OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Sashi Brown is leaving Monumental Sports and the NBA's Washington Wizards to return to the NFL as president of the Baltimore Ravens, it was announced Friday.

Brown, 45, becomes the third president in Ravens history and replaces Dick Cass, who turned 76 last month and is retiring after serving in that role for 18 years.

Brown is expected to join the Ravens in March and he will officially take over as team president on April 1. The Ravens said he will "oversee every area of the organization," including player and staff personnel, coaching, corporate sales, operations, communications and business ventures.

After spending 12 years in the NFL, Brown has worked the past two years for Monumental Sports and the Wizards. He had been promoted to president and special adviser to chairman Ted Leonsis in November.

The Ravens' hiring of Brown, who is Black, comes amid increased scrutiny of NFL diversity hiring practices following a lawsuit by former Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores earlier this week in which he claims alleged racial discrimination regarding his interview process.

Brown returns to the NFL and the AFC North for the first time since the Cleveland Browns fired him as their executive vice president of football operations during the 2017 season. The Browns struggled to a 1-27 record with Brown in control of personnel and Hue Jackson as coach, but the team stockpiled picks for future drafts and created more salary-cap space than any team in the league.

Jackson told ESPN on Wednesday that the Browns had a "four-year plan" that incentivized losing during that period. A day later, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam fired back, saying the claim that Jackson was paid to lose games is "an absolute falsehood."

Before joining Cleveland, Brown spent eight years (2005 to 2012) as senior vice president and general counsel of the Jacksonville Jaguars. He was involved in both football and business operations.

In 2019, Brown was hired as chief planning and operations officer for Monumental Basketball -- a group that includes the Wizards, the WNBA's Washington Mystics and the Capital City Go-Go of the G League.

Brown takes over for Cass, a beloved figure in the organization who is the longest-serving president in Ravens history. Cass was hired in 2004, becoming Steve Bisciotti's first hire as new owner of the Ravens. Over that time, he had a voice in nearly every major decision in the organization, from business ventures to social justice reform to stadium improvements to guiding the committee that hired coach John Harbaugh.

Now, the top leadership trio under Bisciotti is Brown, Harbaugh and general manager Eric DeCosta.