According to Crennel, the Jets' 4-3 record is a testament to Mangini's abilities
The offense hasn't been rolling in Cleveland, so it didn't come as a shock when Browns offensive coordinator Maurice Carthon resigned Monday. Last season, the Browns scored a league-low 232 points and they averaged just 14.7 points per game during their 1-5 start this season. Jeff Davidson, the team's offensive line coach/assistant head coach, takes over the offensive play-calling duties.
"You have to try to get your offense situated because now you have a new guy in the leadership role and there's going to be a new play-caller," said Cleveland head coach Romeo Crennel. "The players have to adjust to a new personality. It's tough to get that done quickly, but you don't have time because the game is going to be on Sunday. We have to practice today, so you have to move that along as fast as you can."
Read below for Crennel's compelte transcript
Cleveland Browns' Head Coach Romeo Crennel, 10.25
On going up against Coach Mangini…
Well, it will definitely be interesting, because he's done a really good job there for you guys. Your 4-3 and I don't think anyone expected him to be able to pull that off. That in itself is a testament to his abilities. I knew Eric, we worked together for a while, and I know that he is a sharp guy and had those kinds of possibilities in his future. He got the opportunity and he's taking good advantage of it.
On coaching against a friend…
We're competitors and when you compete, whoever you compete against they're kind of like the enemy during the competition, but before the competition and after it's over, we're still friends and will always be friends. It would be better if we didn't have to compete against each other because somebody is going to have to lose and I don't think either of us wants to lose. I don't want Eric to lose either, but somebody is going to lose and that's the tough part. If we could go through the season and not have to compete against each other then we could pull for each other on all the games.
On what Coach Mangini showed that could make him say he had the makings of a great head coach…
With Eric you saw right away his work ethic and knew that he would work however long it took. I saw that at the Jets when we were together. Then in New England, when he was handling the defensive backs and dealing with some of the egos that you have to deal with in the defensive backfield and getting those guys to play at a high level, be able to develop young players that could come in when a guy went down and play at a high level, that gave you an indication that he was going to be able to deal with players. Then being in the meeting room with him when we were doing game plans, and his ideas and adjustments, you knew that he was a sharp guy and you knew that someday he'd have the opportunity to be a head coach.
On staying with Coach Mangini…
The second time I was in New England, the house we purchased was under construction and so we were not going to be able to get into it for a little bit and talking to Eric about having to live in a hotel, he said "No, no, don't do that, come stay with us." He offered his house and so my wife and I we were house guests. It was nice to have some place to go that wasn't a hotel and then be able to visit with people you enjoy being with. Eric and Julie are enjoyable people and so I thought it was very gracious that he would offer his house. We were able to get along so well it was a very good experience.
On how he stayed with Coach Mangini…
I think it was close to six months. My house wasn't ready until the summer and it was the spring when we moved in there. Maybe four, four or five months.
On if they carpooled in together…
Some days, yes.
On spending a lot of time with Coach Mangini…
Of course.
On that being where the friendship took off…
(It came from) working together. At the Jets, that's where I first ran into Eric and we would both be over there late at night working and we would talk and we were in the same staff meetings. Sometimes you just get a feel about individuals, about whether you like them or not. At the Jets, I like Eric from basically the first day. And Julie, she was around also and she was a good person. So almost from the get go we liked each other.
On Maurice Carthon's resignation…
That's always stressful when you make a change, particularly in the middle of the year, because one of the things that are hard to overcome in this business is distractions. When you make a change like that it's a major distraction. Trying to get the players focused becomes an issue, trying to get your offense situated, because now you have a new guy in the leadership role and there's going to be a new play caller and so the players have to adjust to a new personality. It's tough to get that done quickly but you don't have time. If the game is going to be on Sunday, we have to practice today, so you have to move that along as fast as you can. Even though you want to put it behind you, it's hard to put it behind you because it's a story and people talk about it. Like I told the players this morning, try to spend all your energy talking about the Jets and focusing on the Jets and not talk about the transition that occurred, but you know how that goes. We'll see how they follow my advice.
On being more difficult because you had known Carthon so long…
Change is part of football, Maurice and I we sat down and we had a long discussion because we've been together for so long and we are friends. When he offered to resigned I decided that I would accept it for the betterment of the Browns basically. It wasn't easy, but it's something that you have to do, and we move on.
On trying to get Coach Mangini as his defensive coordinator…
I tried really hard; I thought I had him for a minute. But (Bill) Belichick had a chance to talk to him last. Somebody once told me, "If somebody can talk you into something, somebody can talk you out of something," and so Belichick talked better then I did.
On having Coach Mangini convinced…
Oh yeah, I thought it was going to be close, because we are friends and it was going to be a good opportunity for him and he had been here in Cleveland before. But he was in a good place in New England, where he was, and he's had a long relationship with Belichick also, because Belichick gave him his first opportunity in the NFL and those ties are strong. At the end it was close enough that he decided to stay.
On still having interest in Derrick Strait…
Not at the moment. We got Leigh Bodden back and there was another young kid that we worked out a couple of times that we were interested in and wanted to take a look at and we signed him yesterday. Right now were not going to be able to have a spot for him.
On what are Coach Mangini's greatest attributes as a head coach…
He's smart, he's adaptable, he can adjust to things that happen on the field and he's good at putting a game plan together. He knows the strengths and weaknesses of offenses and defenses and he's good with players.
On what the 'A' stands for in 'RAC'…
Just the initial 'A', and if you want to go more, sometimes I tell people it stands for astonishing.
