Browns part ways with their VP of player personnel

Andrew Berry has quickly gotten to work on restructuring the Browns.

A day after Berry was officially hired as Cleveland’s general manager, the team parted ways with vice president of player personnel Alonzo Highsmith, a person familiar with the Browns’ front-office shakeup told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Highsmith, who was with Cleveland for two years, has left along with college scouting director Steve Malin, according to the person who spoke to the AP.

Highsmith’s departure was expected for weeks and happened once Berry returned after spending one season in Philadelphia as the Eagles’ vice president of football operations. Berry, who worked in Cleveland’s front office from 2016-18, is the NFL’s youngest GM and only the second African American currently serving in that role.

Highsmith had been rumored to be on his way out since Dec. 31, when GM John Dorsey resigned after two seasons. Dorsey brought Highsmith to Cleveland after working with him in Green Bay. Highsmith, who played six seasons in the NFL, has been linked to a possible job at the University of Miami, where he was a star running back for the Hurricanes in the 1980s.

Cleveland’s front office has been in almost constant turmoil since owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam bought the team in 2012.

Dorsey’s group, which included Highsmith and assistant GM Eliot Wolf, didn’t embrace some of the data provided by the Browns’ analytics department and something had to give.

The Browns were expected to contend this season but went just 6-10 amid endless drama. Coach Freddie Kitchens was fired after one season. He’s been replaced by former Vikings offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski, who is 37.

It remains to be seen if Berry and chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta will retain Wolf, the son of Hall of Fame executive Ron Wolf. Like Highsmith, Wolf was hired by Dorsey.