Technology gaffes for the Cleveland Browns go back long before their ill-fated attempt to grab then-Bengals quarterback AJ McCarron in 2017.
As detailed in a damning ESPN report on the long-suffering franchise, published Thursday, the organization accidentally showcased pornography in the team facilities in a marketing faux pas, which appears to have taken place between 2014 and 2015.
Looking to see how Browns fans were in tune with the team on social media, marketing personnel wanted to show the feed on a wall within the team’s facility. The good-faith gesture naturally went awry in Cleveland, when one member of the staff searched “#dp” in reference to the “Dawg Pound.” The two letters had different meanings online, resulting in adults-only content being featured in the office for over 20 minutes.
Following the 2015 season, second-year coach Mike Pettine was fired and general manager Ray Farmer, who had been suspended for the first four games of the season for texting team staffers on the sideline during a game, had been relieved of his duties. Then-quarterback Johnny Manziel was also in the middle of his troubling downward spiral.
Three seasons later, owner Jimmy Haslam and general manager John Dorsey have appeared to right the ship, with quarterback Baker Mayfield under center and Freddie Kitchens replacing former coach Hue Jackson permanently.
Upon being informed of his termination in October, Jackson asked why he was being fired, before telling Haslam and Dorsey to “get the f–k out of my office.”
Gregg Williams was named interim head coach, and the Browns finished third in the AFC North at 7-8-1.