Coach Hue Jackson remains in charge of the Browns, but Todd Haley is the new authority on offense.
The Browns hired Haley as their offensive coordinator, a person familiar with the situation confirmed Monday. Haley is the first assistant to hold that title since the Browns hired Jackson on Jan. 13, 2016. The team has yet to announce the move.
Haley landed the job just in time for the Senior Bowl. Jackson and new general manager John Dorsey headline the Browns contingent evaluating draft prospects this week in Mobile, Ala. They will likely draft a quarterback first overall on April 26, and all eyes will be on Josh Allen of Wyoming and Baker Mayfield of Oklahoma during Senior Bowl practices, which run Tuesday through Thursday.
The Browns hiring Haley was foreshadowed by Sunday's news that they had formally interviewed him and that the discussions between the franchise and the former offensive coordinator of the Pittsburgh Steelers had gone well.
Jackson called the offense's plays the past two seasons, when the Browns went 1-31. But on the heels of an 0-16 season, Jackson said Jan. 1 he would be open to relinquishing play-calling duties if he could secure an offensive coordinator worthy of the responsibility. Haley fits the bill and is expected to become the play-caller of his new AFC North team.
The Steelers averaged the third-most yards per play in the NFL during Haley's six-year tenure as their offensive coordinator. They were second in scoring the past four seasons, trailing only the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots.
Haley, 50, guided the Steelers _ led by the star trio of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, running back Le'Veon Bell and wide receiver Antonio Brown _ to top-10 finishes leaguewide in yards and points per game in each of the past four seasons. The Steelers ranked third in total offense (377.9 yards per game) and eighth in scoring (25.4 points per game) last season.
Yet Steelers coach Mike Tomlin announced Jan. 17 he decided not to renew Haley's contract. The deal expired after the team's 45-42 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the divisional round of the playoffs.
Like Browns defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, Haley has a reputation for being confrontational. His style has reportedly led to clashes with other coaches and players. His contentious relationship with Roethlisberger is widely believed to have led to his departure from the Steelers.
But Haley has fans, too, including Hall of Famer Kurt Warner.
Haley was the offensive coordinator of the Arizona Cardinals and Warner was their starting quarterback when they lost to the Steelers 27-23 in Super Bowl XLIII on Feb. 1, 2009. Haley parlayed his performance with the Cardinals during the 2007 and 2008 seasons into a head coaching job with the Kansas City Chiefs. He went 19-26 with the Chiefs from 2009-11 with a playoff appearance after a 10-6 finish in 2010.
"Personally, those two didn't mesh," Warner, an NFL Network analyst, said of Haley and Roethlisberger during a radio interview with the Rich Eisen Show. "Just being with Todd, I understand why people say that, and I understand where that could go sideways. Todd and I even got into it at times, and I didn't get into it with a lot of guys. But I also knew at the end of the day, A, Todd was going to make me better, and, B, everything Todd did was from a competitive standpoint.
"Todd is a guy that will push you and get in your face and is not afraid to challenge even the best players in the league if he thinks he can make them better. And I appreciated that. I understand why a lot of people look at that and kind of keep him at arm's length, like, 'Oh, man. I don't know if I want those kind of outbursts or a guy with that kind of demeanor on my sideline.'
"If you're a competitor and you want to win, whether you're an organization, a head coach or a player, you want a guy like that in your corner. You want a guy like that in your corner. You want a guy like that pushing you every day and taking you to the next level."
Prior to Haley joining the Cardinals, he was a receivers coach and passing game coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys (2004-06), a receivers coach for the Chicago Bears (2001-03) and New York Jets (1999-2000) and an offensive assistant and quality control coach for the Jets (1997-98).
The offensive assistants he'll inherit in Cleveland were hired by Jackson, who recently added former Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Ken Zampese as quarterbacks coach and former New York Giants receivers coach Adam Henry to fill the same role. The Browns have yet to hire a running backs coach to replace Kirby Wilson, who was fired by Jackson two weeks ago.
Jackson also interviewed former Giants coach Ben McAdoo on Jan. 16 and Houston Texans quarterbacks coach Sean Ryan on Jan. 10 for the offensive coordinator gig. However, Haley emerged as the top choice.
Haley is the third former NFL head coach surrounding Jackson. Williams and Al Saunders, the Browns' senior assistant/special projects, are the others.
