When the Cleveland Browns let Phil Dawson leave in free agency following the 2012 season, it caused an uproar in the Dawg Pound. Dawson was a Cleveland legend and was the last remaining player from when the team returned to Cleveland in 1999.
In 2013, the Browns front office, led by Joe Banner and Michael Lombardi, were looking to add younger players. With the team once again rebuilding, Banner and Lombardi felt it was time to replace Dawson, who turned 38-years-old that off-season.
Despite the Browns letting Dawson walk in free agency, it was not because he turned in a poor final season in a Cleveland uniform.