The Cleveland Browns have been right down there with the Rams and the Lions over the last several years, but as new Browns President Mike Holmgren introduced new General Manager Tom Heckert yesterday, it became clear that Cleveland is headed in the direction.

In assessing their quarterback position and their passing game, Holmgren and Heckert pointed out the importance of having a good one. ”How they won games at the end, the ratio of runs to passes in the last four weeks of the season, was remarkable,” Holmgren told Ohio.com. ”Normally you can’t win that way. You can have the greatest running game in the world and play good defense, but if you only throw six balls a game, you are not going to win. We’ve got to look at that.”

Heckert, like Steve Spagnuolo and Rams offensive coordinator Pat Shurmer, has been in the Philadelphia organization for years. But unlike the Rams, Heckert is inclined to copy what succeeded in Philadelphia. ‘In Philly, we throw the ball a lot,” Heckert said. ”At the last regular-season game in Dallas, I saw the Browns threw 11 times and in our game we ran it [10] times.”

Of the top 12 passing teams in the NFL in 2009, 10 made the playoffs. It’s a passing league. It sounds like the Browns get that, and will succeed under Holmgren and Heckert.

The Cleveland Browns have been right down there with the Rams and the Lions over the last several years, but as new Browns President Mike Holmgren introduced new General Manager Tom Heckert yesterday, it became clear that Cleveland is headed in the direction.

In assessing their quarterback position and their passing game, Holmgren and Heckert pointed out the importance of having a good one. ”How they won games at the end, the ratio of runs to passes in the last four weeks of the season, was remarkable,” Holmgren told Ohio.com. ”Normally you can’t win that way. You can have the greatest running game in the world and play good defense, but if you only throw six balls a game, you are not going to win. We’ve got to look at that.”

Heckert, like Steve Spagnuolo and Rams offensive coordinator Pat Shurmer, has been in the Philadelphia organization for years. But unlike the Rams, Heckert is inclined to copy what succeeded in Philadelphia. ‘In Philly, we throw the ball a lot,” Heckert said. ”At the last regular-season game in Dallas, I saw the Browns threw 11 times and in our game we ran it [10] times.”

Of the top 12 passing teams in the NFL in 2009, 10 made the playoffs. It’s a passing league. It sounds like the Browns get that, and will succeed under Holmgren and Heckert.