The New England Patriots would have reached Super Bowl LI even if they hadn’t signed former Browns defensive end Jabaal Sheard in 2015. Once quarterback Tom Brady returned from league suspension, no foe seemed to have the right antidote for the Pats’ Deflategate-fueled venom this season.
But the Atlanta Falcons might not be their opponent Sunday in NRG Stadium in Houston had they not capitalized on a series of similar missteps by four Browns regimes. What put the Matt Ryan-led Falcons’ offense over the top was the hiring of former Browns offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan in 2015 and last March’s free agency signing of Pro Bowl center Alex Mack, the Browns’ first-round pick in 2009.
There are more Falcons-Browns ties than just Shanahan and Mack. General Manager Thomas Dimitroff and his assistant Scott Pioli worked under Bill Belichick in Cleveland, and Dimitroff’s father was once a Browns scout. Falcons second-year coach Dan Quinn’s staff includes former Browns assistants Bryan Cox, Jerome Henderson and Mike McDaniel.
But the Falcons’ road to Super Bowl LI virtually started in Brownstown on the watch of former president Mike Holmgren and ex-General Manager Tom Heckert. Here’s a recap of that twisted path.
Gaffe No. 1 (Holmgren/Heckert): In the 2011 draft, Dimitroff realized the Falcons’ need for a big playmaker for quarterback Ryan and knew one wouldn’t be available with their 26th overall selection. Valuing quality over quantity, Dimitroff gave the Browns the Falcons’ first-, second- and fourth-round choices in 2011 and their first- and fourth-rounders in 2012 to move up to No. 6 to draft Alabama receiver Julio Jones.
The Falcons got one of the game’s greatest active receivers in Jones, a two-time first-team All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowler. With the supposed windfall, the Browns selected defensive tackle Phil Taylor (trading up from the Falcons’ spot), receiver Greg Little, fullback Owen Marecic and quarterback Brandon Weeden. Little and Marecic are out of the league, Weeden is a backup with the Houston Texans and Taylor, sidelined by injury the past two seasons, recently signed a reserve/future contract with the Washington Redskins.
“We knew we were going to have a guy that we felt was going to be an impact guy,” Dimitroff, a Barberton native, said Wednesday of the Jones trade. “Whether he caught four balls or 14 balls, he was going to have defenses on their heels. In this league, it’s matchup, speed and athleticism. He has all of that. He also has toughness and competitiveness and a number of other things.
“I could run down the list of why we decided we were going to do that; it had a lot more to do than just on the field. It’s his work ethic and his drive, his focus and all of the great stuff that a lot of the great players have had.”
Gaffe No. 2 (Browns owner Jimmy Haslam/CEO Joe Banner): After firing one-and-done coach Rob Chudzinski after the 2013 season, Quinn was a candidate for the Browns job. But the Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator was taking on (and routing) the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl, forcing Haslam to wait until after the Feb. 2 game if he wanted Quinn.
Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Mike Pettine had given his team a deadline to inform them if he would return. Haslam chose Pettine over Quinn, announcing the hiring on Jan. 23. Pettine went 10-22 in his two seasons before being fired.
Lauded last week by Mack as a “super-positive coach” with an infectious attitude, Quinn carries a 19-13 record in the regular season, 11-5 this season.
Gaffe No. 3 (General Manager Ray Farmer): With Shanahan as the offensive coordinator under Pettine, the Browns started the 2014 season 6-3 and finished 7-9. But Shanahan found a much-publicized laundry list of dislikes after it ended, which likely included Farmer’s questionable personnel decisions, including passing on quarterbacks Derek Carr, Teddy Bridgewater and Jimmy Garoppolo for Johnny Manziel and undervaluing wide receivers.
The last straw may have been Farmer texting the sideline during games as the disconnect between Pettine and his staff and Farmer widened. When the season ended, Shanahan asked to be released from his contract and the Browns acquiesced. He joined the Falcons weeks later.
Gaffe No. 4 (Farmer): Although he says now he learned resilience during his seven years with the Browns, Mack was beaten down by losing in Cleveland.
The Browns’ last chance to keep him was likely lost when Farmer placed the transition tag instead of the franchise tag on Mack for the 2014 season. The Jacksonville Jaguars gave Mack a five-year, $42 million offer sheet that the Browns matched, but Mack exercised his opt-out clause after two years.
According to Peter King of Sports Illustrated, Mack’s five-year, $45 million deal with Atlanta was $500,000 per year less than the Browns’ offer. Reuniting with Shanahan, whose outside zone blocking scheme is perfect for Mack, and more guaranteed money made the difference.
“Leaving Cleveland was tough,” Mack said Monday. “I had a lot of friends and a city that I really enjoyed being a part of. When I came to Atlanta, I absolutely wanted to be here because it was a chance to be on a really good team that had a chance to go to the Super Bowl. Then it happened so quickly.
“I was really excited because I was with Kyle Shanahan when he was in Cleveland and I knew that I would be successful in that system. I knew Matt Ryan was a really good quarterback [and] Julio Jones is an incredible receiver.”
Gaffe No. 5 (Browns executive vice president of football operations Sashi Brown): Dimitroff saw that the Falcons offense lacked speed. So when Brown waived receiver Taylor Gabriel on Sept. 3, the Falcons claimed him. In the regular season, Gabriel caught 35 passes for 579 yards (third on the team) and six touchdowns (equaling Jones’ total).
On Nov. 27, the Falcons tweeted “Thanks! @Browns ” after Gabriel scored his third touchdown in a three-game span. In the postseason, Gabriel has six catches for 95 yards.
“Gabe always had that talent, but like with anyone in the NFL, you have to prove yourself,” Jones said of Gabriel Wednesday. “They said, ‘This guy is from Cleveland, he doesn’t make big plays.’ They didn’t have a lot of film on him. He didn’t really emerge. He was getting those one-on-one matchups and Kyle saw it — he’s great at finding those matchups. Matt has done a phenomenal job finding him down the field and now they’re like, ‘Who’s this guy?’ ”
Fans in Northeast Ohio know that guy, along with many others affiliated with the Falcons. Shanahan is expected to leave Monday to become head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, likely a blow not just for Mack and Gabriel, but for the entire offense.
I’ll be rooting for Atlanta because of those with Cleveland connections. But some may consider the mistakes the Browns made that led those men there and find it too painful, even if the alternative is a flashback to “Bill Must Go!”
Marla Ridenour can be reached at mridenour@thebeaconjournal.com. Read her blog at www.ohio.com/marla. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MRidenourABJ.