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Cleveland Browns: Potential head coaching candidates if Freddie Kitchens is fired

By Matthew McFatridge

WACO, TX - OCTOBER 28: Head coach Matt Rhule of the Baylor Bears looks on as Baylor plays the Texas Longhorns in the first half at McLane Stadium on October 28, 2017 in Waco, Texas. Texas won 38-7. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
WACO, TX - OCTOBER 28: Head coach Matt Rhule of the Baylor Bears looks on as Baylor plays the Texas Longhorns in the first half at McLane Stadium on October 28, 2017 in Waco, Texas. Texas won 38-7. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) /
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DURHAM, NC – SEPTEMBER 16: Head coach Matt Rhule of the Baylor Bears reacts during the game against the Duke Blue Devils at Wallace Wade Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
DURHAM, NC – SEPTEMBER 16: Head coach Matt Rhule of the Baylor Bears reacts during the game against the Duke Blue Devils at Wallace Wade Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /

Matt Rhule: Baylor Bears Head Coach

Three years into a major overhaul at Baylor, Matt Rhule is and should be on every NFL team’s radar as a head coaching candidate. Following the scandal by former head coach Art Briles that left the team and school under fire by the NCAA, Rhule was hired after an impressive run at Temple to turn the program around. It was going to be more than just trying to win football games; it was going to have to be a complete culture change.

Luckily for Baylor, it’s worked. After a 1-11 first year, Baylor has turned around the program completely and currently sits at 6-0. Jets fans have to look at his success at turning the program around and be left wondering what could have been. Having all but been named the coach for New York following last season, Rhule backed out because he didn’t want a forced marriage of offensive and defensive coordinators on his staff.

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It’s hard to argue with that kind of logic, especially since he hired people he trusted at Baylor and they collectively have helped him turn the team into a force in the Big 12. Slowly and methodically is how he’s done it at Baylor, and although fans thought the Browns addition of talent all across the roster would result in immediate success, it doesn’t always happen that way. Rhule could be the guy who comes in and since he understands things take time, work with his staff to develop the talent and help the team gel.

That’s been something Freddie Kitchens has struggled with this season, having his team gel as a unit. While that does take time, the way the team has looked lost at times is concerning. Matt Rhule has the ability to come in and have instant success with the talent that’s on this Browns team. He’s not only proven he’s a successful head coach, but also proven to be very liked by his players.

It would likely take a perfect situation to get Rhule to leave Baylor, but Cleveland may provide that situation. Rhule would inherit a young quarterback and talent at every position in a city where football comes first.

He’s also from the northeast United States, so it would return him closer to where he grew up. If he were to win a championship in Cleveland, a statue would be built of him outside the stadium. That sounds like a near-perfect scenario and reason to leave a college job.

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