Ranking The Browns’ Coaching Options

With the Browns coaching search campaign heating up, I’d like to give my personal rankings for the coaches that are being reported OR have met with the team already. Here’s the order the Browns should be rating their options and why:

1. Dan Campbell, Tight End Coach/Assistant Head Coach-New Orleans Saints: He personifies what John Dorsey has said he looks for in a head coach. People are quick to compare his 5-7 record as an interim to Williams 5-3 and say no. Given that Sean Payton saw something in him, I’d venture guess there’s something there. He’s my favorite for the position at this juncture.
2. Freddie Kitchens, Offensive Coordinator-Cleveland Browns:– Kitchens is a close second. Freddie is being overlooked because “he has to be the OC.” Let’s just be honest: he transformed the offense and took charge of it. He could do that on both sides if given the chance. He may have had a more positive impact than Gregg Williams did as the interim head coach. Considering how many teams have been knocking at the door, the head coach potential is there.
3. Matt Eberflus, Defensive Coordinator-Indianapolis Colts– Do you remember the Colts defense in 2017? They were in the bottom five in every category on defense and within one year, completely changed. He switched the colts to 4-3 like the Browns and it was very effective with the right OC, Eberflus could be great for Cleveland.
4. Gregg Williams, Interim Head Coach-Cleveland Browns: Williams did well as an interim and deserved a shot to interview. The problem is that the offense did extremely well following Jackson’s dismissal while the defense actually got worse. Williams has done well but the Browns could also do better.
5. Nick Sirianni, Offensive Coordinator-Indianapolis Colts: Sirianni helped Andrew Luck look nearly elite again. We never thought we’d see names like Eric Ebron, Dontrelle Innman or even Marlon Mack look this good but he got the best out of them. Cleveland took strides last year and if Kitchens isn’t back, they’ll need somebody to keep up this progressive trend.
6. Mike McCarthy, currently unemployed: McCarthy helped develop Aaron Rodgers, so he should be a good fit for Baker Mayfield. McCarthy is someone who can get the best out of his QBs including making Brett Favre look like an MVP before the Jets trade, Aaron Rodgers look like a god for a decade and he even made Brett Hundley to look competent. He wasn’t the reason the packers slid, as much as the GM not doing his job and getting and retaining good players for him. So why so low? He’s very QB driven on offense and as we’ve seen time and time again, it wouldn’t fit the Browns mentality, especially with Nick Chubb.
7. Mike Munchak, Offensive Line Coach-Pittsburgh Steelers: His run first mentality would be a great fit with the aforementioned Nick Chubb. Too bad his QB track record isn’t all that great. He got the Titans competitive and to the playoffs in a previous head coaching run but he may not be the right fit for the still developing Mayfield.
8. Brian Flores, Defensive Coordinator-New England Patriots: The front 7 against Run was so good for New England under Flores. Now if his passing defense is….nevermind. Look, Flores didn’t have the best talent in the secondary but he had enough. One of the biggest slights is that his defenses did “just enough” and that mentality should scare off Cleveland. Especially given how lax the team played in the 3rd and 4th quarters. While Kitchens had an understanding for working a team, Flores doesn’t seem to. He could really use another year or two at DC.
9. Jim Caldwell, currently unemployed: Given his history at head coach, the Browns have to pass on this option.
10. Kevin Stefanski, Offensive Coordinator-Minnesota Vikings: A head coaching position just wouldn’t be fair to Stefanski at this juncture. He only has three weeks at OC, and not much improvement was shown with Minnesota’s offense. If Kitchens got the HC job, consider Stefanski for offensive coordinator but not the head position.