Cleveland Browns CEO Joe Banner has admitted that it was a "tough" decision not to wait for Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn to make up his mind about the vacant head coaching job.

Quinn was one of the candidates to succeed Rob Chudzinski at the Browns, but refused to attend a second interview with the team until after the Seahawks had faced the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl.

However, the Browns ended up appointing Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Mike Pettine in January.

"I think we felt that we knew [Quinn] well enough to make the comparison. That was a tough decision, frankly," Banner is quoted as saying by ESPN.

The Browns finished last season bottom of the AFC North with a 4-12 record.