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Cleveland Browns Name Ray Farmer Assistant GM, Promote Michael Lombardi to GM

By Mike Krupka

Today the Cleveland Browns added Ray Farmer as their new Assistant General Manager. I am personally very excited about this as he was a name I had on my wish list during our initial GM search. My only concern now is how many "chefs are in the kitchen."

Here is the link to Nate Ulrich's article from the Akron Beacon Journal with quotes from Browns CEO Joe Banner about the hire and the shift in Mike Lombardi's title from Directory of Player Personnel to General Manager:

"He adds a voice as just a, I think, top, top-tier player evaluator in the NFL," Banner said this afternoon during a conference call.

Mike Lombardi, who was named vice president of player personnel on Jan. 18, also has had his title changed to general manager. Farmer will work closely with Lombardi, helping manage the professional and college scouting departments.

"The change in Mike’s title was a reflection of the need to create the assistant general manager title in order to get permission from Kansas City for Ray to be free to interview with us," Banner said. "There’s no change in Mike’s position at all. It’s purely an add of Ray. The title change just facilitated our getting permission from Kansas City."

As Banner stated, Farmer could not just make a lateral move to Cleveland -- it had to be considered a "promotion," based on his title. "Assistant GM" is a higher title than what Farmer held in Kansas City. In order to have an "assistant GM," you need someone with the "general manager" label, hence the change for Lombardi. Banner also addressed the chain of command for head coach Rob Chudzinski:

What are your thoughts on the hiring?

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