Kyle Shanahan was rising star in Cleveland; might've been rock star as Browns head coach
Maybe the world was turning.
Maybe the pattern of bad season after bad season through 15 maddening years of the expansion era was over.
Maybe the Browns were building toward — dare it be said? — a Super Bowl.
Definitely, Kyle Shanahan — who this Sunday coaches the 49ers in a Super Bowl for the second time in five years — was in the middle of a surging optimism in Cleveland.
It didn't show at first.
The 2014 opener at Pittsburgh began with as bad a first half as could be imagined.
The big picture already was so bad that head coaches Romeo Crennel, Eric Mangini, Pat Shurmur and Rob Chudzinski got fired after the 2008, 2010, 2012 and 2013 seasons, respectively.
Mike Pettine's first two quarters as the 2014 head coach were skunk spray from a fire hose. The Browns trailed 27-3. They looked really bad.
A second-half run to a 27-27 tie was as thrilling as the first half was depressing.
Cleveland's personnel was suspect — undrafted career backup Brian Hoyer at QB; Terrance West, a rookie from Towson, and undrafted rookie Isaiah Crowell in the running back pool; two undrafted 5-foot-7 guys, Andrew Hawkins and Taylor Gabriel, in the wideout rotation; former fifth- and seventh-round picks Gary Barnidge and Jim Dray at tight end.
The offensive line was very good, though. And so was the play calling in the second half, performed by the new offensive coordinator, Shanahan.
After halftime adjustments, Shanahan's attack shredded Pittsburgh coordinator Dick LeBeau's defense.
Chunk plays came like a boxing flurry, a 15-yard touchdown by Crowell, shots of 25 and 17 yards to Hawkins, a 29-yard run by West, completions of 10 and 20 yards to Dray, a 13-yard throw to Barnidge, a 17-yard catch by Miles Austin.
It was 27-27 when Hoyer took a deep shot to Gabriel. Pittsburgh survived it and won 30-27.
Afterward, Pettine's mouth said there are no moral victories. His eyes said there are.
A week later, after Hoyer won a 26-24 duel with Drew Brees and the Saints in the home opener, Cleveland was on fire.
Shanahan came off as wise beyond his years. He was more personable and candid than his famous dad, Mike. He was uber confident in an appealing way. He was fun.
His plays worked.
In Game 3, the Browns were on the cusp of a major win over the Ravens. A 70-yard completion to Gabriel set up a late 21-17 lead. The Browns had the ball twice more but couldn't put it away. Baltimore won 23-21 on a field goal as time expired.
In Game 4, Shanahan's people ran for 176 yards and passed for 284 in a 29-28 win at Tennessee.
Game 5, at home against Pittsburgh, was uproarious fun. The Steelers had won 20 of the previous 22 meetings but this time got their butts kicked in Cleveland.
A tremendous offensive line — Joe Thomas and Mitchell Schwartz at the tackles, Joel Bitonio and John Greco at the guards, Alex Mack at center — meshed with Shanahan's grab bag of "skill players."
At one point the Browns led 31-3. Browns Stadium sounded like the height of the Bernie Kosar era.
Unfortunately, Mack broke a leg in the second quarter. The team finished the game on adrenalin, but losing an All-Pro center presented a problem.
Or did it?
A 24-3 win at Cincinnati on a Thursday night was as exhilirating as the Pittsburgh game. The Browns were 6-3.
A 23-7 home loss to Houston a week later was the day the music died. A week later in Atlanta, the Browns got to 7-4 on a field goal as time expired, but Hoyer threw three interceptions.
Rookie Johnny Manziel replaced Hoyer in the fourth quarter of a 26-10 loss at Buffalo.
A week later, a rattled Hoyer went the distance against the Colts but played poorly in a 25-24 loss.
The next game was a disaster, with Manziel going the distance in a 30-0 home loss to the Bengals.
The final two games, losses at Carolina and Baltimore, were a mess.
Jimmy Haslam was finding his way as a fairly new owner, but Shanahan had seen enough.
Within three weeks after the season finale, Shanahan was replaced by John DeFilippo.
Pettine offered an uncomfortable explantion in a press conference:
"It's just very hard to win in the NFL when everybody's into it and they truly want to be there. If you have somebody that just doesn't want to be there, I know it's easy to say, 'Hey he's under contract, hold him to it,' but there's a dark cloud over your coaching offices."
Shanahan, who was signed through 2016, reportedly handed Pettine a 32-point paper on why he should be let out of his contract.
In the first three seasons after he was released, the Browns went 4-44.
Things have stabilized under head coach Kevin Stefanski, who has been to the playoffs twice and is 38-32 across four seasons. One of his best days was a victory against Shanahan's 49ers in Ocober.
It would be interesting, though, to get a copy of Shanahan's 32-point paper. It is intriguing to wonder what might have happened had he been head coach of the Browns in 2014, rather than offensive coordinator.
In his second season after leaving the Browns, he went to a Super Bowl as offensive coordinator in Atlanta. As head coach of the 49ers, he has reached four of the last five NFC championship games, winning twice. He is in Super Bowl 58 against the Chiefs at 6:30 p.m. Sunday.
He seems to know what he's doing.
Reach Steve at steve.doerschuk@cantonrep.com
This article originally appeared on The Repository: What if Browns hired 49er Kyle Shanahan as head coach not coordinator
