There's Always Next Year: Cleveland Browns

Congratulations, Browns fans! You survived another season of this slop. Now you have six months to recover before facing more Browns football.

In the meantime, you get to endure yet another regime change. Owner Jimmy Haslam went with something a little different this time, though: instead of people with actual NFL front office experience, we have someone named Brown and someone who went to an Ivy League school more highly regarded than Brown. There's also the opportunity for Paul DePodesta to become a founding scapegoat of analytics in two different sports! Who wouldn't get excited?

An optimist would point out that there's pretty much nowhere to go but up for Cleveland. A pessimist would remind you this is the Browns we're talking about.

Coach and Quarterback Confidence Rating: 3/10

I'm going to give new head coach Hue Jackson the benefit of the doubt. The main strike against him is the Carson Palmer trade in 2011, which ate Oakland's next five years. Former Raiders CEO Amy Trask, however, says that Jackson did not force the deal.

Dear Teams Looking For A Coach: Hue labored under challenges not known to the public & worked collaboratively (1/2) — Amy Trask (@AmyTrask)January 4, 2016

(2/2) w/all departments. If I owned a team, I would trust Hue to coach it, if had a son who played football, I would trust Hue to coach him.

— Amy Trask (@AmyTrask)January 4, 2016

Second, the Raiders went 8-8 under Jackson that year, their best record since 2002. That earns you style points. Jackson also brings some creative and interesting formation shifts that nerds like me eat up. As of right now, I'm willing to ballpark him as a promising head coach. If he trades three first-rounders to Washington for Kirk Cousins, we'll re-evaluate.

As for the other part of this rating: the Browns don't have a quarterback; they have a crime scene.

Key Offseason Decision: How much do we believe in Josh Gordon?

Browns wideout Josh Gordon was on fire in 2013. He led the NFL in receiving yards despite playing with nobodies at quarterback. He made the Pro Bowl, and was a first-team All-Pro selection in a league with players like Calvin Johnson, Julio Jones, and Dez Bryant.

But that wasn't the only lighting up Gordon has done, and he's missed most of the past two seasons due to suspensions for substance abuse. His fate is in the hands of Roger Goodell, the NFL's punishment random-number generator. Jackson appears ready to try to get Gordon back in the lineup, but it's not like he can read the Goodell tea leaves any better than we can.

Major Free Agents: WR Travis Benjamin, S Tashaun Gipson, RT Mitchell Schwartz, OLB Craig Robertson, C Alex Mack (option)

If the Browns ultimately can't rely on Gordon, Benjamin is a must-keep. The fourth-year pro burst onto the scene in 2015, more than doubling his career receiving yardage. A devastating punt returner, as well, Benjamin means a lot for the Browns as currently constructed. He's a priority free agent.

Alex Mack is one of the best centers in the NFL, and has been since joining the Browns in 2009. At 30, he has a lot of the power in his hands, finally. He holds an option to void the last three years of his restricted free agent deal, which would pay him $24 million, only $8 million of which is guaranteed. He's also a 30-year-old lineman who missed most of 2014 to injury. I'm not sure how the market for him shakes out, though I'd expect he could do better by opting out.

Gipson had a phenomenal 2014, but followed it up by being out of position often in 2015. He'll be an interesting case in free agency, as teams ask themselves which Gipson is the real one.

Schwartz and Robertson have both been below-average options at their positions for most of their careers, but they've still provided value in being steady. Schwartz had his best season in 2015, and may be poised for a big payday ala Derek Newton in Houston last offseason.

Cap Situation: $33.3 million, ninth in the NFL

This number reflects Mack staying with the Browns. While they probably won't need to generate much more cap space, they could. Dwayne Bowe's $3.4 million in cap space is an easy release after the receiver did basically nothing for the Browns in 2015. I would also posit that wideout Brian Hartline ($3 million) and safety Donte Whitner ($3.95 mil; $6.2 mil savings as a post-June 1 cut) could be let go without much harm.

The Browns face the same problem as every other perpetually rebuilding organization: How are we going to get the few great free agents to actually take our money?

Solving quarterback would be a start, and the No. 2 pick is a boon in that area. But if the Browns are still on the treadmill as of free agency, why would the best players give them any attention? It's going to take a lot of cash to find someone willing to take the Browns over the Packers.