John Dorsey: Sashi Brown 'didn't get real players,' cutting Kenny Britt easy

ByABC News
December 14, 2017, 12:45 PM

— -- New Cleveland Browns general manager John Dorsey took a shot at Sashi Brown on Thursday, saying the former head of football operations failed to provide coach Hue Jackson players he could win with.

"You know what? You gotta get a guy like that players. And you know what, I'll come straight out with it, the guys who were here before and that system, they didn't get real players," Dorsey said in an interview with ESPN Cleveland Radio.

The Browns are?0-13 this season and were 1-15 in 2016.

"I think as Bill Parcells would always say, you are your record," Dorsey said. "And you know what, there it is. That's the truth-teller in this whole thing. And I'm going to do my darndest to get Hue players. And that's all I can ask for, and that's all I can do. I like the man."

Asked about Dorsey's comment, Jackson said:?"I'm not going to really get into those particular things."

But Jackson said Dorsey has "been outstanding."

"He is football 24/7," Jackson said. "I have enjoyed getting to know him more and spending time with him and talking about our football team and what we need to do. Obviously, there are some good players in our locker room. The guys work extremely hard. I think John's big focus is to try to get us more guys as we move forward on our football team that can best help us get this turned and become what we can become.

"He is walking up and down these halls preaching, 'Let's win. Let's get to winning as fast as we can.' I appreciate that. He is doing everything he needs to do on his end. We have to continue to keep coaching better and get our guys to play better."

One of the players the previous regime did bring in, wide receiver Kenny Britt, was released by Dorsey as soon as he took over as GM last week. Britt disappointed, catching 18 passes in nine games after signing a four-year, $32.5 million contact in free agency. Dorsey said it was an easy call to cut the receiver, who signed with the? New England Patriots?this week.

"I have no problem making that decision. From a cultural standpoint, I don't think he fits in the prototypical character point of what I'm looking for, in terms of a leader," Dorsey said. "He did not live up to his expectations as a player. He may have a higher opinion of himself than I have of him as a player. I thought that was easy."

Browns owner Jimmy Haslam said last week in the statement announcing Brown's firing that Jackson would return in 2018. Dorsey, though, was noncommittal when asked Thursday whether he could categorically say Jackson, who is 1-28 in two seasons as the team's coach, would be his coach next season.

"I've always said I live in the present and I build for the future," Dorsey said. "I live in the present, and right now the sun's out, the tarps are coming off the field, we're practicing outside, we're getting ready to play the Baltimore Ravens, which is a divisional game. That's my sole focus. And then it's also getting familiar with the whole layout and the organizational structure in terms of creating my daily routine."

Dorsey, however, said he has been impressed with how Jackson and his coaching staff interact in the practices he has observed.

"I like the interaction of the coaching staff, and I like the direction of where they're headed and how they work well together," he said.

Jackson said he and Dorsey are building a rapport.

"I'm sure it is new for him being here," Jackson said. "There are a lot of different questions we asked of each other from a football operations standpoint. Then just from a football team standpoint, we have some injuries that we are dealing with. We spend a lot of time working through those things and really talking through them.

"He has some really good ideas on how to do things. It has been good. The back and forth is appreciated because I think that is what it takes to build a relationship between me and him. We are doing that each and every day."