The Cleveland Browns could be getting close to hiring George Paton as general manager and the official annulment could come as early as this week. According to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com, Paton interviewed for the vacancy on Sunday and the Browns are expected to make their decision in the next few weeks.

The other two candidates to interview were New England Patriots Director of College Scouting Monti Ossenfort and Philadelphia Eagles Vice President of Football Operations Andrew Berry.

Paton and new Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski worked together with the Vikings, so it would make sense to keep the two together. Former Browns linebacker Chris Spielman thinks it would be a great idea for the team.

“I think it would behoove the Browns to do everything in their power to hire George,” former Browns linebacker Chris Spielman, brother of Vikings GM Rick Spielman who knows Paton and Stefanski well, told cleveland.com. “It makes the most sense for Kevin Stefanski as a [coach-GM] team.”

Spielman pointed out what Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch have done together in San Francisco as an example of what the future can look like.

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“Look at what Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch have accomplished as a team,” Spielman said. “It’s a copycat league, and Kevin and George would make an excellent team.”

Whoever the Browns do end up hiring is going to have a lot of pressure on them immediately. This is a team with a lot of talent on it, and the expectations are for this team to make the playoffs at a minimum.