Kevin

Stefanski

According to Schultz, teams are inquiring with the Browns (No. 33), Giants (No. 34), and Titans (No. 35) about moving into the very early parts of Day 2 of the draft. Whether it’s for a quarterback or another fringe first-rounder who slid into Day 2, it sounds like all three teams will have a chance to walk away with a few extra picks if they opt to get a deal done. While the Giants and Titans added their quarterbacks of the future on Thursday night, the Browns stand to add Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders, Alabama QB Jalen Milroe, or Louisville QB Tyler Shough to kick off Day 2 if they so desire. With Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett currently sitting atop the Browns’ quarterback depth chart, a rookie signal-caller would make a lot of sense if they deem somebody worthy of the selection. Friday’s draft has a chance to feature a lot of movement as teams look to move up/down the draft to secure players who could emerge as immediate starters this season.

Stefanski also said, via a team transcript on Wednesday, that he had a conversation with Hunter, stating "(Travis) gets up at 5 in the morning quite often, so that’s not a problem for him in terms of maximizing his day.” Over the past two seasons at Colorado, Hunter averaged an FBS-high 111.5 snaps per game when no other player has averaged more than 78 since at least 2015, per NFL Research. The Browns currently have the second overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft and are heavily favored to take Hunter.

Stefanski is the reigning Coach of the Year and continues to keep the Browns competitive despite Watson’s ineffectiveness and injuries over the last two seasons. Keeping Stefanski isn’t much of a surprise as he and Berry both signed extensions last offseason. While Watson is said to be returning, his future is a little murkier. Jones’ sources have indicated that the Browns won’t release Watson as a post-June 1 release would result in a record $119 million in dead money. They also aren’t relying on Watson being healthy for Week 1 next year and it remains unclear if he’ll even resume starting when healthy.

Haslem told ESPN the Browns’ performance this season “is a little perplexing”. He expressed support for Berry and Stefanski, who both signed contract extensions in the offseason. Haslem also added that it is too early to make decisions on the quarterback position. Given that Berry and Stefanski just signed new contracts and went 11-6 in 2023, they are likely to stick around. However, the Browns could be evaluating new quarterback talent after disappointing seasons from Deshaun Watson, who is owed $92 million in guaranteed money over the next two years.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski announced the change on Wednesday morning ahead of Cleveland’s Week 8 game against the Ravens. The Browns, with now-injured Deshaun Watson under center, were one of the least productive offenses in the NFL. They are dead last in offensive success rate and third worst in EPA per play. Only the Raiders and Dolphins have been worse. Dorsey, fired as Bills OC in 2023, is known to lean on the pass game. It could be a positive for Cleveland pass catchers, including David Njoku and Jerry Jeudy.

Stefanski has called offensive plays for the Browns since first being hired by the team in 2020, and he doesn’t plan on backing off now. A two-time NFL Coach of the Year award winner, Stefanski’s offense has finished in the top 15 in points per game in two of his four years at the helm, and they hope a fully healthy Deshaun Watson can elevate them beyond last year’s 10th place finish last season. The Browns hired former Bills defensive coordinator Ken Dorsey as their offensive coordinator this offseason. While Dorsey has experience calling plays in-game, he won’t be making the final call on plays this season.

The Browns from 2020 to 2023 had their best four-season stretch since the late 1980s under Stefanski and Berry. The Browns in 2020 made the playoffs for the first time since 2002 and won their first postseason game in 26 years. Stefanski seemingly worked miracles with the Cleveland offense in 2023, using five different quarterbacks and riding Joe Flacco into the playoffs after Deshaun Watson’s season-ending shoulder injury. Berry, meanwhile, has helped build one of the NFL’s most dominant defenses over the past four years. Berry and Stefanski have stabilized an otherwise unstable Browns organization.

The Browns have gone 37-30 since Stefanski, a two-time NFL Coach of the Year, joined the team in 2020. Stefanski and Berry were hired by the team in the same offseason and have made the postseason twice in their first four years after going through a 17-year playoff drought from 2003 through 2019. The Browns have a franchise quarterback in Deshaun Watson and a top defense led by Myles Garrett. Keeping a regime in place that helped turn around a struggling franchise seems like the ideal move for the Haslams.

The two-time Coach of the Year recipient has served as the Browns’ offensive play-caller since being hired as the head coach in 2020, but said after the hiring of former Bills OC Ken Dorsey that a change in play-calling may be in order. Speaking on the matter at the NFL Scouting Combine, Stefanski said, “I don’t know if that decision’s important right this minute.” It’s possible the Browns wait until after the draft to decide who they think is best suited to call the offensive plays next season.

Stefanski is now the 13th coach to win multiple Coach of the Year awards, joining a short list of (mostly) distinguished greats. The story of Stefanski winning this award starts at the quarterback position, as it took starting five different quarterbacks to get the Browns to an 11-6 record and into the postseason for the first time since 2020. After treading water for several weeks with the likes of P.J. Walker and Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Stefanski finally took a shot on Joe Flacco, who went 4-1 in his four starts while throwing for 1,616-13-8. A top-ranked defense also helped the Browns, as the team allowed the fewest yards per game in the regular season and ranked 13th in points allowed. Stefanski is now 37-30 in the regular season as a head coach and will look to repeat this year’s success next season, with hopefully a slightly better quarterback situation.