This weekend it's all Browns, all the time.

With apologies — because this isn't exactly the most exciting time to be reading about the Browns.

-- George Kokinis started his tenure with the Browns thinking that he would be an actual general manager.

One who could talk to the media, pick players and have serious input into the direction of the team.

He wound up working for the coach he was supposed to be helping.

One source told a story of Kokinis being called into coach Eric Mangini's office shortly after his hiring, and Mangini laying down the rules under which he would have to operate.

Appreciate this picture: The coach was telling the GM how he should act.

Kokinis is a pleasant and nonconfrontational person, so instead of fighting things, he went along, figuring that over time his role as GM would carry enough credence that he could overcome some of these problems.

It never happened.

And over time, the situation got to Kokinis — to the point that something happened that prompted team owner Randy Lerner to lose faith in him.

He called Kokinis into his office last Monday and asked Kokinis to resign, according to SI.com. Kokinis refused, and he was ushered to the door of the building.

The Browns can deny he was ushered out of the building, but it is their M.O. when people are let go to take them right to the door, have them bring their belongings and have their access to the building revoked.

It's happened with staffers; it happened with Kokinis.

There seem to be two views of Kokinis within the team. The first states that he never was given the authority to do his job, and he never was able to truly exercise the power given him in his contract.

The second states that Kokinis was not up to the job, never took the authority he was given and allowed the pressure to get to him.

By the time his tenure ended, he was arriving for work late and acting disinterested. Whether he lost interest on his own or was marginalized could be a matter of interpretation. Because with the Baltimore Ravens, Kokinis worked diligently, often late into the evening.

People in Baltimore would be shocked to hear that Kokinis arrived even a minute late or left a minute early.

What's true might depend on which side you rest.

Friends of Kokinis will point out that the Browns did not let him live up to the terms of his contract. Which would be a breach and would make their claim that he has been fired ''for cause'' more or less moot.

Lerner's side would say that he never really became a true GM, and when he started to act disinterested, the owner acted.

Either way, the story is a pathetic reflection on the Browns, who sought Kokinis out and hired him at the behest of the head coach.

Mangini handpicked Kokinis. He was his friend. He touted that when the two joined the Browns. Their pairing didn't last half a season.

One day Kokinis might go on the record and discuss what happened.

But he does not seem vindictive, and another M.O. of the Browns is to write a clause in a ''resignation'' agreement that prohibits criticism of the team.

Until it happens, the Browns will continue to say that it's not fair to blame Mangini for Kokinis' departure.

Problem is, that's the exact picture that has been painted — the appearance is that Mangini made his friend a scapegoat and threw him under the proverbial bus that runs proverbially through Berea.

-- Mangini might have no hold over Lerner whatsoever.

But it sure doesn't seem that way.

Lerner continues to stand behind Mangini through some horribly bad times.

The product on the field alone would make most balk, because the Browns are an embarrassment merely at playing the game.

Too, veteran Jamal Lewis came out last Sunday and said he has no idea how the Browns plan to win a game; he just knows that they want to win.

In a normal circumstance, this bombshell would bring shock waves. Think about it — a respected veteran states that a coaching staff and a team do not have a plan for how to win.

Check the Richter scale.

But with the Browns quagmire, it's just one more ''gee, did you hear what he said'' moment.

Too, many players simply do not enjoy playing for Mangini. He has been described as mentally wearing and negative, and when players either don't know or don't believe in the system, the negativity and mental stress grow old in a hurry.

The way the Browns play, it appears to have grown old about six weeks ago.

Maybe six months.

Then the mentally taxing parts start to beat a player down more, and the result is a game where the Chicago Bears stink up the joint and yawn their way through a 24-point win.

Blind faith?

How it is that the owner still believes in this coach through this experience is near mind-boggling.

Unless he's taking the safe route and trying to avoid one more mess by saying right now the coach is safe.

There's logic to this reasoning. Lerner evidently thinks that changing coaches in the middle of the season wouldn't help anything or anyone, so it makes sense that he wouldn't want to stir up a coaching whirlwind by implying Mangini might get fired.

Lerner has stated he wants a credible leader to come in and run football and speak for the franchise.

If he insists on the new person accepting Mangini, Lerner will have the same problems he had last January, when legitimate candidates dropped out left and right after they heard Mangini would be the coach.

Logic would follow, then, that said new person would want to hire his own coach.

-- Now the Browns are trying to do what few teams have been able to do: reconfigure the front office on the fly.

Restructuring is difficult enough in the offseason.

Try doing it during the season, a losing season, a season of nearly inexplicable pratfalls.

You get the idea.

The proud Browns have become the butt of national jokes, ridicule and scorn. They are off this weekend, then they return for a nationally televised Monday night game against the Ravens that looks like it could be every bit as ugly as the game in Baltimore earlier this season.

What can Lerner do when many reputable, credible people already are working for other teams?

Find someone who's available, credible and legitimate.

Accorsi factor

That is why Lerner turned to Ernie Accorsi, former Browns and New York Giants GM. Accorsi has no interest in being a GM again, but he might have interest in helping right a Browns ship that is listing in every direction.

Accorsi was close to Al Lerner, talks about Randy being like family and has a fondness for the Browns franchise.

In the ideal scenario, Accorsi would take some sort of front-office role (as vice president or president of football), then choose or mentor a GM. Those two would then assess Mangini in the final eight games of the season and make a decision on him next season.

Accorsi would become a voice in the organization for reason and logic, a voice who would ask why things are done or not done.

And he would be a credible, logical voice to the media and fans.

It's a nice plan because Accorsi brings a lot that's right to the table.

Will it work?

Who knows?

If I'm 68 and enjoy being retired, I sure wouldn't want to step into this mess. It would be like boarding Capt. Jack Sparrow's boat as it sailed into that oceanic hurricane.

If Accorsi says no, then what?

Mike Holmgren?

Mike Shanahan?

Park the Lerner-mobile in front of Bill Cowher's house and lay on the horn until he says yes?

Send a hot-air balloon to Oklahoma to bring back Bob Stoops?

Hold their breath until Tony Dungy comes out of retirement?

In this climate, anything seems possible.

-- Accorsi brings a lot of instant credibility, but he also could be joining a franchise that has a laundry list of head-scratching moves in the past few months.

A personal topper came this week when Mangini said he would be included in the hiring of a GM to replace Kokinis.

How's that?

Mangini's handpicked GM doesn't last to Game 9 and he says he's going to be involved in hiring the next one?

Someone is delusional here.

Either it's Mangini, for thinking even the tiniest bit that he should be involved.

Or it's the Browns, for involving him in the tiniest bit.

Or it's me, for thinking that some logic would come out of this situation.

But the last thing you'd think Mangini would be saying is that he'll be involved in the hiring. He has got quite enough on his plate on the field, thank you very much.

Beyond reason

This week has just continued a perplexing stretch of events for the Browns.

Consider just a few since January:

-- Lerner didn't think he needed a credible football executive when he hired Mangini, and now he thinks he needs one.

-- The Browns need someone to speak for the organization, yet when the GM was no longer involved, nobody stepped forward to speak, except Mangini, who basically said he couldn't speak.

-- Somehow the coach who has overseen the dismantling of a team remains while the guy he chose to be his GM — a fact peculiar by itself — is gone.

-- The head coach was fined $25,000 for lying on injury reports last season.

-- A running back was injured in after-practice drills and lost for the season.

-- A former Pro Bowl receiver was charged after punching a friend of LeBron James, then traded for two midround draft picks and eight of those mats players use to clean mud off their shoes.

-- A dozen former New York Jets have been brought in; none has made any impact.

-- Rookies were forced to ''volunteer'' to ride a bus to Hartford, Conn., for the coach's football camp. When word broke, Mangini bypassed the first-class return plane ticket he used to get to Hartford and rode back on the bus with the rookies.

-- One of the team's most respected veteran players has spoken out, saying he has no clear understanding of how the team wants to win games. This statement came after eight games.

-- Now the coach whose players regularly gets their helmets handed to them on the field says he plans to be included in the selection of the GM who will replace the GM he handpicked who was let go after half a season.

Hey. . .why not?

-- Giant Eagle and ACME are missing a great promotion.

They should be giving away brown bags the next week and asking fans who plan to attend the Monday night game to wear them.

Instead of the Cleveland Browns, the Cleveland BrownBags would play.

Most cleverly decorated bag would win a prize.

Why not?

The Cleveland BrownBags. . .national TV. It might be kind of fun.

If the game goes as expected, the decorated bags might provide the Monday Night Football crew with its only entertainment and material.

-- Lost in all the off-field turmoil is the turmoil on the field.

The Browns are dismally bad.

In a 32-team league, they rank 31st in total offense (221.5 yards per game, better only than the Oakland Raiders), 30th in scoring (9.8 points), 32nd in yards per play (3.8), 31st in third-down conversions, 32nd in turnover differential (minus 11), 32nd in passing offense (121.5) and 23rd (hoo hoo) in rushing offense (99.6).

Then there's the defense.

It ranks 32nd in total defense (409.1 yards), 28th in scoring (28.1 points), 24th in pass defense (238.6 yards) and 31st in rushing defense (170.5 yards).

By my math, each game the opposing team outgains the Browns by 187.6 yards per game.

Ponder that a moment — 187.6 yards per game. The Browns are spotting the other team nearly two entire fields.

Quarterback Derek Anderson's passer rating of 36.2 ranks 34th in a league of 32 teams.

And he still might start Monday night against the Ravens.

Got your BrownBag?

-- Remember back to the last preseason game, when neither Brady Quinn nor Anderson played? Guess we can all see they didn't really need the playing time.

-- Folks who blame this season on last season's collection of players are missing the point as well.

The Browns are not even competing this season.

They have lost games by 14, 21, 31, 3, 13, 28 and 24 points.

That's 19.1 points per game (more than two touchdowns and two field goals), with one win by three.

Last season their first seven losses were by 18, 4, 18, 3, 10, 4 and 10 points.

That's an average of 9.5 points, with four wins mixed in.

This season's mess is a creation of this season's staff. Period.

-- Tom the furnace guy was walking down the steps this week when he stopped and said: ''I hear the Browns are getting 16 points this week against the bye.''

He took two steps, stopped, turned around and said:

''Give the points and take the bye.''

Yes, he was here all week.

-- Don't forget the BrownBags.

Patrick McManamon can be reached at pmcmanamon@thebeaconjournal.com. Read his blog at http://www.ohio.com/mcmanamon/. Follow Pat on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/patmcmanamon.