Joe Woods has been relieved of his duties as defensive coordinator. pic.twitter.com/m7nMjLGaTT

— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) January 9, 2023

The Browns firing defensive coordinator Joe Woods after three years is hardly a surprise.

You could have predicted that before the midway point of the season when the Browns began having a dizzying amount of missed pass-coverage assignments in the secondary.

Things got better in the second half of the season, providing some hope that he might — might, perhaps, possibly — be able to save his job. But that hope was dashed when the old bugaboo of a blown assignment in coverage led to a long touchdown pass that opened the floodgates for the Pittsburgh Steelers in their 28-14 victory on Sunday.

Two thoughts on Woods’ dismissal that are getting lost:

He knew a lot of defense, and so will the candidates the Browns interview as they search for his replacement. But that knowledge is worthless, useless if the coordinator can’t teach it to his players. The No. 1 job of any coach, teacher, etc. is to convey the concepts in a way that can be understood. When the players don’t grasp the material, it’s not their fault. It’s the fault of the coach. The buck stops at his desk — always. The Browns need to be aware of that — each coach’s ability to teach effectively — as they conduct their search.

In addition, a negative — and it’s a significant one — in firing Woods is that the Browns spent three years — three NFL Drafts and three free-agency signing periods — looking for players to fit his scheme. That will all be for naught — a tremendous waste of time and resources, financial and otherwise — if the new coordinator brings in a new scheme that needs a different kind of player.

Steve King