Five coaching candidates the Cleveland Browns should hire to replace Freddie Kitchens, who was fired following the team’s Week 17 loss to the Bengals.
The Cleveland Browns fired Freddie Kitchens, following another embarrassing loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in the Week 17 regular season finale.
The defeat saw the Browns drop to 6-10, as the organization took a giant step backward following a 2018 season in which the team went 7-8-1, but was considered to be trending upward.
Really, while debating whether or not Kitchens should be fired was batted around by both the local and national media, everyone should’ve known it was coming. The Browns were worse than they were a year ago and the supposed franchise quarterback, Baker Mayfield, regressed.
That was probably the biggest indictment on Kitchens, who was perceived to be hired because of his friendly relationship with Mayfield. Don’t forget, many–me included–favored hiring Kitchens, because he and Baker seemed to work magic in the final eight games of the 2018 season after Hue Jackson was fired.
Something often forgotten, though, was that Gregg Williams served as Kitchens’ check during the second half of 2018. In theory, Kitchens could’ve sent a halfback pass in to the huddle on 3rd and 1 and Williams could’ve nixed it.
Kitchens didn’t have that filter as the head coach, and we saw questionable call after questionable call pretty much every week.
So, as the Browns seek a coach, here’s five candidates that should be at the top of ownership’s candidate list.
1. Josh McDaniels, Patriots OC
Josh McDaniels is rumored to the favorite of Cleveland Browns owner Dee Haslam. McDaniels name seems to be met with a lot of scorn among the fan base, and it’s warranted.
Many haven’t forgotten the way McDaniels treated Indianapolis. It wasn’t all that long ago that McDaniels took the Colts job, hired a staff, and then changed his mind to go back to the security of being Tom Brady‘s offensive coordinator.
Additionally, his history in Denver with the Broncos has been well documented. He tasted a little success, then went drunk with power and the thing blew up.
Admittedly, I was against considering McDaniels during last winter’s search, but now, I’m warming up to the idea. If you want someone who brings credibility to a locker room, he’s it, and he’s got rings to prove it.
Additionally, he’s been a coach before. One would think he learned from his mistakes and will do it better the next time around, just like his boss, Bill Belichick has demonstrated.
I don’t know, maybe its crazy, but there’s something about this John Carroll alum returning to Cleveland that feels right this time.
Cleveland has a young quarterback who needs coached up and McDaniels may be the one to get it done. This past year, Baker Mayfield seemed to be surrounded by friends. This isn’t to say he and McDaniels should clash, rather, Mayfield may finally get the coaching that 2019 showed he truly needs.
2. Kevin Stefanski
The man who was supposedly the runner-up to Freddie Kitchens a season ago is still on the market. His name is Kevin Stefanski and here’s why he may be a candidate: His stock has only gone up since the Browns passed on him to go with Kitchens.
Stefanski has worked wizardry in Minnesota, making Kirk Cousins look like he deserves every cent of the massive contract the Vikings gave him as Minnesota could be real contenders in the NFC playoff picture.
Stefanski, like Kitchens, got the opportunity to be the offensive coordinator back in 2018 following a shakeup in their respective organizations. Stefanski returned to the Vikings after being passed over by John Dorsey.
His names on this list because he was reportedly the favorite candidate of Browns’ Chief Strategy Officer Paul DePodesta. The “Moneyball” guru still works for the Browns and it’s rumored he’s seeking to have his voice heard more in the front office.
With Buffalo cruising into the NFL Playoffs, many a Browns pundit has pointed out how DePodesta also favored Sean McDermott ahead of the 2016 season, when ownership went with Hue Jackson, instead.
Will DePodesta be given his shot to get his guy? More will have to come out about the way the Browns are executing their search to know for sure. In the past, the team has leaned on collaborative efforts.
Ultimately, the owner hires the coach, though. Will Jimmy and Dee Haslam trust their analytics guy?
3. Mike McCarthy
The Browns biggest concern entering the 2020 season needs to be Baker Mayfield, and according to FanSided’s Matt Verdame, the team would do wonders in reversing the Heisman winner’s regression by hiring former Packers’ coach Mike McCarthy.
McCarthy popped back up in the headlines earlier this season when it was revealed he was watching film and putting a staff list together after taking a season off.
McCarthy makes sense in that he’s an experienced coach whose climbed the mountain before, winning the Super Bowl with Aaron Rodgers under center.
That said, there’s some who feel he wasted Rodgers’ talent.
Hem and haw all you want, but know this: The Packers were basically contenders every year that McCarthy was calling the shots.
He’d bring instant credibility to the locker room and the Browns’ season-long discipline problem would be instantly cleaned up.
The case against McCarthy is that he was available last year, and the Browns didn’t interview him. He has a relationship with John Dorsey…but what that exactly is, remains to be truly known.
4. Urban Meyer
Does Urban Meyer’s name truly belong on the list of candidates? I just find it hard to believe he’s going to return to the sidelines. He stopped coaching the Buckeyes because it seems the actual game day was becoming too much.
Remember, Meyer is someone whose had to deal with health problems, and stepped away from his gig at Florida before doing the same with the Buckeyes after the 2018 season.
With that said, there’s a lot of speculation that Meyer is a candidate for the Cowboys coaching gig, especially since he was lobbying for it around Thanksgiving.
If Meyer is going to to make the leap to the NFL, then why not the Browns? His relationship with owner Jimmy Haslam was recently documented, with a report stating Haslams is as tight with Meyer as he is with Peyton Manning.
In hiring Meyer, the Browns would get someone with executive experience. Needless to say, all the Browns’ stupid mistakes and penalties should disappear.
Something else to consider…does it matter Meyer never coached at the NFL level? Despite his wealth of experience as a college coach, he’d be a newbie to the NFL.
Considering the Browns just canned one newbie, there have to be–at least some–reservations about Meyer being given the gig.
5. Matt Rhule, Baylor
Matt Rhule is one of the hottest candidates in college football after leading the revival of Baylor’s program in 2019. He took over that job in 2017 after a successful four years coaching Temple to back-to-back 10-win seasons..
Prior to Baylor, he spent 15 years cutting his teeth at Temple and Western Carolina.
Unlike some other college coaches, Rhule does boast some NFL experience, having served as an offensive assistant for the Giants back in 2012.
If you’re the Browns, you should be interested in Rhule, especially because the offense still possesses so many weapons. With that said, while Rhule’s been a head coach at the college level, doing it in the NFL is a different beast.
It’s for this reason, I think the Browns have to go with someone who has more NFL experience. As the Dawg Pound was reminded constantly during the regular season, the egos in the locker room appeared to be too much for Kitchens to manage.
It’d be a big ask for Rhule to come to Cleveland and lay down the law demanding OBJ report to OTAs. Perhaps he’s capable of communicating with players at the top of the roster, just the same as players all the way down to the bottom of the 53.
His track record, at the very least, deserves a conversation, where the Browns can better determine what kind of coach Rhule can be.
6. The Darkhorse
Nothing reported on this, just my own personal dark horse: Ryan Day. I thought Day was exceptional in leading the Buckeyes to the College Football Playoff and one day, he’s going to be THE top candidate when NFL owners are compiling coaching lists.
What makes Day so attractive? He’s been the head coach at a major college football program, albeit for only one season, but he also has NFL credentials. Before joining Meyer’s staff in 2017, Day spent the previous two seasons as a quarterbacks coach for the Eagles and 49ers, respectively.
I’ve harped on some of these candidates for not having the necessary experience needed to be the next head coach, and unfortunately, Day falls into that category.
As a head coach, he’s really only faced adversity twice. He was trailing at halftime to Wisconsin in the Big Ten title game, and his team pulled it out. In the CFP semifinal, his team fell short, so he’s 1-for-2.
Unfortunately, it just may be the wrong time and place for a marriage between Day and the Browns, but the prospect of the two entities uniting is certainly intriguing.
If you’re a Buckeye fan, take solace in the fact that Day will be coaching your team for the foreseeable future, because he could potentially be the next big thing in college football.