The Cleveland Browns are already having issues, and they haven’t even lost a game yet.
According to a report from Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com, a “rift” has been brewing between Browns head coach Mike Pettine and general manager Ray Farmer. The issues are said to be the result of the relationship between Farmer and former Browns director of player engagement Jamil Northcutt, who recently parted ways with the team.
Sources told Grossi that Northcutt was the recipient of the text messages that Farmer was allegedly sending to the sidelines during games last season. Northcutt reportedly relayed messages from Farmer to Cleveland’s coaching staff.
There is a story of Northcutt having a confrontation with defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil during that horrible 23-7 loss to the Houston Texans on Nov. 16, in which nondescript Houston running backs Alfred Blue and Jonathan Grimes combined for 49 carries and 210 yards on the ground. O’Neil did not take kindly to Northcutt’s intrusion during the difficult day, sources said.
There is also a story of Northcutt having a “conversation” with offensive line coach Andy Moeller concerning the non-use of reserve guard Vinston Painter after the injury to center Alex Mack. According to a source, that was outside the boundaries of Northcutt’s job description.
Without Northcutt to act as the liaison, there could now be a more direct power struggle between Farmer and Pettine. You can understand why an NFL coach would be irritated by a GM taking that active of a role in decisions that are made on game day.
Johnny Manziel has been blamed for a lot of the issues the Browns have had over the past year, including the departure of this coach. The problems obviously run much deeper than that, and don’t be surprised if the situation between Farmer and Pettine boils over if the Browns get off to a bad start.
