Jimmy Haslam takes accountability (again) while Browns consider Travis Hunter and more

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PALM BEACH, Fla. — The issue with the Haslams has never been about accountability. They acknowledged a few years ago they didn’t know what they were doing when they bought the Browns.

They’ve admitted on multiple occasions their efforts to win haven’t been good enough. They’ve acknowledged they’re embarrassed by their record since taking over as stewards of this once-proud franchise.

So it wasn’t terribly surprising to me when Jimmy Haslam confessed this week that the Deshaun Watson trade was a disaster. It’s evident to everyone by now, isn’t it? We’re well past the point of denying the emperor had a thief for a tailor.

No, admitting failure has never been hard for the Haslams. Fixing their failures, well …

“We took a big swing-and-miss with Deshaun,” Haslam said in a private conference room on the mezzanine level of The Breakers while sipping on an iced tea.

It’s a bit ironic that Haslam was admitting to yet another Browns failure in this same posh hotel where he and Dee previously sat with a handful of Cleveland reporters in 2022 to lay out their explanation for taking on Watson and all the baggage that came with him.

The Haslams sat with reporters for more than an hour that day — much of it off the record. The session this week was shorter but equally impactful.

Much like when he sipped on an iced tea in the vacant hotel dining room three years ago, here was Haslam admitting again they haven’t done a very good job at picking a quarterback.

“We thought we had the quarterback, we didn’t, and we gave up a lot of draft picks to get him,” Haslam said. “So we’ve got to dig ourselves out of that hole.”

There isn’t a shovel in Florida big enough to fix this in one offseason. While Andrew Berry and Kevin Stefanski continue to be strategic regarding how they feel about the quarterbacks in this draft, it was Haslam who either tried resetting expectations or was a bit more candid than he intended.

“It would be great if we could get the quarterback, but we’re not going to force it,” Haslam said, adding later, “I think the message is if the right person’s there, we’re going to take him. If not, we’ll figure (quarterback) out for a year or two until we get the right person.”

The “year or two” was a bit jarring to hear. I wrote in December that this may not be the draft to fix the quarterback, and they may have to wait until 2026, when Arch Manning may or may not be available. We all know by now the Haslam family’s affinity for the Mannings. I doubt he intended it this way, but as soon as Haslam said “or two” years to fix the quarterback, my mind immediately went to Manning should he return to Texas for two more seasons.

The reality is if the Browns don’t address the quarterback issue at the top of this draft — and I’m beginning to believe they won’t — they’ll likely address it in the first round in 2026 regardless of Manning’s status.

And if all of this seems to take some of the pressure off Berry and Stefanski being forced into a win-or-else situation this season, that’s because it does. It’s perfectly reasonable for Haslam to say in a hotel conference room in March that they missed so badly on Watson, the timing is terrible because this is a lousy draft for quarterbacks and there are no great options, so the Browns just have to drink some castor oil this year and wait.

The real test will come in October if this team again has a losing record, no great plan for the future at quarterback and fans and media are screaming for jobs to be lost. Will Haslam keep the patience then?

I heard and saw enough these last few days to believe the Browns genuinely like Travis Hunter. Since we’re still three weeks out and they still have an important campus visit to Colorado upcoming this week to visit with both Hunter and Shedeur Sanders, I’m not going to declare they’re drafting Hunter. But if I had to fill out a mock draft today, Hunter would likely be the name I wrote on the line.

How much is spin and how much is truth is impossible to dissect at this stage of draft season, but the Browns certainly appear intrigued by Hunter’s playmaking and ability to play both offense and defense. Berry said at the combine he sees Hunter as a receiver first, while most of the rest of the league seems to view him primarily as a corner. Berry explained this weekend that he believes Hunter can play both ways in the NFL.

“I think he’ll play both sides of the ball in the NFL. I truly do. How that balance looks, I think, depends on the relative schemes on each side of the ball and then how much he can handle, probably more physically than mentally,” Berry said. “He’s brilliant. He’s brilliant from a football standpoint, has a rare intelligence. So, I don’t think that there’s necessarily a limit in terms of how you can use him. I think he’ll be good at each point.”

To be in the room with Berry while he was talking about Hunter was to feel him gushing a bit about Hunter’s upside. He explained why he thinks the comparisons to Charles Woodson and Champ Bailey, legendary players nonetheless, are misguided.

“I think what people don’t realize is Charles Woodson in his college career, I realize it was a different era, but he had almost as many college receptions (21) in his three-year career as he did interceptions (16). Champ Bailey had 59 catches in his three-year career and under a thousand yards, and I think eight (interceptions).

“Travis was fifth in the nation in receiving, led the Big 12 with 96 catches, 15 touchdowns, seven career picks — like truly was a full-time player on both sides of the ball. That’s where I think there’s maybe a little bit lost historically in terms of how rare what he accomplished was at Colorado. He didn’t moonlight on the offensive side of the ball. If you think about it, this year alone, he had more catches, yards and touchdowns than both Charles and Champ did combined in their three years.”

Yep, still gushing.

I asked Stefanski if he views Hunter as two players in one and if that could factor into the decision about whether to take him.

“I think every team is having that discussion,” Stefanski said. “I think he’s very capable of both. How you structure it, where you ‘start’ him is really important to figure out. I could see both sides of it. … Every team is talking through that and how they would structure it, but this is a unique young man in his ability to do both.”

The Browns could use a playmaking receiver. They could also use help at corner. Hunter fits both needs.

Ultimately, everyone with the Browns knows this team won’t go anywhere until they find a quarterback. The strikeout on Watson cost this team valuable draft picks and cap space that will take time to heal. Judging by how they were talking these last few days, I don’t sense they’re ready to step back up to the plate just yet.

(Photo of coach Kevin Stefanski and owner Jimmy Haslam: Jason Miller / Getty Images)

This news was originally published on this post .

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