We’re still not 100 percent sure how the entire A.J. McCarron trade fell through. There’s been differing stories on the extent of the Cleveland Browns’ handling of the situation.
What we do know is that head coach Hue Jackson missed out on an opportuniy to land a quarterback he’s coveted since his days with the Cincinnati Bengals. We also know that Jackson appears to be at adds with the team’s front office.
Now comes this report from Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio suggesting that Browns co-owner Dee Haslem “went nuclear” on the front office, general manager Sashi Brown included.
“Per a league source, ownership (specifically Dee Haslam) went ‘nuclear’ on the front office in the aftermath of the failed effort to consummate a trade for Bengals quarterback A.J. McCarron,” Florio reported.
It would not be a season in the NFL without Cleveland acting the part of a laughingstock. And following the trade deadline, that’s obviously been proven to be the case.
McCarron was unlikely to be a franchise savior in the first place. Maybe it’s a good thing Cleveland missed out on him, especially considering the team was reportedly offering up a second and third-round pick for Cincinnati’s backup. That’s more than San Francisco paid to add Jimmy Garoppolo, who is more highly regarded in league circles than McCarron.
Then again, the Browns are winless and have the most hapless quarterback situation in the NFL. Obviously, Jackson was attempting to fix that.
It’s also pretty obvious that Jackson has won the power struggle with Cleveland’s front office. At least, for now.