New Browns coordinator Ken Dorsey is fine with not calling plays, if that's what Kevin Stefanski wants. (TheLandOnDemand)
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.
Takeaways from Ken Dorsey introductory press conference …
Kevin Stefanski introduced new offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey on Monday without taking questions.
So there was no clarity on whether the Browns’ head coach will hand off offensive play-calling to Dorsey, no reason to dispute the widespread notion that ex-coordinator Alex Van Pelt was the scapegoat for Deshaun Watson’s unsatisfactory progress in two years as a $230 million franchise quarterback, and no insight on the successor to MVP offensive line guru Bill Callahan.
Stefanski typically pooh-poohed the play-calling issue, saying, “We’ll get there … it’s February 5.”
His closing remarks, though, indicated the organization’s (read: ownership’s) dissatisfaction with the offense in general.
“What’s most important, what I’m looking forward to the most, is putting this offense back together with Ken really leading the charge. And that’s why he’s here and really pleased to have him here,” Stefanski said.
It’s all about No. 4
The marching orders to Dorsey, obviously, are to help re-design the offense to maximize Watson’s skill-set and bring out his best – which the Browns have yet to see in his 11 1/4 games with them over two seasons.
(This mandate begs the question: Why didn’t the Browns even interview Tim Kelly, who was Houston’s offensive coordinator during Watson’s glory days with the Texans and called the plays in 2020 when Watson led the NFL in passing? Kelly moved on to Tennessee in 2023 and was purged when the Titans fired head coach Mike Vrabel.)
The Browns’ press release on Dorsey cited his work with dual-threat quarterbacks Cam Newton in Carolina and Josh Allen in Buffalo.
Dorsey called Watson “one of the top quarterbacks in the league” and said he was excited for “the opportunity to really go out there this season and help him prove that he really is a top quarterback in this league that can operate and help us win a bunch of football games.”
As for the end product of what Dorsey/Stefanski are seeking to build on offense with Watson, Dorsey’s discussion of Newton and Allen provide a clue.
“Their ability to get outside the pocket, create, make plays, third down, extend plays and put a defense in a bind,” he said. “There’s some teams that affect kind of how they call the game and how they game-plan their rushes and their blitzes and those types of things. Because you got a guy that can hurt him if he gets outside the pocket or breaks contained.
“Again, every one of these guys is very different, but I think there’s things you could take away, whether it’s the run game, the zone read game, the RPO game, because all those things, a lot of times you can’t necessarily teach them. It’s a natural feel that these guys have. And watching Deshaun, he clearly has a great feel for a lot of different aspects of football. Whether it’s scheme-wise for us, instincts of what he sees on the field in terms of the defense and adjusting things. But I think that’s the exciting part about working with him, is getting back to the elite level of who he is.”
Staying on the field
Watson played only five game plus one quarter in 2023 because of a mircro-tear injury to his right rotator cuff and then a displaced fracture of the glenoid bone in his right shoulder. He also played one half with a high ankle sprain.
So I asked Dorsey if he believes Watson has “a feel” for protecting himself on the field and whether he can help with that.
“Look, I think all these guys are so competitive,” Dorsey answered. “They want to win. Deshaun wants to win, and he’s going to do anything humanly possible to help this football team win games. And sometimes that’s putting your body on the line to do so.
“Now what we got to do is make sure we’re evaluating when we’re doing those things. Is it first down and we’re scrambling? We got a first down already. Get down, get out of bounds and save yourself the hit, and those types of things.
“Those are all things that we’ll look at because clearly this team is at a different level when he’s on the field. And that’s the thing that we want to do as a staff, is make sure we’re communicating to him and him communicating with us, kind of what he’s feeling, what he’s seeing, and making sure we’re doing everything possible to keep him healthy.”
About that opening script of plays
Watson recently said on a podcast that he doesn’t necessarily like starting a game with a set of plays scripted by the coaches. Every team does this, of course.
Dorsey’s reaction:
“I think, one, as a coach and player relationship, there are some things that are non-negotiables where it’s like, ‘Look this is the way we’re doing it,’ and understand there might be some pushback, but this will help us at the end of the day, this will help us win football games.’
“And then there are some things that you communicate with them and ask what are you comfortable with? Where are you at with this? Because there’s the factor of, yes, if he feels comfortable with it, but then there’s also a whole offense you got to consider with that stuff as well.
“In terms of that, we’re not quite there yet. There will definitely be conversations about things like that down the line. But that’s step 75 or so and we’re on step five.”
On calling plays
In 1 ½ seasons as offensive coordinator of the Buffalo Bills, Dorsey called plays from the upstairs coach’s box. Without any other offers following his dismissal in November, he was in no position to demand play-calling duties from Stefanski.
Kellen Moore, another Browns candidate, did receive play-calling duties with the Philadelphia Eagles. Van Pelt, who was hired as coordinator by new New England coach Jerod Mayo, reportedly will call plays for the Patriots.
Dorsey said, “Play-calling to me is not as important as winning football games. To me, it’s more about what’s the decision that we feel most comfortable about moving forward to help our team win?
“And I’ve been in my career more interested about, okay, what can I do to help this team win more so than anything else. And that’s the only thing that matters to me.”
Brownie bits
Stefanski called the defection of Callahan to Tennessee to work for his son, Brian, who replaced Vrabel as Titans head coach a “very unique situation … I can’t wait for Brian to boss him around. The dream of every kid is to boss their parents around. So happy for those guys. Again, I think organizationally we realize that’s a unique situation and did not want to stand in the way of that.” …
Commissioner Roger Goodell announced on Monday that the Philadelphia Eagles will serve as the designated home team in the league’s first-ever game in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Their opponent will be announced later and will come from their home schedule in 2024. The Browns are possibility. Others, besides Philly’s NFC East rivals, are Atlanta, Carolina, Pittsburgh, Green Bay and Jacksonville. The game will be played on Friday night, September 6, the day after the now-traditional season-opener on Thursday night.