Ben Bloom played a pivotal role in preparing the Browns' run defense throughout the 2020 season, and his title will reflect it moving forward.
Bloom on Monday was promoted to the position of Run Game Coordinator after serving a key role in the development and leadership of Cleveland's top-10 run defense.
"This means a lot," Bloom said. "It's a great organization — head coach, coordinator, front office and ownership — everyone's been terrific to work with. It means a lot they're willing to give me a new title. I appreciate the opportunity to continue working and do my best to help the team win."
The Browns ranked ninth in the NFL in rush defense this past season, allowing an average of 110.8 yards per game. Cleveland held its opponent to fewer than 100 rushing yards in half of its regular season games and limited the Steelers to just 52 in the Browns' Wild Card playoff victory in Pittsburgh.
"We're all proud of what we were able to do this year," Bloom said. "That's a testament to the players working really hard and fighting through levels of adversity, and the whole coaching staff and football staff making it work together. The goal is to always get better. We think there's plenty of room for growth and improvement. We're in the process of identifying those things specifically now and making plans to continue to grow and improve."
Bloom joined the Browns last year as a senior defensive assistant. He'd spent the previous nine years with the Dallas Cowboys in various capacities, including two-year stints as defensive line coach (2014-15) and linebackers coach (2018-19).
Bloom's first NFL job came with the Browns in 2009, when he was hired as a team operations assistant/quality control coach. He was a defensive quality control coach in 2010 before joining the Cowboys.
"I'm happy for Ben," Browns defensive coordinator Joe Woods said. "I didn't know Ben when I came to Cleveland, but I knew of him. He'd worked with Rod Marinelli, who I have great respect for after I worked with him in Tampa Bay. I knew Ben was going to be about fundamentals, technique and playing hard, and that's exactly what he brought to the table.
"Ben put together all of our run game game plans. He presented that to us as a staff and he presented it to the team. He's very detailed, very thorough and knows exactly what you need to do to stop an opponent. I'm happy for him and I'm glad we have a chance to keep him for at least another year."
Bloom is a key member of a Browns assistant coaching staff that is poised to return in full for the 2021 season. The carryover will be vital for a team looking to be even better than it was in a 2020 season that featured 11 regular season wins and a trip to the AFC Divisional Round of the playoffs.
"I feel like we have a staff that works really well together in terms of sharing ideas and being open to listening to other guys' suggestions," Woods said. "For Ben, I feel like he was really in this role already. Now he'll get some recognition for exactly what he does, which I feel is important for him and his career. It will be seamless for us. I'm just happy for him that he's getting that acknowledgement.
"The carryover with what we're teaching guys in the classroom, our game day adjustments and having the same guys being able to communicate and get better from the previous year is big for us."
