"Browns coach Pat Shurmur is prepared to put his ego aside.

Realizing that retaining the play-calling duties could compromise his chances of hiring a top-flight offensive coordinator, Shurmur is willing to relinquish that role if necessary.

In fact, he said he intended to hire one in his first season but couldn't find the right man, a fact the Browns never brought up after Shurmur revealed it early in his tenure.

The situation seems to have changed since Oct. 20, when Browns President Mike Holmgren said Shurmur would hire an offensive coordinator in 2012, but that he expected Shurmur to continue handling the play-calling.

"The game-day thing, calling plays, that's a fun thing for all of us to do," Shurmur said Tuesday. "I want to get the best guy I can. And if he's outstanding at calling plays, listen, I want to win games, so I'm going to get guys who are going to help us do that.""