When new Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam bought the franchise and hired new president Joe Banner, formally of the Philadelphia Eagles, the plan is to take a long-term approach to turn the franchise around. Banner has made clear that there will be no changes made until after the season, which means current general manager Tom Heckert and head coach Pat Schumar will remain with the team for the time being while current team president Mike Holmgren will retire after the season.
When Joe Banner joined Pro Football Talk Live on Saturday, Banner insists that regardless of job titles and franchise structure, he will be looking for the right mix of people to make the organization structurally sound and remain consistently competitive year in, year out.
Banner also stated that more changes will be forthcoming to the offense and defense in terms of philosophy, but that the changes that will be made will be made for the long-term, not the short-term in the hopes of creating something the Browns have lacked since their re-entry into the league in 1999, and that is stability. One needs to look to further than the Pittsburgh Steelers and Philadelphia Eagles, where both Banner and Haslam came from as a model for the franchise stability they are hoping to maintain.
Adam Shefter from ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown reported that Banner will have the final say on all trades this year. The NFL’s Trade Deadline has been moved to October 30th.
