Tom Heckert: Likely new GM...

[DaWolf]

According to multiple reports, if this deal gets wrapped, Heckert is in.

EDIT: Schefter reporting that Dorsey is also someone Reid wants to talk to.

Thoughts? He's no Pioli, but have his moves with the Browns left you impressed?

In the past two years, Heckert overhauled a veteran-laded roster built by Mangini and spearheaded a youth movement. The Browns finished 2012 with 29 players on their 53-man roster who were either in their first or second NFL seasons. They also had a league-high 87 combined starts from rookies this season.

Heckert acquired 17 of the Browns’ 22 starters from 2012. Of those 17 starters brought in by Heckert, he drafted the following 11: cornerback Joe Haden, defensive tackle Phil Taylor, running back Trent Richardson and quarterback Brandon Weeden (first-round picks); strong safety T.J. Ward, defensive end Jabaal Sheard, wide receivers Greg Little and Josh Gordon, a selection in the 2012 supplemental draft, offensive right tackle Mitchell Schwartz (second-round picks); right guard Shawn Lauvao (third-round pick); and strongside linebacker James-Michael Johnson (fourth-round pick).

None of the players Heckert picked for the Browns has made the Pro Bowl yet. But several seem to have bright futures.

“He’s a great general manager,” Haden said Sunday night. “I can tell by the way he drafts players. You can look and you see his draft picks are out there on the field just basically balling for the team. He drafted me. He drafted T.J. He drafted Weeden. He drafted Richardson. This is such a young team, and all of his players are out there playing. That says a lot.”

Still, not every pick has panned out as planned.

Heckert, who has Youngstown roots, let fullback Lawrence Vickers go in free agency and replaced him with Owen Marecic, a fourth-round pick in 2011. Marecic was plagued by dropped passes and lost his spot atop the depth chart in 2012. Heckert traded a third-round and two fifth-round picks in 2010 to move up in the second round to select running back Montario Hardesty, whose career has been plagued by injuries, including a torn ACL in his left knee as a rookie in 2010 and a torn calf muscle that forced him to sit out six games in 2011. The jury is still out on Hardesty, who stayed healthy in 2012.

Although Heckert bolstered several positions – perhaps most notably the defensive line – he might have failed to bring a franchise quarterback to Cleveland. In Heckert’s first two years with the Browns, they cycled through Jake Delhomme, Seneca Wallace and Colt McCoy. They drafted Weeden 22nd overall in 2012.

Weeden, a 29-year-old former minor-league baseball player, played 15 games and finished with a franchise rookie record 3,385 passing yards and 14 touchdowns, but he also threw 17 interceptions and posted a passer rating of 72.6. It remains to be seen whether the new regime will give Weeden another season to prove himself after an inconsistent rookie year.

Heckert’s drafts will be remembered for some blockbuster deals – including one couldn’t pull off. The Browns failed in their attempt to trade with the St. Louis Rams for the right to draft Robert Griffin III second overall in 2012.

In March, the Browns offered the Rams two first-round selections (Nos. 4 and 22 overall) and a first-round pick in 2013 for the right to draft Griffin at No. 2. The Washington Redskins, though, struck a deal by giving up their first- and second-round picks in 2012 (Nos. 6 and 39), plus a first-round choice in 2013 and another in 2014. The Browns reportedly tried to add their 2012 second-round pick (No. 37) with a second proposal, but the Rams had already decided to accept the Redskins' offer.

Then on April 26, Heckert traded picks in the first (No. 4), fourth (No. 118), fifth (No. 139) and seventh (No. 211) rounds to the Minnesota Vikings, allowing the Browns to move up to the No. 3 slot, where they nabbed Richardson. The Browns were also aggressive by picking Weeden at No. 22 because there was a chance he would have been available to them early in the second round, when they ended up taking Schwartz at No. 37.

In 2011, Heckert traded the sixth overall pick in 2011 to the Atlanta Falcons, which they used to select wide receiver Julio Jones sixth overall in 2011. In exchange, the Browns received picks in the first (27th), second (59th) and fourth (124th) rounds in 2011 and first- and fourth-rounders in 2012. Heckert then traded the 27th overall pick and a third-round selection (No. 70) to move up to No. 21, so he could take Taylor. He drafted Little with No. 59, Marecic with No. 124, Weeden with the Falcons’ first-round pick last year and traded their fourth-round choice.

http://www.ohio.com/news/top-stories...l-man-1.361661

[RunKC]

I fully expect Pioli to leave on his own terms for Atlanta after the Jags hire Caldwell, the Falcons player personnel man.

Dimitroff is Pioli's best friend and will surely want him there.

And I bet Pioli brings Cassel with him to back up Matt Ryan lolz

[O.city]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

It never happened.

Well at least according to some.

I was gonna say that these "rumors" won't be true.

[ChiefRocka]

Originally Posted by TEX

I'd just like to add that the HATE reaches out to Chief fans in all parts of the country...

Just remember Pioli is the reason for the season

[Amnorix]

Originally Posted by Frosty

One of the best things about jettisoning Pioli is no more Patriotards in here telling us how great he is and how we should all feel so lucky to have him.

Who has done that, like ever? I was high on Pioli when he first came. Gave my honest opinion of him. Thought he'd likely succeed, but obviously in the NFL success is your W-L record, and his isn't good enough. Even if he did survive with Reid, it wouldn't be with him holding the reins of power, that's for sure. He'd be under Reid, at best.

[Amnorix]

Originally Posted by ChiefsCountry

There is pure evil hate for Pioli. Its to levels that Carl Peterson never could even get to in 20 years. Pioli has pissed off the most laid back, nicest region in the country.

Peterson exhausted your patience, and left Pioli with a relatively short leash. When a fanbase gets tired of losing, there's not much room for error.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by Amnorix

Peterson exhausted your patience, and left Pioli with a relatively short leash. When a fanbase gets tired of losing, there's not much room for error.

Room for error?

Pioli is the losingest GM in FRANCHISE HISTORY.

Maybe if he had fielded remotely competitive teams people wouldn't want to see him drawn and quartered today.

Room for error had nothing to do with it. If this was an 8-8 team this year he wouldn't be on Clark's janitorial staff right now.

[jd1020]

Originally Posted by Amnorix

Peterson exhausted your patience, and left Pioli with a relatively short leash. When a fanbase gets tired of losing, there's not much room for error.

Not much room for hitching your wagon to Matt Cassel for 4 ****ing years.

[The Franchise]

Originally Posted by GoWalrus

Room for error?

Pioli is the losingest GM in FRANCHISE HISTORY.

Maybe if he had fielded remotely competitive teams people wouldn't want to see him drawn and quartered today.

Room for error had nothing to do with it. If this was an 8-8 team this year he wouldn't be on Clark's janitorial staff right now.

This.

Kansas City is the job you want if you plan on being mediocre. Pioli couldn't even stick close to .500.

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by GoWalrus

Room for error?

Pioli is the losingest GM in FRANCHISE HISTORY.

Maybe if he had fielded remotely competitive teams people wouldn't want to see him drawn and quartered today.

Room for error had nothing to do with it. If this was an 8-8 team this year he wouldn't be on Clark's janitorial staff right now.

Exactly.

People were tired of the 4-win seasons under Herm and the public persona of King Carl.

So what does Pioli do? Makes the team WORSE and acts like an even BIGGER asshole than Peterson.

Short leash my ass. He deserves EVERYTHING he's getting. And we're probably being too kind.

[FringeNC]

Originally Posted by Amnorix

Peterson exhausted your patience, and left Pioli with a relatively short leash. When a fanbase gets tired of losing, there's not much room for error.

Pioli bet the farm on a QB and lost. What makes it so much more damning than the typical QB bust is that Pioli should have had shitloads of information on Cassel. If he fails so spectacularly with Matt Cassel, and is a complete dickhead on top of that, and then rapes us with Matt Cassel's corpse, there's not a lot of love there.

I don't think Pioli is mentally all there -- his bizarre antics with Todd Haley, and his refusal to bring in legit QB to "compete" with Matt Cassel suggests to me something other than winning football games was driving the guy.

[NJChiefsFan]

Patriot fans were more in defense of Cassel then anything, which is just as stupid.

[O.city]

Pioli came in telling us how bad we were and how everything him is great, acted like a huge jackass.


No sorry, too bad.

[The Bad Guy]

Heckert isn't a slam dunk to come from what I'm told.

There's 2 guys in play here - Dorsey from GB and Ray Farmer. Farmer is highly thought of and apparently Andy might consider him. He was also in Philly for the meeting. Farmer played for Philly before Andy got there.

Pioli is definitely out as GM. Now I can't seem to lock down a guarantee that he's out of the organization, but his reign of terror is coming to an end.

[The Franchise]

Go get Dorsey.

[FloridaMan88]

Originally Posted by Amnorix

Peterson exhausted your patience, and left Pioli with a relatively short leash. When a fanbase gets tired of losing, there's not much room for error.

Fat Scott had 4 years.

He's made the team WORSE since Carl Peterson left.

Fat Scott and "The Patriots Way" are frauds.

"The Patriots Way" is Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, nothing more.