There are housecleanings, and then there are take-it-down-to-the-studs overhauls.
The clean-out the Cleveland Browns have undertaken this offseason is more the work of a front-end loader.
It might not add up to a lot of wins in 2016, but it sure has been something to watch.
To start, the Browns unloaded three former first-round picks, trading two and releasing another.
In March, quarterback Johnny Manziel was released, eliminating a two-year organizational drag. In the past few days, the Browns traded Barkevious Mingo to New England and Justin Gilbert to Pittsburgh.
The Patriots believe they can make something of Mingo. The Browns never found a fit for the linebacker they drafted in 2013, though he did play his second season wearing a shoulder harness to protect an injury that needed postseason surgery.
The Steelers took a flier on Gilbert, whose quirky personality seems an unusual fit in a locker room that demands accountability. It will be interesting to see how that works.
Trading Gilbert within the division nets the Browns a 2018 sixth-round pick and makes a statement about what Cleveland thinks of him.
The Browns also released three big-name defensive leaders in linebackers Paul Kruger and Karlos Dansby and safety Donte Whitner. Dansby and Whitner led the team in tackles; Kruger was a big-money free-agent signing in 2013.
They also released wide receiver Brian Hartline and traded punter Andy Lee.
And on the first day of free agency, the Browns stuck to their plan of going young, putting up with the criticism as four starters signed elsewhere: offensive tackle Mitchell Schwartz, center Alex Mack, safety Tashaun Gipson and receiver Travis Benjamin. Within a couple of days, special-teams standout Johnson Bademosi also departed.
There will be new starters on offense at center, right tackle, both receivers and quarterback. On defense, there will be eight new starters: at both safety spots, cornerback (assuming Jamar Taylor takes over for Tramon Williams), three of four linebacker spots and two of three spots on the defensive line.
None of that should be surprising for a team that was 3-13 in 2015.
The Browns have a roster with 16 rookies, three first-year players and 10 second-year pros. That's a youth movement, with 55 percent of the roster with two years or less experience.
Over the long haul, the Browns have three extra picks in each of the next two drafts, before compensatory picks are awarded.
The expectation is that the Browns are "maximizing" their moves, that they are "getting value" for players. In some ways, that's true. Gilbert probably was not going to make the team, so a sixth-round pick for him is better than nothing. But waiting until 2018 for the pick delays the return and minimizes the impact.
For the short term, well, the "Browns' Super Bowl" for the next two years will continue to be held in April -- at the draft.
The plan is that those draft days will maximize more value and build a team.
It would be nice, though, if the day comes when the excitement isn't about who stays and who goes but is about maximizing value on the field, with wins on Sundays and games in January.