Browns promote rising defensive coach in latest staff shakeup

When teams go through a coaching change, as the Cleveland Browns have done this offseason, there can be a complete overhaul of the coaching staff. The Browns have actually retained several coaches after new head coach Todd Monken took over. 

The team has added a new offensive coordinator in Travis Switzer, a new defensive coordinator in Mike Rutenberg, and a new special teams coach in Byron Storer. However, they have also promoted several current coaches to brand new roles.

The most recent promotion has come for Jeff Anderson, who has been the team's defensive quality control analyst. He has now been named the new nickel backs coach.

Anderson has been with Cleveland since 2022 and is certainly making a mark in the organization. Cleveland has now been able to keep four members of the coaching staff on the defense. Jason Tarver was promoted to the position of run game coordinator, Brandon Lynch has become the new defensive backs coach, and Ephraim Banda got promoted to the passing game coordinator. 

Anderson’s decision to stay with the Browns, who had a solid defensive squad in 2025, would suggest that the team and Monken know that that part of the team is the most valuable and want to maintain some familiar coaching faces within the group.

Jeff Anderson moving up on the Browns defensive coaching ladder

Anderson, a California native, was around the game of football from a very young age as he grew up in Dixon, California, where his stepdad was an assistant football coach at the local high school. Anderson played quarterback when he was old enough to join the high school team. He went on to play college football at both Contra Costa College and Texas Southern. 

After college, he went back to Contra Costa College and became the quarterbacks coach. From there, he moved up to San Jose State and worked with their linebackers for a couple of years before moving to Cal Poly. In 2022, Anderson was selected for an internship with the Browns as part of the Bill Walsh NFL Diversity Coaching Fellow Program.

Now Anderson will focus his attention on helping an already good group of defensive backs get even better. With Denzel Ward and Tyson Campbell being the primary outside corners that the Browns use, who the team uses at the nickel and inside corner spots is up for much debate as we go through this offseason of change.