From the Easily Forgotten Department comes news that former Browns GM for a minute George Kokinis and the organization have reached a financial settlement stemming from last fall’s front office fallout.  Perhaps most of Browns Nation’s natural reaction to this story is one of general ambivalence, especially considering the new hint of stablity that has been added by the hiring of Mike Holmgren and Tom Heckert to right the team’s path.

However, the Kokinis story is one that is endlessly fascinating – and completely vital when considering that his departure essentially paved the way for Holmgren’s arrival in Berea.  Because of Kokinis’ failure as a GM, assuming he was ever truly given such a position, continental Browns owner Randy Lerner finally came to the realization that his franchise’s front office was in complete disarray. 

In fact, the entire episode cast a most unfortunate light on Lerner’s tepid ownership abilities, which has helped to propel Holmgren from a mere former coach into the role of franchise messiah.

And the rest is history – which is another unfortunate realization, especially since the true details of Kokinis’ departure will likely never be revealed. 

Speaking of ancient history, it seems like it was a lifetime ago that Eric Mangini had assumed complete control over the organization.  Only a few months ago, Kokinis’ quick exit from Berea signalled that Mangini had won a rather handicapped organizational power struggle – the details of which were completely shrouded in mystery.

As they remain today.

Because of the clandestine manner of such legal proceedings, it is unlikely that any more details will emerge regarding this case.  For today, we’re left with these.

Former GM Kokinis Settles With Browns

Browns Reach Settlement With Kokinis

Fired Kokinis Reaches Resolution 

All three of the above are pretty similar.  In all fairness to each outlet, the league is not going to release any specific information regarding the matter.

Or, in other words – actually Tony Grossi’s: 

The league often urges reconciliation on arbitration cases to avoid details being made public that could be embarrassing to both sides.

The settlement includes a gag order on both parties, so neither side would issue further comment.

From an outsider’s perspective – and actually anyone outside of the league’s offices could be considered as such – it became clear that because of the Browns’ complete lack of a functioning front office, Kokinis was never able to settle into a clearly defined role within the organization.  Obviously, having a new head coach – one who had just recently lost a front office power struggle in New York – did not help matters.

Throw in one of the most hands-off owners in professional sports, and the environment in which Kokinis entered became even more muddied in terms of just who was responsible for the daily directives of the franchise.  Or, in other words – the Browns operated much like they have for the entirety of Lerner’s tenure as owner.

Like Butch Davis and Phil Savage before him, Mangini easily assumed complete control over the franchise.  And while Mangini has been characterized as an inflexible control freak, it’s worth noting that someone had to assume some power in what became a leaderless organization.

As for Kokinis, he never really had a chance in Cleveland.  And according to Schudel, Kokinis knew his fate early on.

“In fact, however, the arbitration asserts that Mr. Kokinis was fired because of his unwillingness to defer on numerous important matters relating to the team’s football operations.”

According to sources, Kokinis was unaware the Browns traded Braylon Edwards to the Jets on Oct 7 until after the fact.

As far back as the spring minicamps in 2009, Kokinis did not look happy. Neighbors said Kokinis complained about the lack of time he was spending with his wife and children.

And this from Grossi, who paints Kokinis as being completely overwhelmed.

The sources said that early on, suspicions about Kokinis arose when he “freaked out” at the news that an employee of the organization contracted a staph infection. There were also concerns that Kokinis arrived to work late and that he sometimes was caught napping in his office.

National reports after his dismissal suggested the Browns felt Kokinis had emotional problems and asked him to undergo counseling. At the time, Kessler termed the reports “false allegations” and “deplorable.”

As for Kokinis’ defense – besides evidentally being a narcoleptic, here’s this… 
 
Kessler argued in his arbitration that Kokinis was fraudulently lured from his job with the Baltimore Ravens with promises of authority that the Browns never intended to keep. He said coach Eric Mangini hired Kokinis, a longtime friend, to be a “yes man” and when Kokinis resisted, he was fired.

Whose fault is this?

Typically, when a franchise hires its coach first, such as the Browns did with Mangini in early January, the writing is already on the wall.  As for the “fraudulence” on display here, it appears that all parties were engaged in an open act of deception.  For anyone, especially Kokinis, to think that the incoming GM would be able to override the hand-picked coach is not being realistic.

However, perhaps the most troubling aspect of this recent history is Lerner’s role as an evaluator of front office talent.  Again, from Grossi’s report…

Lerner also said that his search for a “strong, credible leader” was the result of Kokinis’ failings as GM.

“I expected the GM to evolve into that role,” Lerner wrote.

Really, Randy?

You expected your after-the-fact GM hire to become more of a “strong, credible leader” than the head coach you brought in a month prior?

I’m not an expert in evolutionary affairs, but I don’t think things change that fast.

Especially considering the quality of candidate that was brought in.

In fact, the only way that this arrangement would have worked would have been in a scenario where an experienced GM was brought in, not a long-time player personnel employee such as Kokinis.  Under no circumstances could a novice GM assume any type of control from a head coach who just recently lost his own power struggle.

Of course, this whole episode is a further reflection on Lerner as an owner, as opposed to Mangini’s desire for control, or Kokinis’ oblivious nature. 

I’ve written volumes on Lerner’s flaws, which include a propensity for being easily persuaded, impressed by non-football character traits, and simply being an absentee owner.  However, the Kokinis hiring could prove to be his biggest blunder as Browns’ owner.

Had the status quo remained throughout 2009 – and assuming that the on-field product did just enough to keep people – Lerner included – distracted, there’s no telling the damage that could have been created.  Or at least, the Browns as a franchise could have been set further back.

Perhaps the best example is found here…which is based on National Football Post.com’s Jack Bechta’s most revealing article.

A Lesson Learned in Cleveland

The next day, I spoke to George at about 10 a.m. that morning to see if they were ready to move. He said he needed a little bit more time. Keep in mind that this player was probably the first high-value free agent the new GM, head coach and current salary cap manager had brought in. So it was their first opportunity to work together.

At 1:30, I called the Browns but couldn’t get hold of anyone. This is very unusual during free agency. I finally reached the cap manager and salary negotiator, Trip MacCracken, but he had no direction yet from Kokinis or coach Eric Mangini. Two years earlier, I had worked fast and fluently with Trip on bringing top free-agent guard Eric Steinbach to the Browns, so he and I had a strong history of working together.

A few more hours passed, but there was still no decision from the Browns’ brass. Finally, at about 4:30, they sent the player to the airport with no contract. At that point, I was very pissed because we had just burned a whole day of free agency. I called George and gave him an earful. He was apologetic, but he couldn’t give me a good reason why they didn’t sign the player. I could sense he was very frustrated.

The Browns were obviously never on the same page with this particular free agent and had yet to formulate a way to work together and make decisions. Another agent I spoke to had a similar experience. The signs were there from the beginning that Kokinis had little power and that the team was somewhat rudderless.
 
Exactly. 

Considering that the upcoming draft has one of the deeper talent pools in recent memory, could you only imagine if the 2009 front office – meaning Mangini – was still emerged in such chaos?

While I’m not convinced that Holmgren is indeed the franchise messiah that some are making him to be, I am completely relieved that at least we have a “strong, credible leader” who has already accomplished the herculean task of actually creating some front office stability.  Merely by bringing in a new group of personnel people, along with a GM, all who appear to have clearly defined roles, Holmgren has already accomplished more in a span of two months than the previous regimes have done over the past decade.

Who knows what will happen in the coming months and years, but at least we can take comfort in knowing that history should not repeat itself again in the near future. 

As for the past, perhaps the entire Kokinis episode will ultimately be viewed as a turning point for the franchise.  Because of the total catastrophe that occurred behind the scenes in 2009, Lerner finally realized that – much like Kokinis – he was also “in over his head.”