You want to know why the Browns are in the sorry shape they’re in?
You want to know why they’ve had 10 straight losing seasons?
You want to know why they’re coming off an 0-16 record and a two-year mark of 1-31?
You want to know why they’ve been to the playoffs just once, way back in the 2002 season (one game, which they lost), in the expansion era?
It’s because of the stupid things they’ve done in terms of player procurement, especially in the NFL Draft but also in free agency, and with hiring head coaches and general managers.
And the father of one of the men the Browns have just added as assistant general manager, Eliot Wolf, is a prime example of that.
Wolf, whose hiring was announced by the Browns on Wednesday along with that of Alonzo Highsmith as vice president of player personnel, is the son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Ron Wolf, one of the best general managers in NFL history during his time with the Green Bay Packers.
It was in the tenure of Browns head coach Butch Davis from 2001-04 that then club President Carmen Policy forced him to bring on Wolf as a consultant. Wolf had just retired but was willing to come in and lend his expertise to Davis and the Browns.
It was an exciting time for the Browns. Davis had done a good job of revitalizing the Browns, but there was a major hole in his operation in that he and the overmatched Pete Garcia, his buddy from their time together at the University of Miami, were serving as general manager and assistant GM, respectively.
Davis did not know what he was doing, and neither did Garcia. Policy realized that, which is why he insisted on bringing in Wolf.
But Davis would have none of it. He didn’t want to share any of those responsibilities. So he selfishly rejected Wolf’s help out of hand, frustrating Wolf and causing him to abruptly resign after just three weeks.
Without a veteran, knowledgeable guy like Wolf, the Browns predictably floundered in the draft and free agency.
How much different would the history of that era of the Browns, and beyond, been had Davis and Wolf worked together?
We’ll never know. But we do know that Davis resigned with six games left in the 2004 season with the team in shambles. The Browns are still in shambles now.
Eliot Wolf will have a lot more say-so here than his father had, which isn’t saying much. But perhaps he can really help get the Browns back on track.
