Will Hue Jackson turn out to be a good head coach for the Browns?
I firmly believe that he will, but obviously there’s no way for that to be determined at this stage, after he coached just six games.
But I will tell you this: The more Jackson talks, the more I like what he says.
He was asked two simple but very interesting questions on Thursday in his daily press conference as his team gets ready to face his old team, the Cincinnati Bengals, on Sunday at Paul Browns Stadium. They are questions that, at this time in history, a lot of Browns fans – a lot of Cleveland sports fans overall — want to see answered.
And Jackson answered them not just the right way, but the perfect way.
When he was asked about the Indians reaching the World Series, Jackson said, “I’m very excited for their opportunity. (Indians manager) Coach (Terry) Francona deserves it. He has done a great job with that team, but as I look at it from afar, I want to be in that spot, too. The basketball team (Cavaliers) has done it. The baseball team is doing it. They have a great opportunity to get it done.
“Our football team, we are not there yet, but all those teams were built to where they are now today. We are in our stage. I told you I learned that word. We are in our stage, too. We have to get there, but that is the goal – to win a championship.”
In a quick follow-up question, Francona was asked if it was hard to talk about the Browns winning a title when they were still so early in their rebuilding process.
“It is not hard,” Jackson said. “No, you have to have aspirations and goals. You have to know what you want and what the vision is and where you are trying to go or you are never going to get anywhere. I think you have to talk about those things. I’m not ever going to back off that. That is what I’m here for.
“We are going to get there. I didn’t say it was going to happen this year. I said we have a lot of work to do, and I keep saying that, too. I get it. That is what we all are chasing. Obviously, the basketball team has done it. The baseball team has an opportunity to do it. We are going to do it here at some point. I feel very comfortable and confident in that.”
Francona, who is the heart and soul of the Indians even though Andrew Miller was named the American League Championship Series MVP, has been so successful because he builds relationships with his players, he fully understands what they can, and can’t do, and he’s never going to trash and embarrass them in public.
Managing, or coaching, a pro sports team is all about communication, and Francona is a master craftsman in that regard.
Jackson has a lot of Francona in him, which is why I think he’ll be successful.
