Browns Claim They "Walked Away From" Chip Kelly; Columnist is Happy Cleveland Passed

"The Browns walked away from Oregon coach Chip Kelly on Sunday afternoon because they weren’t certain his heart was 100 percent into leaving the Ducks,"

If this report is to be believed, it is so very Cleveland Browns.

It is precisely why the Browns have had one trip to the playoffs in the last 14 years. It is precisely why the Browns have had two winning seasons in the last 14 years (2002, 2007).

They don’t know talent when they see it. They’re afraid to make bold moves. They’re the cautious poker player who never goes all-in. Kelly was worth going all-in for.

Chip Kelly has been wildly successful at Oregon. In college, everyone seems to be emulating his exciting offense; it is even trickling into the pros. Yet at the first sign of reluctance from Kelly, the bumbling Browns ran the other way. Meanwhile, Philadelphia doubled-down, spending what appears to be about 10 hours courting Kelly. In the end, they lost him. So what?

You know who the Browns are looking at now? Guys like Ken Whisenhunt (eh), Lovie Smith (like), Jay Gruden (LMAO), and Bruce Arians (can we pump the brakes just a little?). I’ll let Plain-Dealer columnist Terry Pluto take it from here:

"But rather than feeling rejected because Kelly wasn’t sold on the Browns and the talks fell apart for whatever reason, I’m relieved … I don’t want a coach who will re-invent the game, a coach such as Kelly with no pro experience. Nor do I want a coach who has power over the college draft — and that’s why the Browns maybe should reverse their field and hire a general manager first. As for a coach … when I mentioned names such as Ken Whisenhunt, Bruce Arians and Lovie Smith — many fans moan … If they want to try something different, how about Brad Seely? The veteran special teams coach (now with San Francisco) has a knack of organization and success. John Harbaugh was a veteran special teams coach when hired by Baltimore in 2008."

Ahhhh, mediocrity. A good look for Cleveland.