Speed of Mangini hiring makes for compelling, risky move by Browns

The Browns hired Eric Mangini as coach before settling on a new general manager. David Bergman/SI Related Links Mangini agrees to become Browns next coach Peter King's Mailbag Peter King will answer your questions each week in Monday Morning Quarterback: Tuesday Edition. Name: Email: Hometown: Question: SEND Follow Peter King on Twitter

In a moment, I'll get to the question for the Cleveland Browns of "Why Eric Mangini, and why now?'' It's a surprise, obviously, but once Cleveland owner Randy Lerner figured he couldn't entice Scott Pioli to become the Browns' general manager, Lerner was going to go for the best coach on the market. Mangini convinced Lerner eight nights ago that his ties to Bill Parcells and Bill Belichick made him that man.

But first, a few thoughts about what's next, which might be just as compelling as the hiring of Mangini. I think Lerner will next hire a worker-bee general manager. That might not be the end of the remaking of his front office. I believe Lerner will try to entice a big name to serve as the kind of Parcells-type overseer to his front office (Mike Holmgren, perhaps) who could help Mangini and the new, young general manager chart the long-term course for the Browns' future.

I'm not sure if that's smart, or just a desperate reaction to losing Pioli. But I don't think Lerner will hire a GM next, then just let the team percolate.

Now for the story of why Lerner hired Mangini, fired nine days ago by the Jets. The former Browns' PR intern will be introduced as head coach Thursday morning at the club's training facility in Berea, Ohio.

When Lerner decided to replace his general manager, Phil Savage, and his head coach, Romeo Crennel, one of the things he was adamant about was getting an out-front leader for the franchise as part of his new coach/management team. Lerner figured that would be Pioli, the vice president of player personnel for the New England Patriots who helped build a skidding franchise into a three-time Super Bowl champion. Lerner and Pioli met for about seven hours last Wednesday, and Lerner was sure Pioli was the top candidate to come in and rebuild his team.

But Pioli never gave Lerner the indication that he was prepared to take the job. A source close to Lerner told SI.com that, contrary to some reports, Pioli was never offered the job, nor was he given a deadline by which time he had to accept or reject the job. The Lerner source also said Pioli never made any demands that gave Lerner cold feet. Lerner felt Pioli might go somewhere else (Kansas City, perhaps), or he might return to the Patriots.

Lerner felt if he waited for Pioli to make up his mind, he might be waiting a week or two, or maybe longer, and there was no guarantee he'd get Pioli. Also, he wasn't convinced he'd be able to convince the other big name on the market, fired Denver coach Mike Shanahan, that the Browns' job was the perfect one for him. So he interviewed four coaches -- Mangini; his own defensive coordinator, Mel Tucker; Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo; and New England offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. He liked Mangini far and away the best. In the interview, Mangini stressed how much he'd learned coaching at the right hand of Parcells (with the Jets) and Belichick (with the Jets and Patriots) and he talked chapter and verse about what he'd learned in his three years coaching the Jets. Lerner, as did many of his peers around the league, felt Mangini got a raw deal in New York. Who fires a 37-year-old coach with winning seasons in two of his first three years?

In the end, Lerner was so smitten with Mangini that he chose him over the superb young quarterback tutor, McDaniels, and he chose not to wait for any of the coaches on the eight teams in the playoffs -- names like defensive coordinators Rex Ryan and Jim Schwartz of the Ravens and Titans, respectively. Surely he'll be questioned about that decision at the Thursday press conference. Why not wait? No other team was lining up to steal Mangini from him. It's a question that will dog this franchise if one of the candidates Lerner bypasses goes on to great coaching career. But what Lerner will say, I'm sure, is some variation of this: I was convinced that Mangini was our man, so there was no reason for me to wait.

It's a compelling, risky decision by Lerner. It makes the Browns a compelling team in 2009.