What is Paul DePodesta’s future?

The status of Paul DePodesta seems to be up in the air as the Cleveland Browns look to find their next head coach and general manager.

The status of Paul DePodesta has been a talking point since the Cleveland Browns fired John Dorsey. Would Cleveland elevate DePodesta to Dorsey’s role? Would Cleveland look to move on from DePodesta as well? Nobody is quite sure what his future holds.

Daryl Ruiter tweeted the following Thursday about Paul DePodesta and his relationship with those in Berea on a day-to-day basis.

DePodesta works out of La Jolla, California. For someone described as Jimmy Haslam’s right hand man it is a bit strange. Yes, modern technology allows people to work remotely, even across the country. That setup may work well in other situations, but with DePodesta’s relationship with Haslam, not so much. It is easy to understand why people who are actually in the building are miffed when they may be outranked by someone on the opposite side of the country. DePodesta is not in the building on a regular basis. He does not see, hear, or get the feeling of the players, coaches, and other individuals in a position of power. It is hard to truly understand exactly what is going on when not present in the building.

Contract, Stefanski, and McDaniels

DePodesta’s contract expires at the end of the week. Coincidentally this is the same time that the team will have completed all of their interviews. The team is interviewing Kevin Stefanski Thursday and Josh McDaniels Friday.

Some believe that a hire of Stefanski would lead to the team keeping DePodesta while hiring McDaniels meaning the opposite. The only basis for this thought is that DePodesta suggested Stefanski last year and the false perception that New England is not very analytical.

If the team and DePodesta do not come to terms on a new contract he will not be part of the organization in either scenario. There is the possibility that if Paul DePodesta suggests Kevin Stefanski and Josh McDaniels is hired instead he could decline to sign a new contract if offered. This would be the second consecutive year that DePodesta would suggest Stefanski and get overlooked. It would be hard to blame him if he did indeed leave. Three straight coaching searches and being ignored wouldn’t sit well with anyone.