To say he was skittish would be an understatement.

Coach Eric Mangini wasn't around, but several other assistants were. With his flight back to Cleveland from the NFL Combine canceled due to snow, Daboll seemed shocked to be recognized and was wary of conversing with the media without permission.

A game shy of two seasons later, one wonders how much the specter of Mangini has hung over Daboll just as it seemed to that evening in 2009.

When Browns President Mike Holmgren makes a decision on the future of Mangini and his staff after today's final game against Pittsburgh, it could come down to their dichotomy of offensive philosophies. Holmgren has struggled to understand Mangini's method on that side of the ball since he was hired a year ago. After one of his early news conferences, Holmgren joked that he couldn't see how the Browns won the final four games in 2009 while averaging just under eight pass completions.

Running back Jerome Harrison was the Browns' workhorse then. Now it is running back Peyton Hillis, whose 1,164-yard season has allowed Mangini to take his smashmouth strategy to another level. Hillis may have the best hands on the team and is the Browns' second-leading receiver with 60 catches, one behind tight end Ben Watson. But surely it bothers Holmgren that the Browns' bread-and-butter pass play is a short dump-off to Hillis, even if he is averaging 7.9 yards per catch.

The Browns rank 31st in the league in scoring with 17.5 points per game, dropping from 29th (15.3) in 2009. This season 22 teams are averaging over 20 points, nine teams over 25, the New England Patriots 32. While the Browns' coaching staff has deep roots in New England, it certainly has no Tom Brady, just three quarterbacks who suffered high ankle sprains.

But offensive malaise is not a new problem in Brownstown. Coach Marty Schottenheimer once uttered the infamous words, ''Don Shula calls his own plays,'' in defense of himself. He eventually relented and hired Lindy Infante as his offensive coordinator in 1986.

In 1985, the Browns ranked 23rd in the league in scoring. In 1986, they jumped to fifth. The Browns didn't use a first-round pick to make that leap, trading it to Buffalo to get quarterback Bernie Kosar in the '85 supplemental draft. The biggest change in the starting lineup in 1986 was receiver Webster Slaughter, a second-round choice.

Mangini's biggest mistake may have been hiring the unproven Daboll as his offensive coordinator, then sticking with him in 2010. In the NFL, Daboll had served as a Patriots defensive assistant and receivers coach and the New York Jets' quarterbacks coach in 2007-08 under Mangini.

However talented Mangini thought Daboll was, Mangini needed a stronger, veteran presence on offense. Presumably, no one like that wanted to work for Mangini. Perhaps Mangini would have felt threatened by such a coordinator. But Mangini failed to learn a valuable lesson in his 10 years working with and for Bill Belichick. As Belichick showed during his five years in Cleveland from 1991-95, you're only as good as your assistants.

Mangini handled the larger-than-life persona of defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, but Daboll never seemed comfortable asserting himself. It could explain the Browns' flirtation with trick plays this season, but their reluctance to throw caution to the wind on a regular basis. Daboll had to have a vertical passing game in the playbook, but it rarely showed up in the game plan, even when cannon-armed Derek Anderson was behind center.

Offensively, Mangini and Daboll were hamstrung by poor quarterback play from Anderson, Brady Quinn, Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace, although Wallace was having his best day as a Brown when he was hurt against Atlanta.

Mangini and Daboll also were dealt an unfair hand when Holmgren declared he wanted to redshirt rookie quarterback Colt McCoy. While McCoy is just 2-5 as a starter, he defeated New Orleans and New England and nearly the New York Jets. The season might have turned out differently if McCoy had played against Tampa Bay and Kansas City, three- and two-point losses, respectively.

Whatever happens this week, it seems likely that today will be Daboll's last game calling plays for the Browns. Will he be the sacrificial lamb? The crux of Holmgren's postseason meeting with Mangini in an ''If he goes, I go'' scenario? Or will Holmgren clean house?

Asked Friday if he thought he and Mangini were a package deal, Daboll said: ''Everybody understands the nature of this business. It's a bottom-line business.'' With the Browns 10-21 under Mangini, Daboll said he would try to block out worries about his future, keep a positive outlook and focus on beating Pittsburgh.

Ryan was much more candid, saying, ''I love Eric, he hired me and I'd be more than happy to go out with him if that's what it takes.''

Both Ryan and Daboll left the media room saying the same thing, ''It's not a funeral.''

Perhaps if Mangini hadn't thrust a ''Three yards and a cloud of dust'' offense on Daboll, it wouldn't have felt that way.