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Browns fire one of Cleveland executives who passed on Carson Wentz

Not a top 20 league executive.

NFL: International Series-Minnesota Vikings at Cleveland Browns Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Browns officially fired executive vice president of football operations Sashi Brown on Thursday.

This is relevant to the Eagles because Brown was one of the key decision makers who decided to pass on Carson Wentz in the 2016 NFL Draft. The Browns have gone 1-27 since passing on Wentz.

It seems Brown lost out on a power struggle with Cleveland head coach Hue Jackson. Browns owner Jimmy Haslam released a statement showing commitment to Jackson beyond this season, despite the head coach’s terrible win-loss record.

Interestingly enough, there was a recent story detailing how Jackson actually wanted Wentz in 2016.

When Jackson and then assistant head coach/offense Pep Hamilton worked out Wentz privately before the draft, they were blown away -- and instantly sold on him as their quarterback of the future, the sources said.

They had sent Wentz a package of plays the day before, and when they put him on the board to diagram them, he had memorized everything -- something no one else they worked out privately was able to do, especially not so quickly.

Wentz's football acumen pushed him over the top into No. 1 status for them, the sources said. He already had all the physical tools, and Jackson wasn't scared off by him playing at North Dakota State, because he had coached Joe Flacco out of Delaware as a rookie.

Now, I can’t help but feel like this type of story was leaked in order to wipe the blame away from Jackson. Hue is known for having good relations with the media so he knows how to work that angle. But maybe it’s true, I don’t know.

The Browns aren’t cleaning house entirely. They still employ chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta, who once was said the Browns didn’t believe Wentz would be a top 20 quarterback. Whoops!

Cleveland is set up well for the future with a lot of draft picks and cap space. But they don’t have a franchise quarterback, which matters most. Maybe they can use their assets to acquire one and build for a brighter future. We’ll see.

In the meantime, the Eagles are contending for a Super Bowl this year thanks to a second-year quarterback who belongs in the MVP conversation: Carson Wentz.

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