But the things that have leaked out about him are a tad distasteful. ESPN.com reported Sunday that the Browns wanted Kokinis to go to counseling because they felt he was becoming so distant. FOX's Jay Glazer said the team took Kokinis' cell phone so people around the league can't get in touch with him.

It seems that the Browns want to fire Kokinis for cause and not pay him, and Kokinis, naturally, wants to be paid.

Here's a solution: Get together, work out a deal, and move on.

The Browns can move on with a new person, and Kokinis (who is liked and respected around the league) can move on with his life. He deserves that much.

Tarnishing a guy's reputation is not going to help anyone, least of all the Browns because all it does is make them look small. The longer this situation lingers and is being discussed, the worse the team looks.

I'm not saying who was right, wrong, or in-between on the removal of Kokinis. I'm just saying that now that he's gone, it would be best for everyone to stop with the snide negative comments that are popping up here and there and just move on.

Be done with the entire thing.

And let the guy live his life and resume his career.

Puzzling isn't the right word, actually. Preposterous is the right word. Preposterous. That's it.

Preposterous because somebody is delusional here.

Mangini might be delusional to think even a teeny, tiny bit that he'll be included given what just happened with his hand-picked GM.

Or the Browns are delusional to think that Mangini deserves to be included considering what happened with Kokinis and (more important) considering what is happening on the field.

Or maybe I'm the one who's delusional. Because I keep expecting to hear some semblance of logic from the Browns.

I'm gonna go watch some Bugs Bunny cartoons.

Arrogance.

The arrogance of this coach and this team to set up this system where the coach is the voice of the team during the season, then to have that voice dismiss legitimate questions during a news conference set up to answer questions.

I counted 11 times when a question was asked and Mangini said he would not answer, with respect of course.

I know I've been critical of Mangini, but this might be more of an organizational issue rather than his alone. That being said, he's the one who set up the organization.

Would I expect every question to be answered?
No.

Would I hope they'd make an effort to answer most queries?

Yes.

Was Mangini the wrong guy to put at the podium?

Maybe. But if he wasn't the right guy then the right guy should have been there.

Some explanation could be given even if settlement negotiations are ongoing. It's almost as if the Browns don't think the fans or the media deserve an explanation.

The GM of the team was removed from his job. The coach handpicked the GM. Stand up and answer questions about it. Be accountable, like he would expect his players to be. Don't duck or hide or use coy phrases. Just answer the questions — and if you can't say so and explain why.

Randy Lerner spent two hours meeting with a couple upset season ticket holders on Tuesday. That's fine. But he or somebody else could have made 15 minutes for the media, and by extension the fans, either Monday night or sometime Tuesday. Not doing so actually might have put Mangini in a more difficult spot than he deserved.

I mean, a man dubbed smart and energetic enough to be the team's GM last January was ushered out of the building on Monday.

Is an explanation too much to ask?

2)      Then coach Eric Mangini stands up in his news conference and says he won't talk about what happened with Kokinis other than to say "it didn't work out." So the one voice that the team has isn't taking questions about it. Next thing you know the Browns will wonder why there's so much speculation and rumor about what happened. Not addressing the situation smacks of cowardice. Leadership means standing up when things are tough (see Mark Shapiro discussing and addressing the firing of Eric Wedge). In this case, Mangini and the Browns sat down. The really frightening thing: Mangini kept saying "we" when talking about the organization and the team's future, as if to imply he would be part of it long-term. Guess we now know the subject of the next paranormal activity movie.

3)      I don't know what happened that caused this to happen with Kokinis so suddenly. Randy Lerner obviously felt strong enough about something to act. I have heard that Kokinis worked in Cleveland the same way he did in Baltimore. He kept coaches hours, which means arrive early and stay late and sometimes sleep in the office. He had his scouts doing the same thing, and that didn't sit real well with all of them. He also worked quietly, behind the scenes. Kokinis was not a real public guy, though he's always been a good guy in my private dealings with him.

4)      The way this went down, though, clearly makes it seem like Kokinis is taking the fall for a bad start. Mangini somehow continues in his job, yet the GM is fired? After the majority of players brought in were ex-Jets? After the quarterback situation was completely mishandled on the field? After all the garbage we've seen on the playing field? True or not, this clearly makes it look like Mangini sacrificed his friend to save his job. And the Browns statement and Mangini's nonexplanation do nothing to rectify that impression. As for Mangini calling Kokinis a friend … I can hardly wait to see what gifts they exchange this Christmas.

5)      The flip side is that if Kokinis was simply not up to the job and the pressures of the job and losing got to him — a possibility — then Mangini was wrong to suggest him as GM and the Browns made a mistake picking him. Either way, Mangini does not come out of this well. Nor should he. He's overseeing a season of disastrous proportions.

6)      Let's not forget, too, Mangini's history in New England. He wanted a head coaching job, and Bill Belichick asked him not to take one job — with the Jets. Belichick's thinking: The rivalry and feelings between the two teams were too intense for the friendship to continue. Any other team … Belichick said, he'd do anything he could to help him. Mangini took the Jets job anyway, and he knew he was getting it as the Patriots flew back from a playoff loss in Denver. So on the team plane, Mangini was recruiting coaches from Belichick's staff to join him in New York. When Belichick heard this, he was irate, and the next day locked Mangini out of the building. Once Mangini got to New York, Spygate followed. Now we have Kokinis recommended by Mangini, hired, and fired. Err … no longer actively involved.

7)      One thing can't be debated: Kokinis waited to take the job with the Browns last January because he wanted it in his contract that he had final say over personnel. He got that. It seems quite obvious that once he got in the building, Mangini had final say over everything — including how Kokinis should act (he was not the same person he was in Baltimore), who parks where and the fact that the first floor should have plaster board covering up the cinder block. Not to mention moving the mural of the hall of famers that has never been placed in the lobby like the team said it would (though there are nice plaques with the names of the hall of famers).

8)      Walking out of Solider Field on Sunday, I heard another writer from the Chicago area describe the game this way while talking on his cell phone: "Wasn't much of a game. The Bears played really bad, and the Browns are just horrible." Sums it up, doesn't it? The Bears had a day they'd like to forget, a day when they openly admitted they played down to the Browns level — and they won BY 24 POINTS.

9)      What did Jamal Lewis mean when he said he "stuck his neck out" for the Browns? Two things: First is he is playing on a very painful ankle, one that required an offseason procedure and would sideline a lot of others players. Second is he stood up for the new regime, and did what he could to get everyone on the team to "buy in." Now he sees what's happening, and he's rightly disgusted.

10)   There's no sense hiding from another reality: The majority of the players cannot stand playing for Mangini. Yes, there is a small group that believes in him, and most are the guys he brought in from New York. But others simply don't like him. Because he belittles them in meetings, beats them down mentally and has no clear plan to win a game. Anyone who believes that this team believes in this coach is not looking at the reality on the field. Too, the players look at how he says everyone should be treated the same and they see that Mangini treats employees in the building shabbily and they think "hypocrite." As one league insider very knowledgeable in the workings of this and any team said: "That situation there will get 100 times worse before it even starts to get better."

Three and Out

There were so many letters the past eight days, so many from which to choose. I'm sticking with four as a representative sample.

Dear Pat,

Webster's defines death as "a state of being." That's a pretty good definition of the Cleveland Browns. Eric Mangini claims it's a process and he is right; it has been a slow death over the last 39 years.

Ineptitude can creep in and destroy a beloved franchise. Greedy owners, mismanagement, a revolving door of incompetent general managers, coaches, support staff  and quarterbacks can over time lead to the fall of a once storied championship team.

This has all created a dysfunctional organization that is an embarrassment to itself, its loyal fans and the city it represents. To paraphrase Einstein: "The problems that face us today as the Cleveland Browns cannot be solved by the level of thinking that has created it."

Be respectful of the "dead." Don't try and leave it on life support with a parade of old legends like Jim Brown or Bernie Kosar. It's too late simply cremate it and spread the ashes over Los Angeles, and like Braylon Edwards give it a new start.

We the Baby Boomers are tired of grieving year in and year out over this ailing parent. Let it go! It's over already

Craig Bassett

Ft Mill SC

Dear Craig,

I think many share your pain.

Dear Pat,

Is Randy Lerner clueless.  He fires a guy who did nothing. I have not seen a quote or anything else from George Kokinis since he was hired. That's like blaming the cook for the Titanic sinking.

Have a great day!

Ed Miller

New Waterford, OH

Dear Ed,

Every day is a great day when you're involved with the Cleveland Browns.

Dear Pat,

Thanks for starting the firing process of Eric Mangini. Please add Brian Daboll, the clown who is our offensive coordinator, to the list of people to be fired immediately.

I hope you can convince Randy Lerner why Mangini has to go. The players have lost all confidence in him. He is simply going to make it even worse by hanging around.

Thanks for all your help.

Best Regards

Tom Joseph

Season Ticket holder since 1979

Dear Tom,

I take no pride in "starting" a process that leads to someone losing his job. I simply have the opinion that you are right: This is going to get worse before it gets better, and I don't see it getting better with Mangini guiding the ship.

Dear Pat,

I’ve been a Browns fan all my life.  I was eight when they won it all in 1964.  I’ve seen a lot, heard a lot, etc.  I’ve lived in four different states, currently in the Chicago area.  I’m around plenty of Bears fans all the time.

Today, the day after the Bears-Browns game, I’m getting pity.  Even the most ardent Bears fans realize Sunday’s game was poorly played from the Bears standpoint, yet they had no trouble winning.

Here is the most common thing I’ve heard today – I feel sorry for the city of Cleveland that the Browns are so bad.  They say the Browns are the worst team they’ve played in they can’t remember when.  This is coming from fans whose team plays the Lions twice a year!  How sad that is.

I didn’t see the game live.  I taped it but I won’t watch it.  I was traveling back from Ohio to Chicago yesterday afternoon so I listened to the game on the Bears radio network.  More than once the Bears announcers (Jeff Joniak and Tom Thayer) asked the question – what has Brady Quinn done that he can’t even get on the field?  This was before the one series mop up at the end of the game.

To me the Browns are at the lowest point in their history.  There is no reason to be optimistic about the future.  What building blocks do they even have in place?  What free agent player other than one that no other team wants would play for this team or this coaching staff?  There are holes everywhere.  We are watching the destruction of a franchise that will take years to rebuild if it can be rebuilt.

Delusional Browns fans can quit dreaming about Bill Cowher or any other big name coach coming in to save them.  Not going to happen.

I’m still a fan but I’m becoming a very apathetic one.

Tom Shenberger

Crystal Lake,  Illinois

Dear Tom,

You sound much more than apathetic. But you also sound correct. Very, very correct.

(Want to be recognized in “Three and Out”? It’s a rare treat. Comment here or send an e-mail to pmcmanamon@thebeaconjournal.com, and put “First and 10” in the subject line.)

The Browns released a statement at 10:45 p.m. stating that Kokinis "is no longer actively involved" with the team. Here is where I say: What does THAT mean?

Let's just say that Kokinis' tenure with the Browns is over. And it didn't last long.

Why it happened Monday is not known, though the Browns denied Kokinis was escorted from the building, as many reports stated. ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported that the Browns want Kokinis to say he resigned so the sides can work out a settlement. Kokinis, Mortensen reported, is not obliging.

Perhaps they can just say he "was resigned."

Meanwhile, the situation seems fluid in Berea. Ernie Accorsi's name should be kept in mind as a possible addition ("Ernie Accorsi is the current General Manager of the Cleveland Browns" was the way Accorsi's entry in Wikipedia began Monday at 10:37 p.m.– and no, that's not the source of my information!)

To speculate on what might or might not happen seems silly. Nor will I guess the deep and dark reasons why Kokinis is no longer with the Browns and why it happened so suddenly. Guessing with some of the rumors flying around is not fair to anyone, least of all the 100,000 loyal readers of this blog.

The developments also seem to really muddle the situation with coach Eric Mangini. Is his job more secure? Less secure? Or does his fate rest on the rest of the season? Clearly, if it rested on the first half he would not have a job.

If he survives, it'll be the greatest Houdini act in NFL coaching history.

That's his right, of course. And I understand that sometimes my desires might not match the team's. I just think that communicating with the fans (through the media) is part of the job.  And I think after all these months of a new coach and GM, the fans deserve some vision, some explanation of the plan. The new regime has yet to verbalize that, or to allow the new coordinators to talk to the media, or had any players talk about why they signed with the Browns, or any of that stuff that could get fans excited.

When I wonder if I'm being too hard, I read an out-of-town perspective. Like Matt Bowen's in the National Football Post. His commentary is very biting and to the point, and it's headlined: "The Decline of the Browns."

Bowen makes many good points, among them:

"If Brady Quinn is so loved in Cleveland, why do I constantly hear that Derek Anderson is the choice of this organization? And is there really a deal that's going to go down before April 25 to move the former first-round pick out of town – possibly in the same cab that (Braylon) Edwards is taking to the airport?

"I almost feel that the quarterback derby Mangini promised us was only a distraction from his real plan – buying time to find a team willing to take Quinn off his hands.

"That Brady Quinn jersey you just bought might be a collector's item now of a player who was given three total games to prove he was ready to play in this league. "

Bowen concludes:

"I don't know what the future holds for football in Cleveland, but I do know that the upcoming draft will tell us a lot. We'll see who's really running the show by the players selected, and we'll also see what current Browns will soon find themselves working for someone else.

"I could be completely off base here with my assumptions. Obviously, Mangini is the coach of this team and I'm not – but that doesn't hide the fact that his moves up to this point have all of us scratching our heads. "

He said the team would not discuss trade discussions or rumors, presumably regarding Braylon Edwards and Brady Quinn: "It's just not the right thing to do."

Specifically on Edwards: "It's internal business. All options … every year, every team, they look at every option. That's internal business."

On whether trade rumors would affect Quinn's psyche: " I've seen Brady. I haven't seen him change his work ethic."

On whether a trade might happen on draft day: "I can't tell you. If the phone rings, we're going to pick it up."

On financial considerations forcing teams out of the draft's top 10: " Certainly there are financial parameters. But if you hit on a great one, everyone's pretty happy that they're there. If you hit on a Jonathan Ogden everybody's pretty happy that you got him."

On the quarterback situation with Quinn and Derek Anderson: " When was I up here the first time, February? Nothing's changed. They'll come in and compete. Both can contribute. Both have skill. Both have qualities that you like."

On whether the Browns tried to acquire Jay Cutler: "Cutler's in Chicago and Brady and Derek are here, just like I talked about in February."

On whether the Browns can win with Anderson or Quinn: " We're going to push forward to do that. We're going to try to win every game we can."

On who is the best pure football player in the draft: " I don't want to give that strategy away. What if that guy is available at four?"

On WR Michael Crabtree: " Put on the tape he makes plays and gets in the end zone."

On if the team internally has agreed on the main needs: "I don't think there is pressing need. You go into the draft and you try to fill every position you can."

On Jamal Lewis: " When you count him out he runs you over. That's what I do know about Jamal. If there's a back available that we like, we're going to grab him. I think he still has tread there. I believe that."

On whether Derek Anderson required any offseason surgery on his injured knee: "Derek's 100 percent. He's been working out."

On Texas LB Brian Orakpo: " His forte is getting to the passer, but you have seen him (drop into coverage)."

On Wake Forest LB Aaron Curry: " I think he can play in multiple schemes. You've seen him play 'Sam' backer at Wake (Forest). You've seen him inside in sub positions. … Big, strong kid. He can run. Plays hard."

On whether the Browns need to draft a third QB: " There is some philosophy that you should take a quarterback in every draft. I think if there is one available that we like, we can take him. I'm going to keep that option open for sure."

On USC LB Rey Maualuga: " I think his forte really is smashing up into the guards. He's a tough, physical football player. He's got good range. I don't think there's anything to think from a movement standpoint that he cannot (play on third down)."

It shows why players always cackle when they are criticized for not being loyal or sentimental, because clearly loyalty and sentiment run both ways. Jurevicius was aching to finish his contract with the Browns for the Browns. Evidently the Browns didn't want to pay him $2.4 million – even though he wanted to come back after a hellish year when a staph infection almost ended his career and forced him to have at least six procedures on his knee. It's not like he got hurt; he went in to have his knee cleaned out.

There were risks with Jurevicius playing, yes. Guys who went through what he went through have not been terribly successful getting back on the field. I've talked to a lot of guys, too, who promise they'll play again after a serious injury, then don't. So perhaps the Browns felt it was unfair to the rest of the team to carry a guy they simply did not believe could return.

Jurevicius could have stayed for less money. Ryan Tucker agreed to reduce his pay to the veteran minimum to play one more year in Cleveland. Jurevicius, in a statement released by his agent, said he was willing "to take a steep pay cut." Perhaps "steep" was in the eye of the beholder, and Jurevicius wanted more than the Browns were willing to pay. Or perhaps it wasn't the money that forced him away. Perhaps there was something else.

Put yourself in his shoes. At age 34, you've proven your value and your professionalism. You go through hell to get back, and then you're asked to take a pay cut by a team that is signing guys like Robert Royal and Hank Poteat. This says nothing about the new guys' value, just that if you're Jurevicius you must look and wonder: Why do I have to take this kind of pay cut?

It's interesting that the Browns asked for the pay cut. The salary cap does not seem to be an issue, so in essence the team was telling one of its veterans he had to either prove himself again, or that he wasn't worth the money he was going to make, or that he was too injured to play. In my mind, there doesn't seem to be middle ground. If there is I'm all ears. The team also had the option of bringing Jurevicius in for camp to see how things went, but chose not to follow that course.

The team could help itself with a more thorough explanation – George Kokinis conference call perhaps? – than the one provided in the team's release. All parties involved – the fans, Jurevicius and the team – would seem to benefit from a 15-minute explanation.

Now the question becomes: Who the heck is going to play receiver?