Cleveland Browns: Gregg Williams not a ‘front-runner’ for permanent HC job

The Cleveland Browns turned around their season with Gregg Williams as the interim head coach, but it may not be enough to land him the full-time job.

The Cleveland Browns have had an incredible turn around with Gregg Williams as the interim head coach, as he has lead a late-season run that put the team into playoff contention until Week 16.

Under Williams, the Browns have gone 5-2, with their only losses coming to the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans, two AFC playoff teams.

Despite the Browns success, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that Williams “isn’t considered a front-runner or anything close for the full-time job.” However, he did report that Williams will get an interview for the job.

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"Even after the surging second half of the season, Browns interim coach Gregg Williams isn’t considered a front-runner or anything close for the full-time job. He will, however, receive an interview. Cleveland is expected to cast a wide net and has no mandate to keep both coordinators, despite their success. Either way, Freddie Kitchens has earned the right to be a coordinator somewhere. Among those expected to be considered or inquired about are McCarthy, Iowa State coach Matt Campbell, Patriots de facto defensive coordinator Brian Flores and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, and Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus. – Ian Rapoport"

With Williams leading the Browns, the entire team has played with a different energy and confidence than they had earlier in the season. The results have been obvious, as the team has been in control in most of their recent games.

One of the biggest successes with Williams as the head coach has been Freddie Kitchens as the team’s interim offensive coordinator. The Browns have scored a touchdown on 18 of their 22 trips to the red zone under Kitchens. Kitchens has earned the trust of quarterback Baker Mayfield, and Mayfield’s play has excelled because of that.

Mayfield has completed 71 percent of his passes under Kitchens, going for 1,878 yards, 16 touchdowns, and five interceptions.

With the success of Kitchens, the expectation is that the Browns will attempt to keep him on staff for next season. Fox Sports insider Jay Glazer reported earlier in December that he had already locked up the Browns offensive coordinator job for next season, mainly because of his work with Mayfield.

Williams has brought an aggressiveness to the head coaching job, as the Browns have frequently gone for it on fourth-down. The Browns have attempted eight fourth-down conversions under Williams, successfully converting five times.

When Williams took over the interim head coaching position, he was pulling double-duty as he was still managing his role as the defensive coordinator. But in recent weeks, he has given his son and linebackers coach, Blake Williams, the defensive play-calling duties.

Williams has been extremely successful taking a more CEO approach to the Browns head coaching job. Although he likely still controls most of the defense leading into games, Williams’ influence has been obvious on both sides of the ball.

It would not be a surprise that most of the Browns roster would prefer to keep Williams as the head coach next season. If the Browns want to keep Williams on staff for 2019, their only option may be to name him the head coach. But with Rapoport’s report, it does not seem likely that Williams will receive a lot of consideration for the position.