Berea, OH (Sports Network) - Dallas Cowboys senior vice president and general counsel Alec Scheiner will become the new president of the Cleveland Browns, the team announced on Tuesday.
Scheiner takes the place of former Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren, who revealed in October that will be retiring from his post at the end of the season as part of a massive front-office reorganization under new owner Jimmy Haslam.
Scheiner, who will officially begin his duties on January 7, joined the Cowboys in 2004 as the team's general counsel and was promoted to his current position four years later, where he had a major role in overseeing the club's day-to-day business operations. He's expected to have a similar job description in Cleveland, but isn't believed to have a hand in decisions involving the composition of the roster and coaching staff.
"Our objective is to build the Browns organization with the best people in their respective fields, and we believe the hiring of Alec is indicative of this goal," said Browns chief executive officer Joe Banner. "Alec brings a wealth of experience and knowledge in many facets with one of the most successful franchises in the NFL. For our fans that come to the game, we want to continually enhance their experience at the stadium. We also want to fulfill the great demand out there for locally produced Browns programming, both on television and radio. We look forward to having Alec lead the way for us in these areas."
Scheiner's hiring continues a major organizational makeover for the Browns under Haslam, who purchased a majority interest in the franchise from Randy Lerner earlier this year. His first significant move was to hire Banner, a longtime executive with the Philadelphia Eagles who was forced out as that team's president in June, as the new CEO with an expected final say on football operations.
The new regime has yet to decide the fate of head coach Pat Shurmur or general manager Tom Heckert, both Holmgren hires. The Browns went 4-12 in Shurmur's first season in 2011 and enter Sunday's game at Denver with a 5-9 mark while fielding a young roster with several rookies playing prominent positions.
