| Chris Tabor |
Tabor spent the past three seasons as an assistant under Bears special teams coordinator Dave Toub, who worked with Shurmur and Heckert in Philadelphia from 2001-03.
"I'm very happy for Chris. We all are in the Bears organization," Toub said in a Browns release. "I'm very proud of him. He's a great coach. We're all going to miss him. The coaches, players and staff loved him here. Cleveland's players are going to really like him and respond well to him. He brings a lot to the Browns organization."
Late in the 2010 season, when it became apparent that Tabor would receive other opportunities, Toub told the Chicago Tribune that he understood exactly why.
"He is so ready," Toub said. "I've been in that role, same as him three years as an assistant when I was in Philly. This is his third year and I know how he feels. He's needs to get his own spot. He has the system. He can motivate. He's a great teacher. The guys respect him. It's time."
Tabor, who has worked with Devin Hester -- the NFL's all-time leader in combined kick returns with 14 -- impressed the Browns' new coach.
"I believe that Chris is one of the up-and-coming special teams coaches in this league," Shurmur said in the release. "He's smart, enthusiastic and has a true passion for this area of the game.
"In Chris' three years with the Bears, they consistently boasted one of the best special teams groups in the league, in just about every facet. Having faced them in 2008 and 2009, I know what a challenge it was to go up against their unit. He'll be a valuable addition to our coaching staff."
Tabor has the daunting task of replacing Brad Seely, who took the same position with the 49ers. In 2009, the Browns ranked in the top 10 in the NFL in eight special-team categories.
Tabor goes from working with Hester to Josh Cribbs. Although he's coming off a down year because of a foot injury, Cribbs holds the NFL career record with eight kickoff returns for touchdowns.
During Tabor's three years in Chicago, the Bears ranked in the top five in nine different special-team categories. Over the last three years, Chicago leads the NFL in total return yards (6,570) and kickoff return yards (5,415) and posted the second-best kickoff return average (25.1).
Also during Tabor's tenure, the Bears tied for fifth in the league in punts inside the 20 and tied for seventh in field goal percentage.
Tabor also has helped shape some of the NFL's other top return specialists. In 2008, Danieal Manning led in kickoff return average (29.7). In 2009, Johnny Knox finished second in kickoff return average (29.0) and earned a Pro Bowl selection.
Shurmur now has two of his three coordinator positions filled, with defensive coordinator Dick Jauron being hired last week.
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