signed Watson to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million contract in 2022. It is Stefanski and Berry who have been charged with turning that investment into winning football, but mostly they’ve had to work around it. Watson’s three seasons in Cleveland have been beset by suspension, injury and poor play in nearly equal measure. He has missed 32 out of 51 possible regular-season games with Cleveland and 49 of a possible 68 games overall since 2021.
Haslam, Stefanski and Berry must confront that past as they lay out a plan for the Browns’ future. The bulk of the work Haslam referenced as he negotiated that Ritz-Carlton hallway is still ahead. And the most important items on the list will come in the form of critical decisions.
THE BROWNS’ 2024 fall from grace was precipitous. Hindsight suggests it was also preventable.
It was one year ago that Cleveland was among the NFL’s feel-good stories, with Joe Flacco the unlikely 38-year-old face of a resurgence after the Browns signed him off the street in November. With Watson lost for the season to a shoulder injury, Flacco provided the steadying hand the Browns needed during a 4-1 finish that landed them in the playoffs, a complement to the NFL’s No. 1 defense led by Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett. The Browns lost in the playoffs to the Texans but looked like a viable postseason contender for 2024 if they could figure out the QB room and play to the strengths of the offense.
They couldn’t.
With Watson set to return, the team opted not to bring Flacco back in free agency. Part of the decision was calculated roster-building — the Browns expect to receive a sixth-round pick as compensation for Flacco’s signing with the Indianapolis Colts. But Flacco had become a fan favorite, and one source with knowledge of Cleveland’s thinking believed that having Flacco hold the clipboard would have been a bone of local contention every time Watson missed a read or a receiver.
“I 100% believe that was a factor, the need to not have him hanging over Watson as he built his confidence,” the source said.
A front office source denied this notion, saying the move away from Flacco was solely a football decision.
Instead, Cleveland signed free agents Jameis Winston and Tyler Huntley (Huntley would be cut in August) — unquestioned backups with no history wearing brown and orange — and brought back Dorian Thompson-Robinson, a fifth-round 2023 draft choice it believed had promise. In Winston, the Browns got nine years younger and about $500,000 cheaper at the backup quarterback spot. Winston expressed his eagerness to support Watson, about whom the team was confident entering his third season in Cleveland.
Amid the QB shuffle, another critical change received less national attention — the switch from offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt to Ken Dorsey, a move that was curious to people inside the building and out.
The Browns were a respectable 10th in points and 16th in yards in 2023, and Van Pelt’s offense had moved the ball effectively despite inconsistent quarterback play and season-ending injuries to Watson and running back Nick Chubb.
“That was head-scratching to me,” an ex-Stefanski aide said. “They had a system that worked regardless of the quarterback and had won more than Cleveland had in a long time. For things to suddenly change, that doesn’t strike me as something he would want.”
Multiple Browns players told ESPN they were surprised by the decision to part ways with Van Pelt, which came four days after their season ended in Houston, while conceding the normal nature of NFL staff turnover from year to year.
Van Pelt, who served as Browns OC from 2020 to 2023, had been in lockstep with Stefanski’s principles. The Cleveland offense was known as a run-efficient, play-action attack powered by legendary O-line coach Bill Callahan’s gap-scheme runs — and had allowed the Browns to have success even with an unstable quarterback situation.
Stefanski and Van Pelt (left) were viewed as having a common vision, which is why the OC change was a surprise. Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
But the same sources who were puzzled by the move from Van Pelt to Dorsey also knew why Stefanski made it: To maximize Watson, who could run Stefanski’s system but didn’t excel at it. Watson’s best years came in Houston with a spread-it-out attack that consisted of shotgun formations and run-pass option plays — calling cards of a Dorsey offense. Callahan’s departure to join his son Brian’s staff in Tennessee brought more change to the group.
The changes did not bring out the best in Watson or the Cleveland offense, which looked caught between two worlds. Watson struggled mightily as the season began, missing open targets and looking uncomfortable in the pocket. The Browns never reached 20 points in Watson’s seven 2024 starts — all games in which Stefanski, not Dorsey, called the plays — and the quarterback was last in QBR (23.5) by a wide margin, looking up at the Titans’ Will Levis (27.0) at the bottom.
As guard Joel Bitonio saw it, the Browns were implementing a Dorsey passing game — including more no-huddle offense — while maintaining some of Stefanski’s core running concepts for the returning offensive linemen, and even adding some Eagles run-game principles brought in by assistant offensive line coach Roy Istvan, previously with Philadelphia.
“We were struggling with our identity,” Bitonio said. “The players weren’t executing what was called. We hadn’t really figured it out.”
“I still question the fit between Deshaun and Stefanski,” an NFL scouting director said. “He doesn’t throw with rhythm, on time. And Cleveland, playing in those conditions, it needs a steady run game, not a spread-it-out attack.”
A team source pushed back on that slightly, calling it “a little too pronounced” to assume Watson can’t operate Stefanski’s play-action or Stefanski can’t adapt to Watson. It’s possible Watson can run Stefanski’s style — there have been flashes like a 2023 win at Baltimore when it has seemed as if he could — it’s just not his strong suit.
When Winston took over as QB1 with Watson lost for the 2024 season to the Achilles injury and the Browns sitting at 1-6, Stefanski relinquished playcalling to Dorsey. This prompted Winston to approach Stefanski with questions, according to a player source. Winston had signed with the Browns in part because of his eagerness to run Stefanski’s offense, believing his strength lay with play-action and under-center work. Stefanski, the source recalled, was understanding of Winston’s concerns and told him to trust the staff’s ability to maximize his skill set and retain elements with which he was comfortable.
No big announcement was made to the team or offense regarding the playcaller change, according to multiple player sources. One player found out when Stefanski was asked during a midweek news conference. Another noticed when the week of preparation began and Dorsey was the one calling plays.
The change wasn’t met with any strong negative feelings, according to multiple players, with one characterizing the playcaller shift as the natural order of things for a struggling offense. Another player source thought the change would lead to a more aggressive approach from Dorsey, who has typically been more pass-happy as a playcaller.
“We thought we were about to eat,” the source said. “We have a good playbook.”
Whatever Winston’s initial reservations, the Winston-Dorsey marriage brought some improvement in Cleveland. Opposing coordinators say Dorsey did an impressive job of cutting the field in half to define Winston’s reads so he could take advantage of his arm. Dorsey’s offense also showed less reliance on the two-TE sets and play-action gap schemes that were a Stefanski/Callahan staple. A Winston-authored upset of the first-place Steelers on a snowy Thursday night in November was among the team’s few 2024 highlights.
But Winston was benched in December after throwing eight interceptions over a three-game stretch, prompting a change to Thompson-Robinson, who through two 2024 starts has not provided much of a spark. Stefanski did not immediately commit to a starting QB for Saturday’s finale, and he later said both Thompson-Robinson and current third-stringer Bailey Zappe could see time.
The struggles on offense have affected the defense, which has been on the field for 1,004 snaps through 16 games — the exact number the 2023 defense played over 17 games. Team sources felt the defense, which suffered several key injuries in the front seven, tried to overcompensate for the failings of the offense and pressed as a result. On special teams, kicker Dustin Hopkins has followed up a strong 2023 by missing a league-high nine kicks this season.
The season has raised more questions than it has clarified, with the plans at quarterback featuring most prominently in the debate.
Should Stefanski revert to the scheme he feels most comfortable with in 2025, even if it’s not the best fit for Watson? Should Dorsey, who was hired with the belief he’d get the most out of Watson, have an opportunity to call the plays for Watson? How do Winston and Thompson-Robinson fit in, if at all?
These are the football questions, but they’re not the only questions the Browns must face, nor are they the most difficult questions. Can Watson regain his confidence? Is it possible for him to regain it in Cleveland?
Watson, who has visited Cleveland multiple times since the injury for rehab checkups, has given the impression that he still very much wants to make it work with the Browns and help bring Cleveland a winner, a source close to the player said.
But what must happen to ensure he delivers?
“I think the main thing for him is getting full command of the offense and operating it consistently,” the source said.
Evaluators have not given up on Watson’s talents but say he must get the mental side together. Getty Images
A CORNER HAD been turned on Nov. 12, 2023. Or so the Browns thought.
On the road, against one of the league’s best teams in a heated divisional game, Watson stood tall in the pocket to lead Cleveland to a 33-31 comeback victory over eventual AFC No. 1 seed Baltimore, completing all 14 of his second-half attempts for 134 yards and a touchdown.
The Browns, who had built a winning roster around a quarterback who had yet to take flight, flashed the enormous potential promised. There had been previous glimpses, but this felt different.
“There was momentum internally and externally [for Watson] coming out of the Baltimore game,” a Browns personnel source said. “The great what-if.”
The optimism lasted a few hours. Watson hurt his throwing shoulder during the comeback, on a 16-yard scramble late in the fourth quarter, and an MRI revealed a displaced fracture to the glenoid in his shoulder. He would miss the remainder of the season.
Nothing has been the same since that last play in Baltimore. Any vision of Watson revitalizing the Browns’ passing attack vaporized in 2024.
As Watson rehabs another injury in Miami, more than 1,200 miles away from his teammates, the rest of the NFL world wonders where he will be in eight months. Even when considering the difficulty of recovering from an Achilles tear — Aaron Rodgers and Kirk Cousins both had substandard seasons in 2024 coming off the same injury, though both are considerably older than the 29-year-old Watson — the physical is not the chief concern for most league observers.
“If he’s right mentally, then he should be able to win a quarterback competition in two days with his athleticism and arm,” an NFL coordinator said of Watson.
But the mental piece is a variable that can’t be quantified, and perhaps partially a byproduct of Watson’s lack of time on task at the game’s toughest position. When combining his Houston holdout, his 11-game suspension for violation of the league’s personal conduct policy and his injuries, Watson has been available for just 19 regular-season games since 2021.
Coaches and evaluators have not given up on Watson’s raw ability, and the former first-round pick is viewed as a hard worker and a good teammate within the locker room. How he is perceived off the field is tougher to square.
Watson made national headlines after more than two dozen women accused him of sexual assault and inappropriate conduct during massage sessions, leading to his 2022 suspension. Whether it had more to do with his football or off-field past, cheers were audible at Huntington Bank Field when Watson lay injured on the turf in October, drawing a rebuke from some of Watson’s teammates. He has yet to win the support of many Cleveland fans who, beyond any moral complications, generally view his $230 million contract as an albatross.
“I still think he’s super talented,” an NFL coordinator said. “But it appears to be a neck-up issue, and with the personal stuff, football has become secondary. You can’t ignore the fan base. If they don’t accept him, he’ll never have a chance to improve.”
Some in the building agree that Watson’s issues are related to confidence, and say even with 21 missed games in the past two seasons because of injury, the notion he has physically deteriorated might be overblown.
“There’s nothing in his physical skill set that suggests he can’t still be productive,” a team source said.
Watson suffered his second season-ending injury in as many years against the Bengals on Oct. 20.
Cutting Watson now would cost the Browns $92 million in cash and $119 million in dead salary cap if designated as a post-June 1 release ($173 million if a pre-June 1 cut). The team reworked Watson’s contract Dec. 27, adding two void years to the deal, which allows Cleveland to push out his dead salary cap figure into 2030 when the salary cap will make its standard incremental increase and the dead cap hit isn’t as pronounced. The move signals Watson will likely be on the Browns roster in 2025 and possibly 2026.
Additional void years or not, cutting Watson now would easily break league records set when the Broncos parted ways with Russell Wilson last year. The Broncos paid all but $1 million of Wilson’s $39 million in 2024 guarantees, along with planning around $53 million in dead money. Several league sources believe that like with Wilson, no team would take on Watson’s contract in a trade, even if heavily discounted.
“Holding on just because of the money will only prolong the inevitable,” an NFL national scout of the Browns’ QB decision. “You saw what Denver did, and they are doing OK. The Browns would just have to do that on a bigger scale.”
Browns team sources acknowledge it is safe to assume Watson will be back with the team in some capacity in 2025, but also caution it’s “too early” to make sweeping determinations. They also acknowledge Watson’s injury history “has to” be a factor in its plan going forward, and status quo in the quarterback room isn’t an option given the tumult of this season. One team source said “any veteran with starter’s talent” will be evaluated by the Browns, including current Atlanta Falcons backup Kirk Cousins, should he become available as expected. The source conceded that Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold, considered the top free agent quarterback, could prove too costly, assuming he’s even on the market. But the goal is clear: Strengthen the quarterback room with the resources at the team’s disposal.
The working theory leaguewide is the Browns keep Watson for one more year and foster competition with another veteran and/or draft pick, tightening the walls around Watson and forcing him to win the job. Team sources consider such a scenario — Watson battling it out with another vet for QB1 status in camp — possible. The Browns also have a 93.2% chance of having a top-5 pick in April’s draft.
“What do you say to your team if you bring [Watson] back [to start]?” a veteran NFL player agent said. “My guess is they take someone very high in the draft.”
The team won’t rule out a Winston return, per team sources. Thompson-Robinson, the starter in Weeks 16 and 17, could return as a backup. The free agent quarterback class includes Flacco, Wilson, Justin Fields, Jarrett Stidham, Carson Wentz, Andy Dalton and Jacoby Brissett, who was adequate as a starter for Cleveland in 2022. Bucs backup Kyle Trask, a former Day 2 pick, has been buried behind Tom Brady and Baker Mayfield on the Buccaneers’ depth chart for four years but is an intriguing talent who could drive a market in March.
Some around the league have noted that Cousins, benched by the Falcons in Week 16, once played for Stefanski in Minnesota and could be available on the cheap this offseason. Atlanta owes Cousins $27.5 million in guarantees and is expected to cut him before a $10 million roster bonus is due in March. Cousins had one of his best NFL seasons under Stefanski’s playcalling in 2019, with a 69.1 completion percentage and 26 touchdowns to six interceptions. Getting him for the league minimum and channeling some of that pre-injury efficiency — while also potentially drafting and developing a young quarterback — could be a winning strategy for Cleveland.
“[The Browns] need to go get their guy,” an AFC executive said. “If it’s safe to assume that Deshaun is not that, then there’s really no other choice.”
Berry (left) and Stefanski will be under pressure to strengthen the team heading into a pivotal 2025. AP Photo/Ron Schwane, FIle
AS RUMORS AND speculation swirled about Stefanski’s job security earlier this season, multiple players publicly and privately expressed support for him. Two locker room sources said Stefanski’s messaging has not grown stale despite the team’s s
