The 2014 Cleveland Browns The Offseason Plan of Attack: Coaching - The Browns have been a losing franchise for a long time now. When taking this team over, the goal was not only to bring great players to this team, but it was also to bring a different culture. The first thing we needed to do with that in mind was to hire a coach who would bring some fresh ideas and a winning attitude, and the guy who we decided to go hard after was Gus Malzahn. We felt Malzahn is one of the brightest minds in all of football and is a guy that has won on every level he's coached at. We truly feel he is a star NFL head coach in the making. With Malzahn on board, and an plan for quarterback in the back of my head that I'll get into later, we looked at a bright young coach that we feel could work under Malzahn to become a good offensive coordinator in Ken Dorsey. Malzahn will call the plays, but Dorsey is coming off of a great job as QB coach in Carolina. For defensive coordinator, we went to the best defensive unit in the NFL and took Legion of Boom, DB coach Kris Richard. His resume speaks for itself obviously and we think he's another guy with a very bright future. Trades - After locking our coaching staff up, it was time to be aggressive in the trade market in order to bring in big time talent and winners to this roster. The most important position on any team is quarterback, so that was where we were most aggressive. With Malzahn heading things up we badly wanted to pair him with Cam Newton, and from day 1 made that our priority. We made some other big trades and even had to trade for RGIII just to give Carolina a good QB in return to get Newton. While in discussions with Carolina we took a shot at adding not only their best player on offense (Newton), but their best player on defense as well in Luke Kuechly, who we feel is the best LB in the NFL. We had to give to get, but we felt this was a franchise changing move and pulled the trigger on the pair. Throughout the trade period we brought in elite talents like Newton, Kuechly, Arian Foster, Micheal Crabtree, Mike Wallace, Brian Cushing, and Clay Matthews while retaining our two best free agents Alex Mack and TJ Ward. Free Agency - We felt like we filled the majority of our holes in trades, but needed to make some important 'smaller' moves in free agency to round out our roster. Our biggest signing was CB Jonthan Banks, a second year corner that was released by Tampa so they could chase one of the big free agents. Banks was a 2nd round pick in 2013 and had a nice rookie year. We also added starting safety Rafael Bush, starting nose tackle Cam Thomas, and starting guard Jeremy Zuttah along with some other role player types. The Draft - Going into the draft we had no remaining holes and felt we could go best player available at every pick. There were areas we wanted to upgrade, but we weren't going to have to sacrifice value to do that. We felt we got good value on all of our players, but we were especially happy with the Zack Martin, Gabe Jackson, and Devonta Freeman picks because we felt the value was excellent and they will all contribute right away. Summary - Overall we really feel like we executed our plan even better than we had hoped for. We knew we had money and picks to play with, but we feel like we took a bad team and turned them into a team that can compete for a Super Bowl right away and will be good for a long time. HC: Gus Malzahn OC: Ken Dorsey DC: Kris Richard Roster Quarterback: $ Cam Newton QB $7,008,113 Pat Devlin QB $495,000 Jeff Matthews QB $450,00 Runningback: $ Arian Foster RB $8,500,000 Devonta Freeman RB $600,000 Chris Ogbonnaya RB $750,000 Fozzy Whittaker RB $495,000 Wide Receiver: $ Michael Crabtree WR $4,770,443 Mike Wallace WR $8,625,000 Davante Adams WR $900,000 Charles Johnson WR $495,000 Conner Vernon WR $420,000 Tight End: $ Jordan Cameron TE $1,508,350 Gavin Escobar TE $956,931 A.C. Leonard TE $450,00 Offensive Line: $ Alex Mack C $14,000,000 Jeremy Zuttah OL $500,000 Garrett Gilkey T $507,848 Jason Pinkston G $1,436,000 Joe Thomas T $12,300,000 Reid Fragel T $495,000 Eben Britton OL $500,000 Zack Martin T $1,950,000 Gabe Jackson G $700,000 Defensive Line: $ Armonty Bryant DE $511,375 Brian Sanford DE $645,000 Cam Henderson DE $420,000 Ishmaa'ily Kitchen NT $570,000 John Hughes DT $706,035 Mike Martin DT $731,890 Cam Thomas NT $500,000 Kelcy Quarles DT/DE $600,000 Linebackers: $ Luke Kuechly LB $3,430,528 LB Brian Cushing LB $5,546,875 Clay Matthews LB $10,943,750 Brandon Graham LB $3,378,000 Craig Robertson LB $$495,000 Justin Durant LB $495,000 Phillip Hunt LB $495,000 Chris Smith OLB $550,000 Howard Jones OLB $450,000 Defensive Backs: $ TJ Ward S $8,242,000 Jonthan Banks CB $8,500,000 Rafael Bush S $495,000 Buster Skrine CB $1,439,500 Jamoris Slaughter S $420,000 Joe Haden CB $8,827,895 Johnson Bademosi DB $570,834 Jordan Poyer CB $495,000 Josh Aubrey S $496,666 Leon McFadden CB $704,751 Special Teams: $ Chris Boswell K $450,000 Total Salary: $129,922,784 Trade for Signed in FA Drafted Depth Chart QB: Cam Newton / Pat Devlin / Jeff Matthews HB: Arian Foster / Devonta Freeman / Fozzy Whittaker FB: Chris Ogbonnaya TE: Jordan Cameron / Gavin Escobar / A.C. Leonard WR: Michael Crabtree / Davante Adams / Connor Vernon WR: Mike Wallace / Charles Johnson LT: Joe Thomas / Reid Fragel LG: Jeremy Zuttah / Garrett Gilkey C: Alex Mack / Jeremy Zuttah RG: Gabe Jackson / Jason Pinkston RT: Zack Martin / Ebben Britton Offensive Breakdown - In 2013, the Browns were a one-man show relying on Josh Gordon for almost all of their offensive production. I'd be lying if I said I knew he was about to be suspended and that's why I took that king's ransom for him in a trade. I did realize a future suspension was a possibility with Gordon, but I still valued him very highly and took that deal to make the Browns a better all-around team. In the end, on top of all of the picks, I got the better WR as Michael Crabtree will be our go to guy at WR this year. I feel his game fits very well opposite Mike Wallace, and Jordan Cameron will continue to threaten the seam. Arian Foster will finally be the stud HB they've been looking for in Cleveland and we fully expect him to bounce back after an injury plagued year last year to regain his place atop the list of backs in the NFL. Obviously the most important name on that list is Cam Newton. We gave up a high draft pick just to get a QB who was good enough to send to Carolina to get him along with quite a few other pieces, but we feel it is well worth it. We think he's the type of quarterback the NFL has never seen before and he's coming off of his best year as a pro. We feel that getting him back together with the college coach that made him what he was at Auburn, in Gus Malzahn, is going to take him to the level of being one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, if not the best. We are also very happy with the two offensive skill players we drafted in Adams and Freeman and expect them both to play an important role on our offense. The line will be led by veterans Joe Thomas and Alex Mack, but we love the new additions we brought in in Martin, Jackson, and Zuttah and feel this will be one of the best lines in the NFL. LE: John Hughes / Armonty Bryant / Kelcy Quarles NT: Cam Thomas / Ishmaa'ily Kitchen RE: Mike Martin / Cam Henderson / Brian Sanford LOLB: Brandon Graham / Craig Robertson / Phillip Hunt ILB: Luke Kuechly / Justin Durant ILB: Brian Cushing / Justin Durant ROLB: Clay Matthews / Chris Smith / Howard Jones CB: Joe Haden / Buster Skrine / Jordan Poyer CB: Jonthan Banks / Leon McFadden FS: Rafael Bush / Jordan Poyer SS: TJ Ward / Jamoris Slaughter / Johnson Bademosi Defensive Breakdown: Let's start off with the linebackers who are probably the most impressive unit in the NFL. I already mentioned that we feel Kuechly is the best linebacker in the NFL, but we don't think Cushing or Matthews are that far behind. Cushing and Matthews will be reunited from their USC days where they wreaked havoc on the NCAA. They will both make it a long day for opposing quarterbacks. Graham is the only player in the group who isn't a star, but he is a very solid player that will have a much easier time playing with those guys next to him. The defensive line is a blue collar group that isn't made up of big names, but will flat out get it done. We feel our secondary is another strength as Haden is one of the best corners in the NFL and Ward is one of the best safeties. Banks will team up with Haden to form a young, physical duo and Buster Skrine has shown some promise and will be our slot corner. Rafael Bush is a guy who performed when he was given the chance in New Orleans and we expect him to get even better. Jordan Poyer is a guy I liked a lot coming out of college last year and is someone who we feel can play both safety and corner for us. Free Agent Signing: Draft: Trades:
Cuts Jason Campbell QB $3,250,000 Alex Tanney QB $495,000 Edwin Baker RB $495,000 Jamaine Cook RB $420,000 Davone Bess WR $3,067,000 Josh Cooper WR $570,000 Brian Tyms WR $495,000 Andre Smith TE $570,000 MarQueis Gray TE $495,000 Keavon Milton TE $495,000 Chris Faulk T $423,333 Martin Wallace T $497,000 Brandon Magee LB $495,000 Darius Eubanks LB $495,000 Paul Hazel LB $495,000 Eric Martin LB $495,000 Brandon Hughes CB $645,000 T.J. Heath CB $570,000 Spencer Lanning P $495,000 Brandon Bogotay K $421,666 Gary Barnidge TE $1,150,000 Tori Gurley WR $495,000 Jeremiah Warren G $420,000 Christian Yount LB $645,000 Justin Staples LB $420,000 Quentin Groves LB $1,100,000 Julian Posey CB $495,000 Jake Locker QB $4,004,637
Draft Picks 1.31 - Zack Martin, OL, Notre Dame 2.49 - Davante Adams, WR, Fresno St. 3.78 - Gabe Jackson, OG, Mississippi St. 4.107 - Kelcy Quarles, DT/DE, South Carolina 4.113 - Devonta Freeman, HB, Florida St 5.133 - Chris Smith, OLB, Arkansas 7.195 - AC Leonard, TE, Tennesse St. 7.204 - Howard Jones, OLB, Shepherd 7.219 - Jeff Matthews, QB, Cornell 7.220 - Chris Boswell, K, Rice
Signings Alex Mack C $14,000,000 TJ Ward S $8,242,000 Justin Durant LB $495,000 Johnthan Banks CB $8,500,000 Eben Britton OL $500,000 Cam Thomas NT $500,000 Jeremy Zuttah OL $500,000 Rafael Bush S $495,000 Pat Devlin QB $495,000 Phillip Hunt OLB $495,000
Trades Chicago sends: 3rd (82) Matt Slauson G $2,747,500 Cleveland sends: Desmond Bryant DE/DT $4,000,000 Brian Hoyer QB $1,250,000 ______________________________________________________ Houston sends RB Arian Foster $8,500,000 Cleveland sends NT Ahtyba Rubin $8,175,000 ______________________________________________________ San Francisco Sends: Michael Crabtree ($4,770,443) 1st (30) 2nd (61) 3rd (75 (from RAMS)) 7th (219) 7th (220) Browns Send: Josh Gordon ($1,456,813) ______________________________________________________ Miami sends: Mike Wallace WR $17,250,000 Cleveland sends: 3rd (71) 4th (122) 6th (164) ______________________________________________________ Chicago sends 4.113 Browns send Travis Benjamin WR $689,250 ______________________________________________________ Browns send: 2nd [61 (from SF)] Texans send: LB Brian Cushing $5,546,875 _______________________________________________________ Titans send: Jake Locker QB $4,004,637 6th (172) Browns send: John Greco G $2,430,000 ________________________________________________________ Washington sends: Robert Griffin III QB $5,759,754 Cleveland sends: 1st (4) 3rd (83) ________________________________________________________ Bears send: 6 (167) Browns send: Greg Little WR $1,058,750 ________________________________________________________ Lions send: 7.204 Browns send: Brandon Weeden QB $2,204,617 _________________________________________________________ Panthers send: Cam Newton QB $7,008,113 Luke Kuechly LB $3,430,528 Browns send: Robert Griffin III QB $5,759,754 Mitchell Schwartz T $1,410,229 Phillip Taylor NT $2,575,125 Barkevious Mingo LB $3,715,228 1st (30) 2nd (35) 6th (172) _________________________________________________________ Titans send: 3rd (85) Browns send: D'Qwell Jackson LB $9,433,333 _________________________________________________________ Browns send: Billy Winn DT $589,670 Eagles send: OLB/DE Brandon graham $3,378,000 __________________________________________________________ Cowboys send: Gavin Escobar $956,931 Browns send: 3rd (85) __________________________________________________________ Dallas sends: 3rd (78) Cleveland sends: Jabaal Sheard LB $1,619,625 6.167 __________________________________________________________ Titans Send DT - Mike Martin - 731, 890 Browns Send HB - Dion Lewis - 645, 000 ___________________________________________________________ Browns send: Matt Slauson G $2,747,500 Tashaun Gipson S $570,500 3rd (82) Packers send: Clay Matthews LB $10,943,750 ___________________________________________________________ Denver Sends 4th rounder (107) Browns send OLB Paul Kruger $8,200,000 ___________________________________________________________ Browns send: 1st (26) 3rd (75) 4th (102) Texans send: 1st (31) 2nd (49)
