As former Houston Oilers and Atlanta Falcons head coach Jerry Glanville once said, "The NFL, it stands for Not For Long."
One former San Francisco 49ers quarterback will surely be feeling that way this morning.
Per Adam Schefter of ESPN, Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey has been relieved of his duties:
Browns fired OC Ken Dorsey and OL coach Andy Dickerson, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 5, 2025
The move, following Cleveland completing a woeful 3-14 season with a blowout loss to the Baltimore Ravens, can't come as a huge surprise. Cleveland averaged only 15.2 points per game and ranked near the bottom in most offensive categories.
However, it does illustrate how quickly the wheel can turn in the NFL.
As late as 2022, Dorsey was a hot head coaching candidate, having led the Buffalo Bills to the top two in both yardage and points scored in his first year as the team's offensive coordinator.
However, when he elected to stay with the Bills for the 2023 season, things quickly went backward for Dorsey, and he was fired after the team's 5-5 start, to be replaced by another now-hot head coaching candidate, former Carolina Panthers offensive coordinator Joe Brady, a cautionary tale for the currently lauded Brady, perhaps.
Dorsey was, of course, a three-year Niners signal-caller, drafted in the seventh round of the 2003 NFL Draft after a record-setting college career with the Miami Hurricanes.
He didn't quite turn that college success into a stellar pro career, though, finishing his tenure with the team after playing in 11 games, starting 10, and compiling eight touchdowns versus 11 interceptions before he was traded to the Browns in 2006 as part of the deal that brought veteran backup quarterback Trent Dilfer to San Francisco.
It's difficult to know where Dorsey's career goes from here, but it's a stark reminder of just how quickly one's stock can fall in the NFL. In two years, he's gone from directing an offense that was minutes from the Super Bowl to sitting on the NFL scrap heap.
Will we see him again?