The Cleveland Browns are said to be the Arizona Cardinals without palm trees. Of course, that is meant to be mean. But when your roster doesn’t win and remains on the sidelines, rooting for NFL draft positioning, while each year’s playoffs get rolling, insults are going to be a part of life.
Browns’ fans are cynical. They know their team isn’t good and won’t go anywhere anytime soon. They expect defeat and failure. They don’t trust the system and know that sooner or later, whatever is going on will end in sneering and disparaging treatment of their own loyalty and fandom.
RELATED: BROWNS ANNOUNCE 2 MORE INTERVIEWS
And they wish things could be different. And frustrated that it isn’t.
Diamond Images/Getty Images
Now that head coach Kevin Stefanski has been given the pink slip as head coach of the Browns, the search begins for the next guy to take control. Will he be an offensive guy or a defensive mind? Can the franchise turn around and become an annual playoff-caliber roster?
Eight NFL clubs have fired their head coaches this season, and a few more could be added to the list after Wild Card weekend. Several media outlets have ranked these teams and ranked which franchise is the best job on the market, from the worst.
Where does the Browns’ head coaching position rank?
Yahoo! Sports – Frank Schwab
“You don’t think candidates will realize that the Browns just fired a two-time NFL Coach of the Year in Kevin Stefanski, who was stuck with Deshaun Watson, Joe Flacco, Dillon Gabriel, Shedeur Sanders, and a rotating cast of other quarterbacks? Acquiring Watson was probably the worst trade in NFL history, and the GM who was on the job when it was made, Andrew Berry, remains. Jimmy Haslam has a horrendous track record as a team owner. The hope for the Browns is a strong 2025 rookie class that has immediate contributors throughout. But it’s hard to ignore the Browns’ history.”
“Quarterback situation. Insert shrug emoji? As much national interest as they generated in 2025, Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders − mostly Sanders − were a mixed bag as rookies. They have fairly distinct skill sets, yet both flashed their positive traits while also raising enough questions to suggest neither is likely to be instantly anointed QB1 in 2026 by Stefanski’s successor. Deshaun Watson is under contract for one more season – for a fully guaranteed $46 million – and returned to practice late in the season after undergoing multiple Achilles surgeries after originally being injured during the 2024 season. He could obviously rejoin the mix, yet also (still) seems like a problematic figure – in a football context and otherwise – as the next staff tries to get this club back to the playoffs. Going fishing for another option in the 2026 draft is certainly on the table.
It’s fair to call Myles Garrett legendary at this point, and he might legitimately be the best player in the NFL. He’s also one whose prime is being wasted and only a year removed from requesting a trade after expressing a belief he’d never win a Super Bowl in Cleveland – which tracks given no player ever has. Yet there’s a lot to like around Garrett, particularly a highly promising 2025 draft class that includes DT Mason Graham, LB Carson Schwesinger, TE Harold Fannin Jr., WR Isaiah Bond, RBs Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson … and maybe one or both quarterbacks.
Getty Images
The Browns own the sixth overall pick this year plus the first-rounder of the Jacksonville Jaguars, wherever that lands. Berry could put together a package to target a specific quarterback, but such a gambit could be quite expensive given what appears like a dearth of high-end prospects at the position this year. And continuing to load up on needed talent elsewhere wouldn’t be a bad fallback as Cleveland resets − while also potentially giving Sanders, Gabriel or someone else the opportunity to run with the reins a little longer.
Dismissing Stefanski was a bold (and perhaps misguided) choice given what he’d accomplished despite the drawbacks of this job – especially after he and Berry got saddled with Watson and had to prematurely offload Baker Mayfield. Moving forward, quarterback remains the obvious issue holding back a team that will likely continue to look up at the rest of the AFC North until it’s solved. But, if it gets rectified by Berry and the next coach in short order, this team could emerge as a powerhouse in almost no time.”
NBC New York – Logan Reardon
“The good: Even though they don’t have an established franchise quarterback, the Browns nailed their 2025 draft. Running back Quinshon Judkins and tight end Harold Fannin Jr. are standouts on offense, and linebacker Carson Schwesinger and tackle Mason Graham could be defensive stars. Single-season sack king Myles Garrett is locked up for years to come, too.
Mike McDaniel Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The bad: We’ve gone through some cursed teams already, but none have had it worse than the Browns. Before Stefanski, Cleveland went 17 straight years without making the playoffs. No other coach has had success with the club in decades, so the next leader has a tall task ahead. The Browns still have a cluster of questions at quarterback, including Deshaun Watson’s contract and everything that the Shedeur Sanders experience brings.
Ideal candidate: Mike McDaniel. There were reports before he was fired by the Dolphins that the Browns could have interest in his offensive mind. Now, with Cleveland needing a new coach and McDaniel on the market, he could be their top candidate. He was a Browns assistant in 2014, giving him some familiarity with the club. Raising the ceiling of this offense should be the team’s No. 1 priority, and McDaniel would do that.”
“Kevin Stefanski, whose Browns teams won just eight games in the last two seasons, is a two-time Coach of the Year winner and is likely to draw plenty of interest from other teams seeking a coach following his departure from Cleveland. He was handed the league’s worst quarterback situation this season. First, the team traded for Kenny Pickett, then drafted Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders, traded away Pickett, started Joe Flacco, then traded Flacco shortly after Gabriel took over the QB1 job — which he eventually ceded to Sanders. Oh, and Deshaun Watson, at the center of perhaps the worst trade and contract in which a team has engaged in history, is still there.
The Browns’ rookie class looks to be a strong one – linebacker Carson Schwesinger is a favorite for Defensive Rookie of the Year, while running back Quinshon Judkins, defensive tackle Mason Graham and tight end Harold Fannin provided good contributions. And the Browns have two first-round picks, so they will have the means to draft one of the top quarterbacks in the 2026 class. Plus, the new coach will only have to deal with the tail end of the disastrous Watson contract. Whoever lands this job must have a strong plan for the quarterbacks, to finally put an end to the circus at the position that the Browns have endured. General manager Andrew Berry will stay in his job. This team is in a rebuild, but at least there are resources. They question is, with no obvious slam-dunk candidates out there this year, which voice will be the one to finally make the right QB decisions and push this team forward?”
SB Nation – James Dator and Mark Schofield
“Originally, I wanted to rank the Browns last.
But full credit to both James Dator and DBN Producer Jared Mueller for some effective lobbying.
Yes, figuring out quarterback is a priority. But circumstances – where Cleveland sits in the first round coupled with the fact this might be a 2QB class – might mean Year Two of the Shedeur Sanders show, and kicking that decision down the road a bit.
And yes, the Browns have to sort out the financial house. At the moment Cleveland is $12 million over the cap for 2026, but it could be worse.
Getty Images
However, putting that to the side for a moment, the new head coach in Cleveland inherits a talented defense with Myles Garrett, the likely Defensive Player of the Year. It is a unit that was among the league’s best in both Expected Points Allowed against the Run, and EPA/Pass.
And you will also inherit a team with ten picks in the 2026 NFL Draft, including a pair of first-round selections.
That is not a bad way to turn things around, even with the quarterback question.”
CBS Sports – Jared Dubin
“The Browns have a good defense built around Myles Garrett, who is just an inhuman monster coming around the edge. They drafted a pair of star rookies in tight end Harold Fannin and linebacker Carson Schwesinger. They have multiple first-round picks in this year’s draft thanks to last year’s Travis Hunter trade.
What the Browns don’t have is much other talent on offense (Quinshon Judskins will be coming off a dislocated ankle and fractured fibula), an answer at quarterback or any cap space to solve their various issues. Cleveland is set to begin the offseason more than $12 million over the cap, according to Over the Cap, and it still has the albatross of Deshaun Watson’s contract weighing down its books in both 2026 and 2027, at least.”
Bleacher Report – Kristopher Knox
“The Browns may have a hard time replacing Stefanski, a two-time Coach of the Year, with a superior candidate. Cleveland’s dysfunctional reputation may keep more than a few coaches from seriously considering the job.
It starts with ownership, which has been a meddlesome mess ever since Jimmy and Dee Haslam purchased the franchise in 2012. The franchise has experienced virtually no stability on any level since then, save for its six years with Stefanski as the head coach and Andrew Berry as general manager.
Any coach hoping to have real autonomy will probably want to steer clear of Cleveland.
Getty Images
The Browns’ two meaningless wins at the end of the season knocked them out of a top-five draft slot, though the Browns do have two first-round picks. Quarterback will remain a question mark in 2026, as will an underwhelming overall roster.
The Browns lack offensive talent, and with just $3.1 million in projected 2026 cap space, that’s not likely to change in the immediate future.”
FOX Sports – Ben Arthur
“The Browns’ quarterback situation remains a mess with Deshaun Watson’s disastrous contract still on the books and Shedeur Sanders’ future with the team in question. General manager Andrew Berry somehow remains in the picture despite the firing of coach Kevin Stefanski. Cleveland’s new coach will, however, inherit a promising 2025 draft class and two 2026 first-round picks.
2025 Record: 5-12Projected 2026 Cap Space: -$12.2M (27th)Top 2026 Draft Pick: No. 6 overall”
Sports Illustrated – Connor Orr
“Why: The Browns are in a difficult division which the team has never won and there is no change atop the football operations. While it’s true that Andrew Berry oversaw a masterful draft in 2025, we don’t know how those players will perform without the talented head coach the team just parted ways with. An incoming head coach inherits the Shedeur Sanders situation, which will require a great deal of finesse. As one industry expert put it: this is not the position for a first-time head coach, and while that may be the case, that won’t prevent people from trying.
CLEVELAND, OHIO – DECEMBER 07: Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz of the Cleveland Browns looks on during the third quarter against the Tennessee Titans at Huntington Bank Field on December 07, 2025 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images) Diamond Images/Getty Images
First-guess head coach: Jim Schwartz, defensive coordinator, Cleveland Browns
McDaniel is an ideal fit for this role, but would he pass up the chance to score 30-plus points per game with old buddy Dan Quinn and Jayden Daniels, or take the Lions’ offensive coordinator job and rehab his career over the course of a season? I just think that Schwartz is the one candidate who knows what he’s in for, and unless Burke—a fellow Ivy Leaguer alongside Andrew Berry, both of whom had stops at Harvard as either a coach or player—makes an appearance on their interview dance card, the Browns may not have a candidate willing to embrace all of the uncertainty.”
Where would you rank the Browns job among the 8 head coaching vacancies?
Share your thoughts in the comment section below