I like — I really, truly like to the max — the selection of Jim Schwartz as the new defensive coordinator of the Browns, especially on the 30th anniversary of his being hired as a low-low-low-level scout with the team.

Hopefully, he lasts longer than the first time, when he stayed for three seasons (1993-95) before getting jettisoned when the franchise was jettisoned and went to Baltimore.

Schwartz checks all the requisite boxes in that he is a proven, accomplished defensive coordinator who has head-coaching experience. Plus he knows the importance of the Browns to the region and to the fanbase, and thus he understands the importance of making this defense, and this team overall, both of which are hot messes right now, championship-caliber again.

I am confident this hire will serve the Browns very well going forward. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind.

But there’s another thought on this, and the impetus for it comes from the time of Schwartz’s first stint with the Browns.

What if, instead, the Browns had bypassed Schwartz for one of the other candidates, such as the several young, up-and-comers? Is one of those guys destined to be a superstar coach? Are the Browns missing out on a diamond in the rough?

Think about it, on those early 1990s Browns:

Bill Belichick was just another young, standout coordinator trying to learn how to be a good head coach.

Defensive coordinator Nick Saban was known only for his having played at Kent State and then bring the head coach at Toledo for all of one season.

Pro Personnel Director Ozzie Newsome had been a game-changing tight end, but there was no indication that he knew anything about talent evaluation.

Who in the world was this new offensive line coach named Kirk Ferentz? The media people collectively said, with a sarcastic laugh, “The Browns just hired the head coach of the Maine Bears. That should definitely swing the balance of power in the AFC Central.”

Who were all these other unknown assistant coaches such as Scott O’Brien, Pat Hill, Jim Bates, Al Groh, Kevin Spencer and Mike Sheppard? Will they amount to anything?

The public relations interns were named Eric Mangini and Bo Pellini. They needed to just fill up the pop machine in the media room and stay out of the way.

And these obscure young scouts, guys like Phil Savage and Jim Schwartz, why do they even have jobs?

Indeed, Schwartz’s photo in the 1993 Browns media guide looked like that of a 14-year-old eighth-grader who could have been ambling down the hallway of your local middle school.

No one had any hope for any of those guys. For crying out loud, I wrote, when Belichick got fired shortly after franchise went to Baltimore, that, “He will never, ever in a million, billion years get another head-coaching job in pro football.” How did that bold prediction work out?

Is there another young, budding Jim Schwartz type now who will end up being much better than the Jim Schwartz the Browns hired?

Steve King