Mike Pettine is Already the Best Cleveland Browns Coach of Last 15 Years

By Casey Drottar @cdrottar19 on October 13, 2014

If ever there was a must-win game in Week 6 of the NFL season, it was yesterday’s bout between the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers.

No, neither team’s season would be derailed with a loss. Instead, this was about the Browns and their attempts to prove to the league they’re actually turning the corner. At 2-2, some were wondering if Cleveland was actually a possible contender this season. However, there still needed to be some convincing. If they were a legit team this season, not the doormats they always seem to be, they needed a division win against a “rival” that annually blows their doors off.

A Browns win meant it might be time to take them seriously; a loss would’ve brought on the “same ol’ Browns” routine, the kid brother perpetually failing when trying to beat their neighbors to the east.

What happened in yesterday’s game might still have Cleveland fans in shock. The Browns took the Steelers to the woodshed, rolling to the tune of 31-10. It was a victory not commonly seen with this team, as even their rare wins always seem to come down to the last second. That it occurred against Pittsburgh, a team Cleveland has only beaten twice since 2004, well, this just sweetened the pot.

The thought process among Cleveland fans all last week seemed pretty common: if you want us to believe in you, you need to beat the Steelers. The team responded by blowing Pittsburgh out of the water. When asked to prove themselves, the Browns did so with a vengeance.

There are more than a few reasons why Cleveland is leaving Week 6 with a 3-2 record, causing many around the NFL to start taking notice. The heroics of quarterback Brian Hoyer are still playing a huge part, as is the ever-improving rushing game. However, as great as it’s been to watch what’s taking place on the field, none of it would be possible without the job of one man in specific on the sidelines.

There’s no ignoring it anymore; in his first season with the Browns, Mike Pettine is already looking like the best head coach the team has had since the franchise’s return in 1999.

Now, it goes without saying the competition Pettine is going up against as far as recent Cleveland coaches is hardly daunting. The Browns have finished a season above .500 just twice in 15 years, so it’s not exactly like we’re comparing their latest coach to Paul Brown.

At the same time, if you take a quick look at Pettine’s brief tenure with Cleveland so far, you’ll see things Browns fans haven’t witnessed in what feels like forever.

You could notice a change the second Pettine walked into the door this past January. His opening press conference featured something Browns fans aren’t exactly used to; straight answers. None of the beating around the bush made famous by Eric Mangini. No endless uses of words like “process” as heard by Pat Shurmur. Heck, he even displayed some sort of personality, something which had made so few appearances in past Browns coaches you were forced to assume the franchise actually banned such a thing.

Of course, winning a press conference is one thing, winning on the field is another. However, right now, it looks like Pettine is more than capable of doing both.

Just look at how the Browns are playing so far this season. Their two losses weren’t the blowouts typically seen on the shores of Lake Erie. Cleveland is playing tough, for once, and is actually just a few plays away from being undefeated. However, Pettine won’t let himself or his team fall back on such an excuse, which is an incredible relief.

Close losses are something the Browns are used to, and fans are just as used to hearing past coaches rest their laurels on that comeback which came up just short, or that really impressive garbage time drive which cut the deficit to 21. You won’t hear any such thing from Pettine, who’s famous “pass/fail” statement from Cleveland’s opening day loss to Pittsburgh this year appears to have resonated with his team.

Is this a case of overreacting to a solid start? Possibly. To be fair, the Browns were 3-2 at this point last year as well, and then watched the season fall apart in epic fashion.

At the same time, there’s no denying there’s something different about this year’s Browns. This is the first time in a while where Cleveland has been competitive every Sunday. They finally have an air of a team which believes in itself. As a result, the words “playoffs” are being tossed around amongst the fan base this morning, and with 100% seriousness.

Consider all of this when you remember the situation Pettine was brought into in Cleveland. The front office had just axed Rob Chudzinski after only one year on the sidelines. Players were beyond furious, the entire organization was a national punchline, and supporters were at an absolute loss, with people already wondering, on his first day with the team, just how long it would be before Pettine was fired.

Find one name from the beleaguered list of Browns coaches of the past 15 years who could come into these circumstances and still end up making the team look like an actual contender. I imagine Butch Davis would have a mental breakdown just thinking about such a thing.

And yet, despite all the front office upheaval and chaos, despite taking a job with a team which only appeared to succeed when it came to failing, Pettine has completely changed the way people look at the Browns. Thanks to his guidance, this team is no longer a pushover. He’s taken a franchise which looked lifeless and transformed them into a club who’ll stand toe-to-toe with anyone. And he did so in just five games.

It may be early, but right now, it sure looks like Cleveland may have finally found a coach who can stick around for a while. 

Casey Drottar is a Featured Columnist for www.Rantsports.com. Follow him on Twitter @CDrottar19 or “Like” him on Facebook