The Cleveland Browns did not win enough games in 2021 but the team has high hopes for 2022. Despite losing two executives to the Minnesota Vikings and having some difficult decisions to make around their roster, the team believes it can turn it around next season.
As an organization, the Browns has long struggled to create the stability to be successful on the field. In doing so, the long line of former front office staff and coaches that have flowed through the doors over the last two decades has been overwhelming. It is not surprising that this hiring cycle has had a ton of former Browns employees taking jobs as coaches.
With a playoff appearance in 2020 and hopes for a return in 2022, the Cleveland organization has stabilized with alignment from the top down. Part of that alignment has involved valuing diversity within the organization. Due to their “commitment to workplace diversity, equity and inclusion,” the Browns are the inaugural winner of the John B. Wooten Award:
As a result of the commitment, the Browns are being recognized as leaders in the NFL with the inaugural “John B. Wooten Award” by the Fritz Pollard Alliance, a nonprofit organization comprised of scouts, coaches and front office personnel in the NFL as well as other sports professionals committed to equal opportunity in the industry. Wooten, 85, was a two-time Pro Bowler across nine seasons (1959-1967) as an offensive lineman with the Browns and was a longtime executive in the NFL. He served as the executive director and chairman of the Alliance until his retirement in 2021.
The Browns press release notes the many ways that the team has sought to bring as much diversity, equity and inclusion into the organization. They note celebrating the Vikings hiring Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as part of their plan to develop leaders. That move also means the team is expected to get two third-round picks, one in 2022 and one in 2023.