The highlight of this Browns season has been the talk of if Kevin Stefanski, the Browns head coach currently, deserves one more season or should be released. Despite winning coach of the year, and leading the Browns to a playoff spot before, many of his seasons have been underwhelming, with many citing his wastes of elite defensive play. With the season wrapping up soon, should the Browns pick someone new, or stick with the old guy
Sticking With Kevin
In the NFL recently, we have seen a lot of people complain about teams firing coaches after 1-2 seasons, especially when given a poor team and rookie QB. Kevin hasn’t exactly been given the greatest situation, and when he has an actually good team we often see success. Because of this, some people do not think firing him is the right choice, simply because teams just need to stick with their coaches for longer periods of time. The argument, as I mentioned before, is often because the team given to the new head coach is weak, along with poor or a rookie at the QB position, which automatically sets the coach up for failure. The Browns have by far gone through more QBs than anyone else, so has Kevin really even been given a true shot to coach. Personally he’s had enough time with the team, and hasn’t produced anywhere near enough success to warrant him sticking around for much longer.
Firing Kevin
The argument to fire Kevin has been tossed around by the Browns media basically since the end of the 2023 season. People haven’t been very happy with his production, or how he doesn’t seem to know how to call games. The biggest reason people want him gone is his calls against the Titans, where he called two, two-point conversions which led the Browns to a loss. He accepted blame for the calls, lighting the fire even brighter for people who wanted him gone. While his situation hasn’t been pretty by any means, Kevin has had poor moments all the time, and doesn’t seem to learn much whenever his calls don’t go well. As head coach, the blame will eventually come to you no matter how much it is or isn’t your fault. It’s simply a part of the position in the NFL, and usually he will be the one to pay if someone gets fired.
Who Would Be the Next Choice?
Jim Schwartz logically is the next choice for the Browns. Leading multiple defenses to elite play, and taking part in the 2023 defense which was the best in the league, he is the next ebst choice for the Browns at head coach. However DC and HC are very different, meaning the change between the two positions might cause problems. Instead, there are people out there from other teams, or who are looking to change after this season who might be willing to find a job for the Browns. It’s really up to what the team itself wants, and who they think will be the best fir for what we have right now, and what we may have in the future.
Is He Safe Till at Least Next Year?
More than likely, yes. Kevin probably won’t be going anywhere for at least one more year, though after that I think all bets are off. He’s had success here when things aren’t a complete mess as they often seem to be. However, it’s the NFL and people get fired more often than they don’t. But something I’ve seen is it’s mostly the fans and the fans alone who are calling for him to be fired, and there aren’t a whole lot of people inside the organization saying things about him. Many people who have links inside will begin speaking about a coach who is on the hot seat, and more often than not they get fired (think the Giants this year). So no, I think Kevin has one last year of protection, but after that? I’m not quite sure. But it’s the NFL, teams are here to win and win only. If someone can’t do that for them, then they need to go. Kevin hasn’t exactly been winning, and with a win policy, his time here might just be up.
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