The Kevin Stefanski era has come to an end for the Cleveland Browns. There will be plenty of conversations about how the Browns might end up regretting this decision, and it's not hard to see why.
Stefanski immediately helped bring a level of success to Cleveland that Browns fans had not seen in a very long time. The Browns reached the playoffs in the 2020 season, Stefanski's first year on the job, and then did so again in the 2023 season. Stefanski was crowned Coach of the Year both years as a result.
Yet, after back-to-back losing seasons that saw Cleveland win just eight games, Stefanski ran out of time and he was cut loose. The fact that Stefanski will immediately become a hot commodity to the other teams searching for their next head coach shows how the rest of the league views the guy, and it again will bring the conversation back to why the Browns were OK letting him leave?
Dan Patrick spoke about the Browns on the opening segment of his show on Tuesday morning, and he said that Stefanski getting canned by Cleveland was probably the best possible outcome for him. He even went as far as to say that Stefanski "deserves better."
"I think they did [Stefanski] a favor by letting him go," Patrick said on The Dan Patrick Show on Tuesday morning. "Kevin Stefanski deserves better. He'll get something better by leaving the Cleveland Browns."
Dan Patrick says Kevin Stefanski deserved better than Browns
Stefanski has already been linked to being a solid fit for the New York Giants' vacant head coaching spot, and it makes sense why. The Giants have a promising young quarterback in Jaxson Dart, a fun running back in Cam Skattebo, and an electric wide receiver in Malik Nabers. The pieces are there, and for an offensive-minded guy like Stefanski, he'd have something in New York that he didn't have in Cleveland.
We won't know for sure if the Browns made the right decision or not for a few more years, but for now, Patrick's comments won't be viewed as unpopular by any stretch. Stefanski will be a coveted name for teams searching for a head coach, and if that's the case, the Browns potentially did him a huge favor in kicking him to the curb.