Month: January 2026

First let me get this out of the way, Sean McDermit is not going to be the next head coach of the Cleveland Browns. Yes, when Shasi Brown was in charge he and Paul DePodesta recommended he be the next head coach, but Jimmy Haslam wanted a well-respected veteran head coach and went with Hue Jackson. At the Time Jackson was highly sot after. My have times changed. My point in bring this past Browns history up is, sometimes the veteran coach isn’t the way to go in the new NFL. Right now, Haslam would love to repeat the mistake of the past, but Browns GM Andrew Berry wants to go young and innovative. Haslam will trust Berry to make the right discission and not meddle. See, miracles do happen.

But what if they hire Jim Schwartz? Haslam loves Schwartz and he has the respect of the players in the locker room. If this is the Browns hire, then the team has already discussed his potential hires to fix the offense. This is the key to hiring Schwartz, young and innovative offensive minded coaches who will get the responsibility of calling plays guaranteed. If the Browns go away from Schwartz, I really can’t see him staying, but stranger things have happened in this franchise.

My preference would be to hire one of the young guns, Udinski or Scheelhaase. Udinski has learned under two very talented head coaches and been in the NFL longer, starting as a scout and working his way up the ladder. Scheelhaase has been a position coach, (running backs, wide receivers, quarterbacks) so he knows what it takes to run an offense. The question is, will a young coach be able to hire a talented staff? While veteran coaches have been in the league longer, they tend to associate with a smaller close nit group. Younger coaches are around fellow ambitious hungry coaches looking to make a name for themselves in the league.

As for the search itself, four coaches have been hired as of this writing, Giants, Falcons, Dolphins and Titans. The Giants hired a guy that was a pipedream for Browns fans, the Falcons hired the guy the Browns fired, the Dolphins hired a gut who wasn’t in the conversation at all, and the Titans hired a guy who the Browns interviewed six years ago. I can’t help but shake my head at the Dolphins and the Titans, they both made the classic NFL mistake. Fire an offensive coach and then hire a defensive coach. I’ve seen this too many times in Browns history, the wheels of the bus go round & round.

Finally, too many Browns fans are clutching their pearls over the length of time this search is taking. The Browns are currently going through second in person interviews to go in-depth with the candidates and to satisfy the Rooney Rule. They have to interview two minority candidates in person and Mike McDaniel counts as a minority because one of his parents is black. I would rather they get this right then win a race. Stay safe and GO Browns.

First of all, I think we’re all Houston Texans fans this morning. Previously the Steelers had won twenty-two straight Monday night games before last night. Now the question becomes will Mike Tomlin survive. On a personal note, if he doesn’t, I don’t want him on the Browns. Their offense stinks, he holds on to assistant coaches too long, (longer than Stefanski) and he would never coach the Browns. That hate runs deep. Who would’ve thought the AFC North would be such a mess.

Here’s the candidates to Browns have and will interview as of this writing. Jim Schwartz, Tommy Rees, Mike McDaniel, Todd Monken, Aden Durde, Grant Udinski, Dan Pitcher, Jessie Minter and Nate Scheelhaase. They are still in back-channel communications with John Harbaugh and his agent. I’ve heard there are some in the Browns front office who would like to talk to Mike LaFleur, the Rams offensive coordinator. The Udinski interview caught me a little bit by surprise, because I had been told they wouldn’t interview him because of his age, so that’s interesting. They’ve not interviewed Mike McCarthy, and I don’t think they will. It’s twenty years too late for him. Besides, Browns GM Andrew Berry said in his media availability they were looking for a leader of men and for the fans and media to keep an open mind. Not either’s strong suit. I’ve been told they want someone who can do the heavy lifting and strategy as a head coach.

I’ve also been told; they are not telling candidates they have to keep Schwartz, prefer is the word used. As far Schwartz, his only other interview to date is with the Ravens. If wants to go, fine. Any coordinator in the NFL would love to coach this defense, so if he goes, the Browns new coach would have his pick of top defensive minds. Just remember the Browns lost three games because Schwartz’s defense failed. The Vikings, the Titans and the Bills. Maybe they could hire someone who could push this defense into what the Texans look like.

As for the quarterback situation, the team is not telling candidates they have to start Sheduer Sanders. I don’t know if they’re telling candidates that they have to keep him. It sounds they would like to sign or trade for a veteran quarterback and I’m not talking about a bridge QB. The options are limited at best. Gino Smith and Kyler Murry seem like the best options. If the Raiders and Jets don’t screw up the first two picks, drafting a QB doesn’t look like an option in the first round. My preference for the Browns are offensive tackle and wide receiver, in that order, but things could change by April, we still have free agency to work though.

Finally my weekly reminder, the Browns are not in salary cap hell, they’ll have the money to spend because Berry knows contracts and Deshaun Watson will not be an option to play for the Browns in 2026. As for the candidates mentioned above, Scheelhaase and Udinski intrigue me. Stay safe and GO Browns.

That was the perfect ending to a season to forget and I’m talking about the game. The defense got two pick sixes, Garrett got the record-breaking sack, our kicker came full circle for the game winner, and the special teams didn’t cost the Browns the game. As for the offense, the presumed 2026 starting quarterback by some, played like the fifth-round pick he is. I know, he guided the team down the field to set up the winning field goal, but was that play calling?

Now to what happened on Victory Monday, the dismissal of head coach Kevin Stefanski. I don’t agree with it, but the league is a bottom-line business and wins matter. I listened to both Jimmy Haslam and Andrew Berry’s media availability and thought both handled them well. Haslam will always spend money, and it sounds like he’s going to do it again. Berry hinted at a few things which the local media and the Berry haters will misinterpret. As for Sanders, he really can’t commit because the new head coach might not want Sanders and all the drama that comes with him. The new coach will want his guy. He also mentioned Watson is still one the roster. Believe me, Watson still isn’t seeing the field in 2026. As for Jim Schwartz being the next head coach, it sounds like he’ll get an interview. But if make Schwartz the head coach to keep his talented defensive staff and Tommy Rees as the OC, isn’t that an indictment on firing Stefanski?

I’m not thrilled with the idea of making Schwartz the head coach because of what happened in Detroit. But I do like the idea of keeping the defensive line coach, the linebackers coach, the secondary coach, the OC, the quarterback coach and the offensive line coach. If you keep this part of the staff intact, the players will be happy, and it might entice Joel Bitonio to come back for one more year. Other names who interest me are Vance Joseph, Matt Burke, Frank Ross, Brant Boyer and Dan Pitcher. Joseph would make this defense better. Burke turned the Texans defense the number one defense this year. Both Ross and Boyer are great special team’s coaches. Ross was named Special Teams coach of the year last year. Before you piss and moan about a special teams coach, remember John Harbaugh and Bill Cowher were special teams’ coaches. Both would hire the people to fix a unit that cost the Browns four games last year. Pitcher is an OC and used to be a QB coach. Word is, he knows how to get the best out of a young quarterback.

Bottom line, the team can fix this if everything goes their way. The have ten draft picks, they’ll have cap room, (I’ve explained this many times) and an owner who’ll devote the cash to fix this team. Stay safe and GO Browns.