Kevin Stefanski’s mediocre Cleveland Browns offense is not something to celebrate

Some people think Kevin Stefanski’s offense is something to celebrate.

Nick Chubb has carried the Cleveland Browns on his very thick legs for years. It’s because of him that many of Kevin Stefanski’s mistakes don’t become as egregious. He’s been named by PFF as the league’s most efficient running back, and I believe that.

Yet, Chubb has been good regardless of his coach, the scheme, or even the offensive line. Thanks to Chubb, and to a lesser degree Jacoby Brissett, the Browns were able to rank in the Top 15 in the league for the least three-and-outs in the league.

This is according to Arjun Menon of PFF.

This sounds like a really nice stat, Stefanski’s offense doesn’t go three and out very often in the NFL. Great. In 2021 and 2022, his offenses ranked 20th and 18th in scoring. Shocker, they went a combined 15-19 over those two years. Sure, in 2021, Baker Mayfield’s arm was falling off, and in 2022, the team tried to get perennial backup Jacoby Brissett to ball out (and they did, at least compared to past seasons Brissett has had).

The problem is, Stefanski has been nothing more than an average play-caller and his offense is not designed to be very explosive. The current idea is to transform the team to a more fast-paced, high-octane offense with Deshaun Watson under center. But we don’t know if that’ll change things either.

Kevin Stefanski’s 2023 offering will only go as far as Deshaun Watson can carry it

Watson is a vile human being, but he was a hell of a quarterback. Yet, in 2022, he was a shell of himself. Unsure of what to do, holding onto the ball for too long, and missing way too many receivers. Was it the time off? The slow Browns offense? Stefanski’s playcalling? The Monstars taking his abiliites?

All of the above? Who knows. Watson has two surgically repaired knees, so maybe the wear and tear have caught up to him. Maybe he and Russell Wilson are a part of the same MLM, one that requires the deposit of pure talent to get in.

Whatever the reason for his poor showing in 2022, whatever Stefanski does in 2023 will only succeed if Watson returns to form. Moving the team away from Chubb, which isn’t inherently a terrible idea, and catering more to the uber-expensive quarterback comes with a risk. Namely, if Watson can’t make Stefanski’s new offense work, then everyone is getting fired.