Kevin Stefanski may be in the spotlight around the world, but it appears the Cleveland Browns coach is in no danger of being fired after this season.
The Browns are struggling with a 3-8 record but have won two of their last four games, both against AFC North rivals the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers.
And the win over the Steelers came in cold, snowy conditions where a bad team could fold.
Cleveland even scored 12 points in the fourth quarter against Pittsburgh but held on and recovered to win 24-19. That is a team that still plays hard for its coach.
Stefanski certainly hasn’t been as good a coach as he was last season, when he won 11 games and was named NFL Coach of the Year for the second time in four seasons. The Browns have lost four games by at least 16 points.
Getting blown up too many times is never a good thing.
But it’s funny, the team looks more cohesive now that Deshaun Watson is out for the season with an Achilles tendon injury.
Watson made a colossal $230 million blunder, and her reputation is even worse, as more than a dozen massage therapists accuse her of sexual misconduct.
It doesn’t matter what the players say off the field, just know that many are privately speaking differently to each other about Watson and are not impressed with his behavior off the field.
So maybe the real decision is to go elsewhere at quarterback and part ways with Watson.
If so, find your quarterback of the future and go with Jameis Winston as the bridge signal caller until the youngster is ready.
I look at those two 11-win seasons the Browns enjoyed under Stefanski and think Cleveland hasn’t had a single winning season since 2008-19.
You may recall that they experienced an embarrassing winless season in 2017 when they went 1-31 in two seasons under Hue Jackson.
At that rate, it would take Jackson 22 seasons to get 11 total wins.
Or how about that playoff win for the Steelers under Stefanski in 2020? That marks a single-season win streak in 25 seasons since this version of the franchise began play in 1999.
Admittedly, things didn’t go well last January as the Browns lost 45-14 to the Houston Texans in the AFC wild card round.
Stefanski is 40-38 with the Browns, and his worst record for Cleveland is 7-10 in 2022.
The Browns will have to rally for seven wins this season, but perhaps splitting their last six games to finish 6-11 is possible.
The only real possibility to consider letting Stefanski go would be if the team completely collapses and finishes 3-14 or 4-13.
Of course, owner Jimmy Haslam isn’t known for his patience, so maybe this season is disappointing enough for him to make a move.
In that case, you need to look at the other coaches the Browns had in the last 16 seasons.
Freddie Kitchens. Jackson mentioned above. Mike Pettine. Rob Chudzinski. Pat Shurmur. Eric Mangini.
Neither of these guys has a single winning season.
Stefanski will never be the next Paul Brown, but he is certainly a better coach than anyone on that list.
Those two 11-win seasons – for THIS franchise – should say it all.
Bring Stefanski back and give it another go. If he is not successful in 2025, show him the door.
But next season, Stefanski is the best man for the job on the shores of Lake Erie.
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