BEREA — Without late, great movie director Frank Capra, it’s impossible to know where the Browns would be today if the soap opera that was the final days of 2005 had played out differently.
What’s clear is that owner Randy Lerner is convinced senior vice president and general manager Phil Savage is the right man to lead the Browns to a wonderful life.
Lerner signed Savage to a three-year contract extension Friday that runs through 2012. A little more than two years earlier, Lerner was seriously contemplating firing Savage after less than a year on the job on the advice of then-president John Collins.
Savage stayed, Collins resigned and, after a 10-6 season in 2007, respectability has been restored and the Browns appear to be on the right track. Collins was last heard from as a marketing executive for the NHL.
“I’m excited about it,” Savage, 43, said of the extension. “We’ve been through an awful lot, we’ve worked very hard to transform the Browns into winners on and off the field and I think we’ve certainly made some strides in doing that.”
Savage spoke in a corner of the team’s fieldhouse as his most recent draft picks and rookie signings practiced. If things had gone differently 28 months ago, he would’ve been watching different players he’d scouted for another team.
Following a 41-0 home loss to Pittsburgh on Christmas Eve, the Browns were 5-10. On the Friday before the finale, reports circulated that Savage was on his way out. Fans inundated Browns headquarters with calls in support of Savage, he was retained and has turned the Browns from doormat to playoff contender.
“I’ve had unbelievable support,” he said. “I’ve got to be the first GM in the history of the league to put a team out there that got beat 41-0 in a home game on Christmas Eve and the fans come out and say, ‘Hey, this is the guy we want to run our football team.’”
Savage was shaken by the power struggle.
“It was a tough time,” he said. “You have a first-time GM, first-time head coach, a lot of firsts here. Honestly, from a personal standpoint, it probably made me a little stronger. It probably brought our group together both from a personnel and coaching staff standpoint.”
While that weekend was difficult for Savage, the turmoil had a significant benefit.
“I know my relationship with Randy from that Tuesday in the aftermath of that weekend has been great,” Savage said. “It has been what I hoped it would be from Day 1. It took 11 months to get it there, but it’s been fantastic the last 21/2 years.”
The Browns slipped to 4-12 in 2006, but broke through last season with 10 wins, including seven straight at home. Savage has used high draft picks, a bold approach in free agency and a variety of trades to overhaul the roster he inherited from Butch Davis.
“I’m hopeful that we’re through the difficult part,” Savage said. “People don’t realize what a reclamation project it was and in some ways I may have underestimated what state the Browns were really in. We have certainly deconstructed the house and now we’re reconstructing it and making it into the image we want it to be.”
Savage wouldn’t name a single transaction as being his most important, but he credited the 2007 draft for speeding up the turnaround. He drafted left tackle Joe Thomas, then made trades for the right to draft quarterback Brady Quinn and cornerback Erick Wright.
“It seemed to put the Browns on the map,” he said. “It seemed to solidify that we might have some idea of what we’re doing.”
Coach Romeo Crennel was rewarded for the 2007 season in January with a two-year extension through 2011. Crennel spoke out for Savage when his job was on the line, and the two have formed a nice tandem.
“I’m happy for Phil, like I was happy for myself,” Crennel said with a laugh. “It gives us the opportunity to keep the program going in the direction it’s going.
“Hopefully it will be smooth sailing from here on out.”
Savage, who began his NFL career as a defensive backs/quality control coach for the Browns under Bill Belichick in 1991, thinks the biggest hurdle has already been cleared.
“If you can get out of the blocks after three years and survive maybe you have a chance of sticking around for a while,” he said. “Everybody doesn’t do it. I was close to not making it at one point. I did and now it’s time to try to build off that.”

Notes

Cornerback Kenny Wright, who was recently charged with unlawful restraint, evading arrest and possessing marijuana, is still on the team. “We’ve been in touch with the league and monitor the situation. He’s on the team,” Savage said. The Browns are desperate for cornerbacks.
• Linebacker D’Qwell Jackson changed his number to 52 earlier in the offseason, allowing rookie fourth-round pick Beau Bell to wear 58.
• Receiver Braylon Edwards will appear on ESPN’s “NFL Live” on Monday and Tuesday.
Contact Scott Petrak at 329-7253 or spetrak@chroniclet.com. 

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