Ex-Browns player Jason McCourty on 2017 season: 'There’s no way we were trying to win'

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Former Cleveland Browns defensive back Jason McCourty added credence to Hue Jackson’s claim that there were incentives to lose during the 2016 and 2017 seasons.

McCourty was with the Browns in 2017 when the team finished 0-16, only the second team in NFL history to have a winless season. While Cleveland lost four of those games by six points or less, McCourty suggested on his "Double Coverage" podcast Friday there was some merit to Jackson’s claim.

"I was in Cleveland in 2017. There’s no way we were trying to win. It was very obvious," McCourty said. "That is to no surprise to anyone. You don’t need me to corroborate the story and say, ‘We were tanking, we were trying to lose.’ Duh." 

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Cornerback Jason McCourty (30) of the Cleveland Browns pursues wide receiver Davante Adams (17) of the Green Bay Packers in the fourth quarter of a game Dec. 10, 2017, at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland. Green Bay won 27-21 in overtime. (Nick Cammett/Diamond Images/Getty Images)

"I said this when I got to New England: You realize winning in the NFL is not easy, so you don’t want to take it for granted, you celebrate your wins. But the year I spent in Cleveland also taught me winning ain’t this hard either. You don’t just go 1-31. It’s not that hard to figure out on the other end of it."

Jackson, now the head coach at Grambling State University, told ESPN Wednesday there was money to be made for hitting certain milestones, like attaining a certain number of draft picks and being the youngest team in the league.

"Teams that win are just not the youngest team, not that the youngest teams can't win, so I didn't understand the process," Jackson told the outlet during an appearance on "SportsCenter."

"I didn't understand what the plan was. I asked for clarity because it did not talk about winning and losing until year three and four. So that told you right there that something wasn't correct, but I still couldn't understand it until I had the team that I had.

"And I remember very candidly saying to [Browns team owner Jimmy Haslam], 'I'm not interested in bonus money,' because I've never known that to be a bonus. I was interested in taking whatever that money was and putting it toward getting more players on our football team because I didn't think we were very talented at all. I know what good football teams look like, play like, what they act like, and we didn't have a lot of talented players on the team at that time."

Jackson first made the claims on Twitter. He wrote that Haslam was "happy while we kept losing," and while it may not have been $100,000 per loss he was offered, Jackson assured followers he was offered decent money. 

"Trust me it was a good number," he said. 

Jackson later told CNN he was "never offered money" to lose but stood by his claim Haslam was never trying to win while he was the head coach.

Cleveland team owner Jimmy Haslam slammed Jackson’s accusations.

"Unequivocally, Hue Jackson was never paid to lose games," Haslam told Knox News. "That is an absolute falsehood. And it’s also an absolute falsehood that I laughed while we were losing. Most people who know me would say, ‘That’s not how Jimmy would react to losing.’

Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam watches players warm up for a game against the Detroit Lions Nov. 21, 2021, in Cleveland.  (AP Photo/David Richard, File)

"In the 15-minute ESPN interview that he did, for approximately 14-and-a-half minutes it was about how he was treated so poorly with the Browns and lots of claims he had."

Jackson made his claims after former Miami coach Brian Flores filed a lawsuit against the Dolphins, Denver Broncos, New York Giants and the NFL, alleging racial discrimination. Flores claimed Dolphins team owner Stephen Ross offered a $100,000 payment for each loss during the 2019 season, an allegation the franchise emphatically denied.

Haslam, in his interview with Knox News, said Jackson was way off base and got plenty of support.

"Hue Jackson has never ever accepted any responsibility for our record during that time period," Haslam said. "He’s been masterful at pointing fingers but has never accepted any blame. I have accepted a ton of blame, and rightfully so. There are a lot of things I could’ve done better. Hue has never accepted blame for one thing." 

"I can’t think of any individual that I’ve worked with over the past 45 years that I spent as much time trying to help be successful as I did Hue Jackson. His third year, when our roster began to pretty dramatically improve, the eight games he coached we were 2-5-1. After Hue was dismissed, we went 5-3."

Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson watches during the second half of an NFL preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Aug. 23, 2018, in Cleveland. Jackson went 1-31 over a two-year span and has suggested he was paid to lose games. The Browns have called these suggestions "completely fabricated." Jackson, who is now coaching at Grambling, made several posts on Twitter intimating he received bonus payments from Browns owner Jimmy Haslam to lose during his two-plus seasons with the team. (AP Photo/David Richard, File)

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.