John Dorsey needs to own the Freddie Kitchens experiment was a failure
By Dan Justik
The Cleveland Browns made an aggressive decision to hire Freddie Kitchens as head coach, but John Dorsey needs to own that the hiring was a failure.
There are two games remaining in the Cleveland Browns 2019 season, but it has the feeling that the season is already over. After being thoroughly outplayed by the Arizona Cardinals in a must-win game, Freddie Kitchens and the Browns look defeated.
From the opening kickoff, the Browns look ill-prepared for a game they needed to win in order to keep their slim playoff hopes alive. Kitchens did not have the team ready to go, a further indictment on his stint as Cleveland’s head coach.
It was such a disappointing from the Browns that Kitchens job appears to be in jeopardy, despite a report Sunday morning from NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport that Browns management want to keep Kitchens long-term. Rapoport said, however, a “horrific collapse or circumstance” at the end of the season may put Kitchens’ job in question.
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Sunday afternoon may have been that horrific collapse, as the Browns looked terrible against the Cardinals. Jarvis Landry had another sideline argument with Kitchens, and it seemed like the entire team quit in the fourth quarter.
With how many issues Kitchens has had this season, whether it be game management, play-calling, or handling the locker room, Browns general manager John Dorsey should admit the Freddie Kitchens experiment was a failure.
All of the concerns about Kitchens being an inexperienced coach came to fruition. He could not keep the locker room in check and it seemed like the players did not respect his authority. That translated to the field, as they were an incredibly undisciplined team.
The players also seemed to regress under Kitchens and his coaching staff. There was little development shown from the young players, and even talented veterans were playing like average players.
Kitchens is the first head coach Dorsey has hired as a general manager. When Dorsey was the Chiefs general manager, Andy Reid was hired a week before Dorsey took over as the general manager. And when Dorsey was hired in Cleveland, Hue Jackson was still the head coach.
Dorsey firing his first head coaching hire after one season is not a good look for his reputation. He has built the reputation of being one of the top executives in the NFL, but has stumbled since being in Cleveland. Firing Kitchens will only add to the list of failures for Dorsey.
Dorsey managed to build an extremely talented roster, but a roster that had its flaws. In order to take advantage of the talent on the roster, it is clear the Browns need a new leader. Kitchens is not learning on the job and the Browns are still dealing with the same issues they had at the beginning of the season.
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It may hurt Dorsey’s reputation to fire Kitchens after only one season. However, if he does not make a change, he is risking wasting the prime of many young players and their cheap contracts. It may not be what he wants, but it is something that needs to be done and something that Dorsey needs to own.