The search for the next head coach of the Cleveland Browns will forge on to Week 3, with at least Jim Schwartz and Todd Monken expected to meet with team brass in person for second interviews.
As for Kevin Stefanski, who was fired by the Browns back on Black Monday? It only took 12 days for him to find a new job — and an eye-popping contract to boot.
Stefanski reportedly had future meetings with the Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens, but those will no longer be taking place. Owner Arthur Blank and the Atlanta Falcons made moves to be first on Stefanski’s travel schedule on Saturday, and they made sure to close the deal with what ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported as a five-year contract, running through the 2030 season.
Sources: Falcons are giving new head coach Kevin Stefanski a five-year contract. pic.twitter.com/R2m8kiiD9r
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 18, 2026
While the value of coaches' contracts in the NFL are not made public, Stefanski’s likely making somewhere in the $15 million per year range, fully guaranteed. He had just signed a multi-year extension with Cleveland in 2024 before things went south, and the news of him landing in the NFC South for a massive haul sent Browns fans straight into orbit.
Browns fans just watched Kevin Stefanski fail upward in real time
Browns fans can’t help but laugh. They just watched Stefanski’s take their team from 11-6 playoff qualifier in 2023, to 8-26 bottom-dweller over the past two seasons combined.
Stefanski’s questionable in-game decision making and overreliance on analytics left fans screaming for his exit from Cleveland this season. He also twice removed himself as the offensive play caller, including this season when he handed the play sheet over to first-year offensive coordinator Tommy Rees starting in Week 10.
The Browns’ recent struggles definitely weren’t all on Stefanski, however, as general manager Andrew Berry and the front office have gone from an offensive roster featuring Baker Mayfield, Nick Chubb, Jarvis Landry, and Odell Beckham Jr. in 2020, to one led by Day 2 and 3 rookies in passing, rushing, and receiving in 2025. Stefanski went down trying to win games with Deshaun Watson, Jameis Winston, Joe Flacco, Dillon Gabriel, and Shedeur Sanders at quarterback over the past two years.
Stefanski reaching a deal with Atlanta, before the Browns even reached their second round of interviews, has to sting for a franchise that’s viewed as one of the dregs of the league. As of Saturday night, only two dominoes had fallen among the NFL’s nine head coach openings: John Harbaugh to the New York Giants, and Stefanski to the Falcons.
Most Browns fans believe that they’ll get the last laugh on Stefanski, but he’s inheriting another roster that’s in good shape, with established stars like RB Bijan Robiinson, WR Drake London, and safety Jessie Bates III at the forefront. They finished 8-9 and missed the playoffs in 2025, but they won their last four games and now officially enter the offseason with some momentum.
The brutal truth here is that Stefanski could be the one who’s laughing in 2026, has he just took over a more talented overall roster, and will play a road game against Cleveland at Huntington Bank Stadium on a date still to be announced.