Browns Announce Promotions, New Hire in Personnel Department

The Cleveland Browns have finally cemented the front office nearly six months into the new regime.

The Browns announced the promotions of six members of the front office and the addition of another on Tuesday.

In the grand scheme of things, little changes, since everyone reports to Executive Vice President of Football Operations Sashi Brown. However, the moves could have a significant impact on the success of the department moving forward.

As reported by Pro Football Talk, the new hire is Glenn Cook, a four-year veteran of the Green Bay Packers' player personnel department. The 31 year old will serve as the Browns' assistant director of scouting.

Cook has a cool background. The Miami grad played four years for the Hurricanes at linebacker, lettering in 2004-06 and 2008 before entering the 2009 NFL Draft. Cook went undrafted, so the Chicago Cubs selected him in the 2009 MLB Draft. The Florida native played outfield in 34 games in rookie ball before taking a graduate assistant job at his alma mater. Cook then accepted a job with the Colts before joining the Packers' front office in 2012.

Of the six promotions, the most important is Ken Kovash to vice president, player personnel. Kovash now officially holds the same title as Andrew Berry, although cleveland.com reported the promotion in February. Kovash has been with the Browns since 2013 and also has a strong analytics background, serving as director of football research for the last three years.

“Ken is an intelligent, critical thinker,” Brown said in today's release. “He provides valuable leadership and input to our decision-making process and will continue to be a key component to our personnel department.”

Chisom Opara also leaps up the depth chart to director of player personnel. Opara joined the club in 2005, surviving a host of changes since he started in the days of Trent Dilfer and Charlie Frye. The Browns have featured Opara in several neat videos in the last couple years, including how he became a scout, explaining the scouting process, and how he evaluates a quarterback.

Kevin Meers receives a nice lift to director of football research and strategy. The Harvard grad is heavy into analytics. Meers created his own draft pick value chart back in 2011. Here's his full blog post, worth the read if you have time. According to his LinkedIn profile, Meers previously served as an analytics intern and football research analyst with the Browns from January 2013-2016.

Meers will work heavily with Chief Strategy Officer Paul DePodesta, who praised Meers in the release.

“Kevin’s inquisitive nature, his intelligence, and his tireless work ethic make him a perfect fit to lead our research function,” DePodesta said. “We look forward to him helping us in many different areas.”

Bobby Vega, Dan Saganey, and Mike Cetta each received a promotion to director of scouting. The trio has spent a combined 23 years with the Browns in various positions. Vega will head the college scouting process, Saganey will focus on pro scouting, and Cetta will "help direct systems and processes that support the Browns scouting department," according to the release.

“We feel really good about our department as a whole and the extensive collaboration we have established in our everyday work,” Brown said. “Our intent has been to assemble a group committed to creating strategic and comprehensive processes that help us make the best decisions possible for building our football team. We are excited about the high caliber individuals within our football operations, the quality of their work and their passion for football.”