Freddie Kitchens has ‘good chance’ to be named Cleveland Browns head coach
By Dan Justik
The Cleveland Browns head coaching search could be winding down, as Freddie Kitchens reportedly has a good chance to be named the head coach.
Cleveland Browns interim offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens has a good chance of being named the head coach, according to Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot. Cabot also said that signs are pointing towards Kitchens becoming the head coach.
Kitchens interviewed for the position on Monday. He was the seventh candidate the Browns have interviewed, and it appears he was the last of the initial interviews.
NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport also reported that Kitchens is getting ‘strong consideration’ for the job, saying the Browns are making calls with others that have worked with the 44-year-old.
The #Browns do not appear to have made a decision on their next head coach, but worth noting: OC Freddie Kitchens is getting strong consideration for the head job. They were making calls to people who’ve worked with him as of last night, another sign he’s right in the mix.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 8, 2019
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With other organizations starting to fill their head coach openings, it appears the Browns are starting to move quickly in that direction. It was expected the Browns were going to have a longer search than most of the other teams and take their time before deciding on their next head coach.
This is one of the most important head coach searches for the Browns, as the team has finally found their franchise quarterback in Baker Mayfield. The Browns will hope that the man they hire this off-season will be coaching Mayfield for the rest of his career in Cleveland.
Mayfield’s relationship with Kitchens is what made the offensive coordinator such an intriguing head coach candidate. Mayfield did not look comfortable in Todd Haley’s offense, as he was forced to sit in the pocket as the receiver’s routes took a long time to develop. But once Kitchens became the offensive play-caller, Mayfield’s play excelled.
In the eight games with Kitchens calling plays, Mayfield completed 68.4 percent of his passes for 2,254 yards, 19 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. He was sacked only five times in Kitchens’ offense, compared to the 20 sacks in Haley’s offense.
Kitchens adjusted the offense to the personnel he had, and the offense took off with him doing so. In the eight games that Kitchens called plays, the Browns averaged 285.9 passing yards per game and 109.3 rushing yards per game. The Browns scored an average of 23.6 points per game in that span.
The Browns were so high on Kitchens that they were reportedly blocking other organizations from interviewing Kitchens for open coordinator positions. Cleveland wanted to give whoever they hired as head coach the opportunity to keep him on staff, if they did not hire Kitchens as the head coach.
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It remains to be seen if things progress to Kitchens being hired as the head coach. However, it seems that all things are pointing to him being the favorite for the job and the Browns having their offensive mastermind to pair with Mayfield.