BEREA, Ohio -- When the Cleveland Browns introduced Tommy Rees as their offensive coordinator in January, he referenced a quote that lies in his office to describe how he viewed his collaboration process.
"We all think alike, [then] no one thinks very much," Rees said.
Coach Kevin Stefanski tapped Rees, who served as the Browns tight ends coach and pass game specialist last season, to replace Ken Dorsey as OC not only because of his philosophical alignment but his rising star as an offensive mind. Rees served in previous posts as the OC and playcaller at Notre Dame and Alabama.
With the Browns offense struggling halfway through the 2025 season, Stefanski has relinquished playcalling duties to Rees in hopes of improving the play of rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel, reestablishing wide receiver Jerry Jeudy and boosting a unit that ranks 30th in the NFL in scoring (15.8 points per game).
"Every playcaller is going to have a different feel, a different spin on things," Rees said Thursday. "They're going to have things that they value, things that want to get to. Kevin and I are not the same person, although ... we have enough in our offense to make it look different in spots. We have enough depth in what we're asking those guys to do to make it look different. But I think some of the core principles continue on. We just have to do it at a high level."
The Browns' scheme and plays won't drastically change, though Stefanski said Rees will have the final say on what plays go into the game plan, in addition to his playcalling duties.
Last season, Stefanski handed playcalling to Dorsey after seven games as Cleveland fielded the league's fourth-lowest scoring offense (15.6 points per game). In the first game following the change -- and with Jameis Winston taking over at quarterback for the injured Deshaun Watson -- the Browns offense broke out with a 29-point performance in an upset win against the Baltimore Ravens. However, similar issues persisted as Cleveland actually averaged fewer points (14.9) over its final 10 games.
For Rees, his No. 1 priority will be getting Gabriel to play with a level of comfort he hasn't displayed in his first four starts. Gabriel, the No. 94 overall pick in the 2025 draft, ranks 31st out of 32 qualifying passers in Total QBR (26.8). He has also struggled with his downfield passing, averaging 5.4 yards per attempt with a 34.2% completion rate on downfield passes (10-plus air yards) this season, per NFL Next Gen Stats. Both are the lowest marks among qualified quarterbacks.
"In the passing game, like we've said from the jump, takes all 11," Rees said. "Certainly we want to stress defenses in probably some ways that we have not yet been able to or not able to connect on. Feature the guys that we can lean on, and make our quarterback feel comfortable.
"The bye weeks are always great. We needed the reset to kind of look at things, make sure that we're doing the best things for our players, best things for our quarterbacks, and feel like we have a good plan moving forward."
Part of getting Gabriel's play to improve means making Jeudy a focal point of the offense again. After a career-best season in 2024 and being named to the Pro Bowl, Jeudy is on pace for his fewest catches in a season since 2021, when he missed seven games because of injury. Jeudy has struggled with drops -- his five drops are tied for second most in the NFL -- but he finished the Browns' Week 8 loss to the New England Patriots with zero catches on two targets.
The performance marked the first time Jeudy finished a game without a reception since Week 10 of the 2022 season and prompted Stefanski to say afterward, "It's not lost on me that Jerry's our best player at that position, and we have to get him the ball."
Jeudy's production skyrocketed after last season's playcaller change. His 963 receiving yards in the final 10 games of the season were third most in the league, only behind Ja'Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson. When asked if he got any reassurance that he will get the ball more, he said, "We'll see on Sunday."
Outside of the playcaller change, the Browns aren't making wholesale changes to personnel, though wide receiver Cedric Tillman is expected to return from a hamstring injury that cost him four games on injured reserve.
Otherwise, Rees is at the center of the latest attempt to fix Cleveland's offense.
"He's eager, he's hungry, he's got a lot of knowledge," Gabriel said Wednesday. "I've been a fan even from back in college and seeing what he's been able to do, but I think he just utilizes players at a high level.
"But I think with everyone, it's all coming together. You know, it's never one person. Definitely there could be times of inspiration and help in that way, but it's all of us coming together to help each other out, and coach is a good leader for that."