The Cleveland Browns couldn't afford to bring Kevin Stefanski back in 2026. Even if he wasn't entirely to blame for how things went down, winning eight games in two seasons will get most head coaches fired.
However, the narrative around Stefanski has always been quite different from that of most former Browns head coaches. For years, the media called him an "offensive guru" and guaranteed that he would land a new job almost right away. They may have been right, as he was just appointed as the Atlanta Falcons' head coach.
More than that, Falcons legend Matt Ryan, who was instrumental in his hiring, shared some interesting comments about his appointment. Once again, it seems like the notion around the league is that Jimmy Haslam and the front office didn't allow Stefanski to do his job.
Matt Ryan's comments hint at disconnect between Kevin Stefanski and the Browns
Ryan said the quiet part out loud about the NFL's view of Stefanski in a statement on Saturday night.
"We're thrilled to land a lead-by-example leader in Kevin Stefanski who brings a clear vision for his staff, our team and a closely aligned focus on building this team on fundamentals, toughness and active collaboration with every area of the football operation. His experience in Cleveland and Minnesota has given him a great understanding of the importance of working in sync with scouting, personnel and the rest of the football staff to maximize talent across the roster and in doing everything possible to put our players in the best position to succeed."
Hearing him talk about being in "active collaboration with every area of the football operation" and "working in sync" with everybody else doesn't sound like a coincidence. Way too many times, it seemed that GM Andrew Berry and Stefanski weren't on the same page, especially in regards to the quarterback situation.
Stefanski clearly thought that Dillon Gabriel was his guy, and Berry seemed to want Shedeur Sanders. Berry traded the recently benched Joe Flacco without consulting with Stefanski, thus forcing his hand to play Shedeur once Gabriel got hurt. Stefanski also reportedly didn't want the team to trade for Deshaun Watson.
As for Haslam, he's drawn a reputation for being way too involved with the operation. While having an owner that cares is usually a good thing, he's meddling too much instead of trusting the people he hired to do a job in the front office.
Saying that a two-time Coach of the Year was a bad coach would be unfair and inaccurate. Of course, he must be held accountable for all the losing and — above all — the subpar offensive performances.
That being said, he did what he could with the hand he was given, and not having the head coach and the ownership on the same page will rarely lead to success.