The Cleveland Browns head into their bye week with far more questions than answers. We learned a bit more about the Browns injuries coming out of Week 8 from HC Kevin Stefanski on Monday and a reiteration
that QB Dillon Gabriel would continue as the starter. Stefanski mostly blew off questions from the media about Shedeur Sanders.
Last week, Cleveland owner Jimmy Haslam seemed to take Stefanski off the hot seat
, but many are wondering if Week 8 changed things, and what options the Browns might have to replace him.Stefanski has taken much of the flak, given that he speaks to the media multiple times a week, while GM Andrew Berry has been seen but not heard. Berry’s talented 2025 NFL draft class seems to have bought him time with some fans and media, clearly not all, but it was interesting to note that the GM is currently not scheduled to speak to the media during Cleveland’s bye week:
From what we understand at DBN, there is a simple, practical reason for this departure: The NFL trade deadline is next week and Berry is expected to speak following that. Talking to the media this week and next may not be an efficient use of his time, or the media’s, especially with the deadline a week away.
That isn’t how everyone is taking the news of Berry not speaking this week, however:
The word “coward” or similar implications have been used to describe Berry’s decision. Others believe that Sanders not playing is the reason:
In the end, Berry speaking or not does not impact the performance on the field. In general, the GM (much like the head coach) has perfected saying almost nothing while using a lot of words, so a press conference would not provide answers to fans’ questions either.
It is possible that the team makes Berry available this week, but had not yet scheduled it by the time Ruiter made his post. As of this publication, the Browns official media schedule only included Monday’s media session with Stefanski and “No scheduled availability” for Tuesday, October 28th. If Cleveland’s GM doesn’t speak after the NFL trade deadline, things could get even more interesting.
What do you think, is Berry just being practical in speaking to the media once next week (if he does) or do you think it is something worse?
Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below
