Mangini’s job could be safe now

Maybe Cleveland Browns owner Randy Lerner might want to save the $8 to $10 million he has earmarked for Mike Holmgren and give it to charity.

The "process" that coach Eric Mangini has talked about all season is starting to pay off. The Browns have won two straight games, including a rare offensive explosion in a 41-34 win over the Kansas City Chiefs Sunday in Kansas City.

Running back Jerome Harrison broke Jim Brown's franchise record for rushing yards in a single game with 286 while scoring three touchdowns. Joshua Cribbs proved again that he's one of the NFL's best players pound for pound as he returned kicks of 100 and 103 yards for touchdowns.

The team that was the worst advertisement possible for the NFL earlier this season finally looks respectable. The defense could have played better, and that long snap that went awry by center Ryan Pontbriand to give the Chiefs a touchdown was ugly, but why nit-pick after a rare two-game winning streak?

The big story, however, isn't so much the win but what it means for Mangini's fate now that Holmgren seems to be a wink and a nod from his wife away from filling whatever role it is he wants. Listening Sunday to parts of the interview Holmgren did with a Seattle radio station earlier last week, it sure seems like he's headed to Cleveland.

Holmgren knows more about the Browns' unsettled quarterback situation than anyone located in the Puget Sound area should know other than members of the "Browns Backers." There were times when I expected him to say "we" when referring to the Browns.

But do the Browns need Holmgren, especially if he wants to be czar, general manager and head coach rolled into one? He didn't perform well trying to juggle GM and coaching responsibilities when in Seattle, and he probably doesn't have as much energy as he did then now that he's 61.

It's easy to read too many positives into the 13-6 win over the Steelers 11 days ago and the win over the Chiefs. The Steelers are a shell of the team that won the Super Bowl last season, and the Chiefs might end up selecting ahead of the Browns in the draft next April.

Still, you have to give Mangini credit when it's deserved. He's been an easy target for media pundits, and few have held back with their roundhouse blows. If it was fair to criticize Mangini in October, when the Browns were finding new ways to define embarrassing, it's only fair to give him credit now that respectability has been restored.

Mangini suddenly has the players believing in his plan, and the execution has been sharp at times in all three phases of play. Cribbs makes the special teams among the best in the NFL (don't forget kicker Phil Dawson). The defense is playing better despite numerous injuries (linebacker Matt Roth can play), and what the running game has accomplished two weeks in a row has been impressive.

No, Harrison isn't the next Brown, who held the team record of 237 rushing yards in a game since Nov. 19, 1961, but he adds an element of speed that is sorely lacking. Brady Quinn still doesn't seem comfortable at quarterback, but that's a discussion for another day.

Unless something unforeseen intervenes, Holmgren could be in Cleveland as soon as early next week. Lerner won't change his mind, especially since he announced to the world a couple of months ago his plan to bring in a credible person to run the show.

Then again, Lerner has yet to show that he can stand strong against the winds of opinion. A whisper here and there from someone that he admires could change his mind.

When watching punter Reggie Hodges make a feeble attempt to recover Pontbriand's botched snap, Lerner somehow came to mind. As Hodges looked back and saw a Chiefs defender in hot pursuit, his knees weakened in allowing a cheap touchdown.

Lerner always seems to be looking back to see what went wrong and what could be in the future. When he saw Holmgren, his knees might have weakened as he swooned about what his arrival could mean for the franchise.

Holmgren might turn out to be the best tonic on the market, but there are reasons to think twice before opening the bottle.

mmclain@tribtoday.com