After allowing most of the talent to walk out the door and trading away many of their other assets to stockpile rookies and draft picks for the future, it became clear the Cleveland Browns weren't playing for 2016.
At 0-10, the Browns are deep into rebuild mode.
"We are not focused on wins and losses this year," executive VP of football operations Sashi Brown admitted to The MMQB's Jenny Vrentas.
The NBA's Philadelphia 76ers had "The Process," and in her excellent look at the current state of the Browns, Vrentas details "The Plan" Cleveland is trying to employ.
"I have never seen anything even close to this," left tackle Joe Thomas said. "It is probably one of the most extreme rebuilds in NFL history."
Thomas has been through many rebuilds before. The nine-time Pro Bowl blocker hasn't won more than seven games since his rookie season. He's seen four-win years three times and last year's team earn just three victories.
Even with all the losing, staring down 0-16 is a different beast. Circumstances are different than the 2008 Detroit Lions zero-win team. Then-coach Rod Marinelli was in his third season with the Lions. For seven years Matt Millen made decisions that were somehow more and more atrocious than his sweater choices.
"I never would have taken this job if I didn't know that, and if I didn't have assurance of that," Jackson says. "I know that, without question. That's not what I have ever been concerned about. They said, 'Hue, we are going to do this the right way. It might take a little time to get it to where it needs to be, but we are comfortable and confident in you, and you are the guy we want to have here to lead this team and this organization.' That's comforting."
For an organization that goes through coaches like a teenage girl swapping out boyfriends, stability is a welcome thought in Cleveland.
As the losses mount, the tension will grow within the organization -- Vrentas reports anxiety already on the rise. No one wants to go 0-16, but for now, the Browns are willing to see their plan through, whatever the cost.
