Haslam: I’ll take the over on the Browns’ 5 1/2-win projection

BEREA, Ohio (AP) — The Cleveland Browns made the postseason the last time they had a first-year head coach on the sidelines.

If Jimmy Haslam has the same thing in mind for Todd Monken, he’s not saying it publicly.

The Browns owner said after Friday’s practice he has “improved expectations” for the upcoming season. The franchise went 5-12 last season and 3-14 in 2024 after making the playoffs in 2023.

“I would say this, and we never do this, but I think the odds are for us to win 5 1/2 games. I’ll take the over,” Haslam said.

“I think we have made giant strides in our talent level the last two years. And it takes these young guys a lot of time. I think we could have a chance to start double-digit first- and second-year players. We’re really excited about the roster we’ve assembled.”

Any sign of playoff contention or improvement would be welcome. The Haslams assumed ownership in October 2012, but didn’t change the head coach or general manager until the end of the season. Cleveland has a 73-139-1 regular-season mark since 2013, the second-worst in the NFL.

In those 14 seasons, the Browns have had only two winning seasons and finished with double-digit losses eight times, including going 0-16 in 2017.

The best year Cleveland has had under the Haslam regime was 2020, when Kevin Stefanski was hired as coach. The Browns were 11-5 and won their first playoff game since the 1993 season at Pittsburgh before losing at Kansas City.

It helped that Cleveland had an established quarterback that year in Baker Mayfield. This year, the team goes into camp with Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders vying for the starting job.

The relationship between Haslam and Watson has improved since Haslam said at the 2025 owners’ meetings that the team “took a big swing and miss” when they sent three first-round picks to Houston for Watson in 2022 and signed him to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal many consider one of the worst trades and contracts in NFL history.

Watson has played in only 19 games with the Browns. Sanders remains the popular choice nationally and among fans after playing in eight games and starting seven as a rookie last year.

Monken hasn’t specified how quickly he wants a starter before the Sept. 13 opener at Jacksonville.

“We all know that the quarterback position is one that we need to figure out at some point in time,” managing partner JW Johnson said. “A lot of guys have franchise quarterbacks, but we’re excited about how hard the guys are working. We’re excited about Todd and staff working with them to put them in a position to be ready to go this season.”

Stefanski was a two-time NFL Coach of the Year, but was fired in January after six seasons. During his tenure, Stefanski started 13 different quarterbacks, including seven over the past two seasons.

Monken was hired in January for his first NFL head coaching job despite turning 60 on Feb. 5.

Haslam said he wants the Browns to be a contending playoff team in 2027, but later said that doesn’t mean they are punting on this year.

Haslam has a rebuilding job not only in Cleveland but also with the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, where he is a co-owner. Both teams traded franchise icons in June: Two-time AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett went to the Los Angeles Rams on June 1, and Giannis Antetokounmpo was dealt to the Miami Heat on June 22.

“My dad’s 95 1/2. He called me and said, ‘Do you know that in the last month you traded Myles Garrett and Giannis?’ I said, ‘Yes, sir, I know that.’ Listen, it’s all about what you get. Giannis, a generational player, won a championship, but we felt the need to get younger. He was the best asset we had,” Haslam said. “We had mortgaged our future going forward, and I think we got four really good players and two draft picks, No. 1 picks, a couple of swaps, and a second. So time will tell.

“We’ve got to use those picks wisely just like we have to do with the Myles trade. But cautious optimism, although you’ve got to be realistic. I think it’s actually harder to rebuild in the NBA than I do in the NFL, but we’ll see.”

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