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Cleveland Browns owner says he'll hire coach, then GM

Hours after firing coach Pat Shurmur and general manager Tom Heckert, new Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam III told reporters he won't meander in finding their replacements.

"We're going to begin very quickly to look for a new head coach first, then GM," Haslam said Monday, per The Plain Dealer.

Haslam and his hand-picked CEO, Joe Banner, refused to name candidates but confirmed their plans to bring in a coach who will maintain final say over the roster. If Banner's time with the Philadelphia Eagles is any indication, the Browns are looking for a high-profile coach to run the show instead of taking a backseat to the front office.

That's the reverse of the model under which Shurmur and Heckert operated. Banner said the Browns are "extremely confident" about attracting high-profile talent despite just two winning seasons since the team's re-launch in 1999.

Names like Oregon's Chip Kelly and Penn State's Bill O'Brien have been tossed around -- even Chucky's back in the mix -- and Haslam repeatedly said he wants the Browns' sixth head coach since 1999 to be their last for years to come.

"We smiled at ourselves last night and said, 'Now we got to go to work and get this right,' " Haslam said.

That has been easier said than done in Cleveland.

Follow Marc Sessler on Twitter @MarcSesslerNFL.

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