ORLANDO, Fla. -- Browns owner Jimmy Haslam flew to California earlier this month with other key members of the team's staff with the sole purpose of trying to sign two-time Pro Bowl center Alex Mack to a long-term deal.

The mission failed, as Mack and his agents balked at the Browns' offer, and the Browns designated him their transition player -- complete with a $10.039 million tender for 2014 -- upon returning home. The tag irked Mack and his agents, who vowed he'd receive offers in due time.

"Well, we didn't get it done,'' Haslam told a small group of reporters Monday at the NFL Annual Meeting. "Time will tell. I can't tell you. It didn't hurt (making the trip), but we're not across the finish line.''

Now, Mack's long-term status with the club is in jeopardy, and agent Tim Younger told cleveland.com that the Browns' star lineman will take his time signing the tender, which he can stretch all the way until July 22, just before the start of training camp. Mack's agents are still talking to other teams, and remain confident he'll draw an offer before the deadline.

But Haslam still feels the trip was worthwhile, and that the Browns will ultimately achieve their goal.

"In my conversations with Alex, I think he wants to be a Cleveland Brown,'' Haslam said.

It's rare for a team owner to make such a journey to sign one of his own free agents, but Haslam wanted Mack to know just how much of a priority he is to the Browns.

"Alex Mack is a quality person and quality player, and he's the kind of person we want to play with the Cleveland Browns for a long time,'' said Haslam. "I personally like Alex a lot besides him being a good player. We were very frank. We want him to finish his career with the Cleveland Browns. Alex has some choices to make. At the end of the day, I think that's what he'll decide. But that's obviously his decision.

"But when you think of who all went out there and spent time with him -- it was Ray (Farmer), Mike (Pettine), Sashi (Brown), Alex (Scheiner), myself, Andy Moeller and Kyle Shanahan, and that was not by accident,'' Haslam said. "It was to show 'you are very important to us going forward.' ''

More on the Haslam interview later on cleveland.com.