CLEVELAND, OH — Former Kansas City Chiefs General Manager John Dorsey has been hired by the Cleveland Browns. Dorsey replaces Sashi Brown who was fired from his position as Vice President and General Manager on Thursday.
"I have spent the majority of my football life with two franchises that also have storied history and I think I have a feel for the mentality of the fans in Cleveland and what it would mean to recreate the success the franchise once had," Dorsey said.
Dorsey spent four years with the Kansas City Chiefs, helping that franchise quickly rebuild. When he joined the team, the Chiefs were coming off a 2-14 season. Dorsey made several personnel moves, including hiring head coach Andy Reid and trading for quarterback Alex Smith, and the team went 11-5 in Dorsey's first season as GM.
Find out what's happening in Clevelandfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Prior to joining the Chiefs, Dorsey spent the majority of his career as an executive with the Green Bay Packers.
He will take the reins of a Browns team that is once again looking to rebuild. The team has won just one of its last 28 games.
Find out what's happening in Clevelandfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Luckily, Cleveland is poised to rebuild quickly. The Browns have collected a valuable war chest, with two first round picks, three second round picks, two fourth round picks and two fifth round picks. On top of that, the team will have upwards of $59 million in cap space to sign free agents.
"We know we have a critical and very positive opportunity ahead of us to profoundly impact the foundation of this football team," Browns' owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam said in a statement. "Bringing in someone of John Dorsey’s caliber, his track record of success and his experience, significantly strengthens our opportunities to build a winning football team and that has been, and continues to be, what we want for our fans.”
The team will rely on Dorsey's strong track record of drafting future stars. He plucked tight end Travis Kelce and cornerback Marcus Peters in the draft.
Dorsey replaces Sashi Brown, who was fired on Thursday. Jimmy Haslam said in a statement that he wanted to replace Brown with someone who had a stronger track record of success in drafting and building winning football teams.
The Browns went 1-27 under Brown, the worst record in the NFL during that stretch.
AP Photo/Michael Conroy
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.