Dorsey making Browns’ coaching job the one to get

The Browns coaching search is in good hands if John Dorsey can evaluate that kind of talent as well as he ran the 2018 draft.

Wise men say a draft shouldn’t be judged for three years, but that usually means waiting three years until admitting a player drafted highly is a failure. Impatient owners rarely wait that long (Jimmy Haslam is not alone) when failures pile up because when a coach and general manager of one regime is replaced by another, the new guy gets rid of the dead wood from the old regime and starts over.

Dorsey sweeps with a wide broom. Thirty-five players on the Browns current 53-man roster were not on the 0-16 team of 2017. That explains why the new players such as cornerback T.J. Carrie and safety Damarious Randall believe the Browns, 3-61, still have a shot at the playoffs.

Dorsey acquired Randall from the Green Bay Packers in exchange for quarterback DeShone Kizer. He signed Carrie in free agency.

Baker Mayfield, chosen by Dorsey with the first pick in the 2018 draft, has been rejuvenated since Freddie Kitchens was elevated to offensive coordinator on Oct. 29 when head coach Hue Jackson and offensive coordinator Todd Haley were fired.

Running back Nick Chubb, picked 35th overall, has become a focal point of the offense since Dorsey traded starting running back Carlos Hyde to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Oct. 19 for a fifth-round draft choice. What seemed to me like a bad idea at the time has turned out to be an excellent move — not because of the fifthround draft pick but because it forced the coaches to play Chubb.

The Hyde trade proved something else. It proved Dorsey is putting team success ahead of his own report card because Dorsey signed Hyde in free agency.

Interim head coach Gregg Williams, asked to evaluate Chubb through the eyes of a defensive coordinator plotting to stop the rookie from Georgia, gave an answer that indicates Chubb will not be a one-year wonder.

“He’s a powerful runner,” Williams said. “He’s a strong runner. He protects the football very well. The things that you have to be able to do if you’re going to take a step above everybody else or be looked at as being one of the upand-comers is his overall vision. You can’t coach that. You either have that or you don’t.

“His vision and his awareness — He has very good vision. He has very good instincts. Just like Baker, the more that he plays and the more confidence that he gets with each offensive lineman that he plays with and each tight end or receiver cracking or blocking for him, too, that helps his instincts also. He has done very well. With the reps that he has gotten, he has matured very well.”

Rookie cornerback Denzel Ward was chosen by Dorsey with the fourth overall pick in 2018. His statistics have dropped off in recent weeks, but that’s because opponents have learned to throw away from him.

Linebacker Genard Avery, selected in the fifth round, has showed flashes that he has a bright future and might challenge Christian Kirksey for a starting job in 2019.

The only high pick Dorsey did not hit on immediately is offensive lineman Austin Corbett, but don’t be surprised if Corbett wins a starting job next season.

The Browns are set to compete for the AFC North title by 2019, which brings us back to the coaching search.

“This (coaching) job is very attractive,” Dorsey said recently. “It’s kind of like for the very same reasons when I joined here in 2017; it’s very attractive. Any future head coaching candidate, whoever it may be, he understands the fan base here, which is unbelievable.

“There are a lot of young talent on this team, and they will continue to get talent. There are assets in place. The (salary) cap position that we’re in right now is great. We have 11 draft picks for the 2019 season. I’ve been around some franchises, and I will say this, this is the best support staff there is in the National Football League that I’ve been around.”

Dorsey praised the commitment of owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam.

Dorsey is too modest to include himself as one of the Browns assets. The next head coach, even it turns out to be Williams, will know a very capable general manager is going to make the football team better. Free agents will be more willing to sign with the Browns for the same reason.

For once, the Browns won’t have to settle for table scraps in their coaching search. That’s because head coaches will want to work for Dorsey.

Schudel can be reached at JSchudel@News-Herald. com; on Twitter: @JSProInsider

TONY DEJAK — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE Browns general manager John Dorsey has turned the Browns roster over to the point where the head coaching job is not one that most candidates would shy away from.