Jimmy Haslam's confidence in John Dorsey eroded in just his second year as GM. (SI.com)
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland.
The Browns are still without a general manager as the 2020 league business season draws nearer.
That office was vacated when owner Jimmy Haslam and chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta decided John Dorsey, 59, essentially was a dinosaur – a boots-on-the-ground talent evaluator with more than 30 years of NFL playing and scouting experience.
In the team’s first official statement on parting with Dorsey, owner Jimmy Haslam said, “As the role of the general manager continues to evolve in this league, we felt there were areas that needed to be reassessed.”
Asked to expound on the “evolving” role of GM, Haslam said, “I think it is going from just being a scout to somebody who is assessing players with the variety of, whether it be traditional scouting, whether it would be using data to help make decisions -- which is really what analytics is -- to coordinating other key functions in the organization.”
Which may be gobbledygook for, “Paul wanted somebody younger who would listen to him.”
There was no talk of an “evolving” role when Dorsey had a Midas touch in 2018 and his upgraded roster went 5-3 after the mid-season coaching change.
But when Dorsey’s decisions went south in 2019, he crossed hairs with the analytics team and Haslam seethed at the growing discord.
Dorsey’s worst call in 2019 was his first, of course, arguing for Freddie Kitchens as head coach over DePodesta’s candidate, Kevin Stefanski.
Below is a scorecard on other Dorsey major decisions in 2019.
Feb. 11: Signed running back Kareem Hunt.
Even considering Hunt’s eight-game NFL suspension, this low risk-high reward move paid off. Now, with Dorsey not around as an unofficial “life coach,” Hunt has to stay on the straight-and-narrow for this pick-up to result in high reward.
Feb. 25: Re-signed left tackle Greg Robinson.
A one-year prove-it deal seemed a sensible temporary solution at left tackle. It bought Dorsey a year to find and groom a permanent replacement. Alas, Robinson had a terrible year and critics second-guessed Dorsey’s lack of fallback plan at left tackle.
March 12-14: Terminated contract of tight end Darren Fells. Signed tight end Demetrius Harris.
This “trade” of former basketball players did not work out. Fells signed with Houston and produced seven touchdowns v. three drops for the Texans. Harris had three touchdowns and five drops for the Browns.
March 13: Traded guard Kevin Zeitler, safety Jabrill Peppers, first- and third-round picks to Giants for receiver Odell Beckham and defensive end Olivier Vernon.
This mega-trade produced enormous buzz, sold tickets, raised expectations and put the Browns on four prime-time games. Ultimately, neither team could claim it won the trade.
March 14: Signed defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson.
He had a typically solid season.
April 1: Traded defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah to Kansas City for safety Eric Murray.
Ogbah had 5.5 sacks in 10 games for the Super Bowl-bound Chiefs, which outperformed the 3.5 sacks in the same number of games of Vernon, his successor. Murray had one sack and one pass defensed. Big advantage: Chiefs.
April 25-27: Dorsey’s second draft.
Cornerback Greedy Williams (second round), linebacker Mack Wilson (fifth) and kicker Austin Seibert (fifth) were contributors as starters. Linebacker Sione Takitaki (third) and safety Sheldrick Redwine (fourth) were mostly special teamers. Offensive lineman Drew Forbes (sixth) was hurt most of the year. Cornerback Donnie Lewis (seventh) didn’t stick.
May 3: Undrafted rookies signed.
Punter Jamie Gillan was a hit and set the franchise record for net average. Tight end Stephen Carlson made some fancy catches near the end and could be a keeper. Safety J.T. Hassell contributed on special teams.
Aug. 8: Traded running back Duke Johnson to Houston for a conditional pick, which turned out to be the Texans’ expected supplemental pick at the end of the third round.
This was win-win. Dorsey got good value for an original third-round pick who had no future with the Browns and wanted to leave. Johnson filled a vital role with a good Houston team and earned his first career playoff appearance.
Aug. 29: Traded fifth- and sixth-round picks in 2020 to Buffalo for guard Wyatt Teller and Bills’ seventh-round pick in 2021.
This was necessitated by the failure of 2018 No. 33 overall pick Austin Corbett to seize the right guard spot vacated by the trade of Zeitler. Teller didn’t crack the starting lineup until the eighth game. He held it down the rest of the year and, at only 25, could be a fixture moving forward.
Oct. 15: Traded guard Austin Corbett to Rams for undisclosed 2021 pick.
Some viewed this as an admirable admission of error. Ultimately, it was the final act of Dorsey’s biggest draft mistake.
Oct. 28: Traded 2018 fifth-round pick linebacker Genard Avery to Eagles for undisclosed 2021 pick.
It didn’t make sense to give away Avery so early. Speculation was this move was dictated by the analytics department and escalated friction between Dorsey and DePodesta. Avery’s pass rush ability was sorely missed when Myles Garrett was lost to suspension.
Nov. 4: Waived safety Jermaine Whitehead.
A low-cost free agent signing in April, Whitehead was considered the key player in defensive coordinator Steve Wilks’ 4-2-5 base alignment. When he Tweeted chilling and threatening messages to critics from his locker following a pathetic performance in Denver, it raised further questions about Dorsey’s blind spot for character issues.
Nov. 14: Waived receiver Antonio Callaway.
A fourth-round “flier” in 2018 because of several character concerns at Florida, he blew multiple chances with the Browns and eroded confidence in Dorsey as a character evaluator.