The Browns may – or may not – be ready to hire Hue Jackson as their new head coach.

Or perhaps someone else.

And once they get their head coach in place, can the hiring of a general manager type be far behind?

But while adding those two important hires will obviously be a big boost for the Browns as they begin yet another rebuilding effort, they will still have a long way to go to catch up with their three rivals in the AFC North.

Indeed, when you look at the key spots on any team, especially now in this pass-happy NFL – general manager, head coach, quarterback and wide receivers – the Browns pale in comparison to the Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Ravens have the best GM in the game in Browns Pro Football Hall of Fame tight end Ozzie Newsome, and Pittsburgh also has a good one in Kevin Colbert.

The Steelers’ Mike Tomlin, Baltimore’s John Harbaugh and the Bengals’ Marvin Lewis make up the best set of head coaches in any division.

Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is headed to the Hall of Fame someday, Baltimore’s Joe Flacco is in the upper tier of players in the NFL at that position and Andy Dalton of Cincinnati, while not the equal of those two, is still pretty good.

The best wide receiver in the league? It might well be the Steelers’ Antonio Brown, but the Bengals’ A.J. Green will give him a run for his money.

That’s who and what the Browns are up against, so their new GM and head coach will have to roll up their sleeves and hit the ground running.