CLEVELAND, Ohio \u2014 Kevin Stefanski, with rumors swirling about his future, doesn\u2019t feel the need to address it with the team heading into Sunday\u2019s season finale in Cincinnati. <\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d he said. \u201cThe most important thing is what\u2019s in front of us, and that\u2019s our game Sunday down in Cincinnati. That\u2019s all we care about.\u201d<\/p>\n
ESPN\u2019s Jeremy Fowler reported on Wednesday that former Browns receivers coach Mike McDaniel, head coach of the 7-9 Dolphins, will be a candidate for the Browns vacancy if both teams part ways with their coaches. He also reported that Stefanski would be a candidate for the Giants vacancy if he becomes free. <\/p>\n
NFL Network reported recently that Browns GM Andrew Berry will be involved in the decision about Stefanski\u2019s status.<\/p>\n
On Monday, Stefanski was asked if he wants to continue beyond this season, his sixth with the Browns. Stefanski and Berry signed multi-year contract extensions in June 2024.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs you can imagine, my sole focus is on this game versus Cincinnati, but I also would tell you I\u2019m privileged to have this job,\u201d said Stefanski, a two-time NFL Coach of the Year. <\/p>\n
Have there been any discussions about how things might shake out after the finale? If the Browns win, they\u2019ll finish 5-12. If they lose, it\u2019s 4-13 on the heels of last year\u2019s massively disappointing 3-14 mark. <\/p>\n
\u201cI understand the question,\u201d Stefanski said. \u201cI never get into those type of discussions. All I care about is finding a way to go win this week versus the Bengals.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hired as a first-time head coach in 2020, Stefanski has gone 44-56 and 1-2 in postseason, but is in the midst of back-to-back double-digit loss seasons thanks to enormous upheaval at the all-important quarterback position. 2024 starter Deshaun Watson got off to a poor start, in part because he was coming off shoulder surgery and in part because of numerous injuries around him and a new scheme installed by then-coordinator Ken Dorsey. Watson (1-6) ruptured his Achilles in October, and Jameis Winston (2-5) finished the season. <\/p>\n
This season, the Browns went 1-3 with Joe Flacco, 1-5 with Dillon Gabriel, and 2-4 with Shedeur Sanders. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve had an explosive offense (in 2023),\u201d guard Wyatt Teller said Wednesday. \u201cHe\u2019s been a two-time Coach of the Year. He deserves all of that. I think that it\u2019s hard when there\u2019s injuries all over the place. It\u2019s hard to have consistency and win a lot of games. So I think that the past couple of years it\u2019s been difficult given the hard cards that we\u2019ve all been handed. But whether coach is here or wherever, he\u2019s going to be successful. He\u2019s a great father, great husband, and a great man.\u201d<\/p>\n
Teller, who\u2019s a free agent after the season and expects to be gone, believes Stefanski did the best he could this season. <\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like every week he gets us ready,\u201d he said. \u201cThe last couple weeks we were tight with Buffalo, beat the Steelers. There\u2019s a lot of good things. I know the season didn\u2019t end up the way it was and there\u2019s a lot of games we dropped early on that kind of demoralizes the team, but I feel like there\u2019s a lot of good. And I know Kevin did a good job getting those guys here and I know he wants to coach them to success.\u201d<\/p>\n
Denzel Ward, just voted to his fifth Pro Bowl, said Stefanski is a great coach. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re all in this together,\u201d he said. \u201cI know our record isn\u2019t the best record, but it\u2019s not just one person or one coach. It falls all on his hands in a sense. That\u2019s what the outside world sees it as like, \u2018oh, it\u2019s just his fault.\u2019 But it\u2019s not just his fault. It falls on all of us, falls on myself. <\/p>\n
\u201cEvery single player that\u2019s going out there and playing and every single coach, we take this record upon all of us. We\u2019ve got to all own it. And like I said, this is not the season that we necessarily wanted, but yeah, I mean, we are in it fighting with each other, and we\u2019ve got each other\u2019s back.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said the players can\u2019t pay attention to the rumors. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhatever happens, happens,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s just life. Whatever happens, go from there and deal with it as it comes. But if you just try to speculate and guess, \u2018oh, this could happen, this could happen,\u2019 you\u2019d go crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stefanski could know his fate by Monday, otherwise known as Black Monday in the NFL coaching business. <\/p>\n
Harold Fannin Jr. among five Browns who didn\u2019t practice Wednesday <\/p>\n
Fannin, who suffered a groin injury during the victory over the Steelers, was among five Browns who didn\u2019t practice on Wednesday. <\/p>\n
The others were guard Teven Jenkins (concussion), new center Kingsley Eguakun (knee, shoulder), David Njoku (personal), Carson Schwesinger (quad, ankle).<\/p>\n
Stefanski said Fannin is rehabbing very hard and he\u2019s \u201cdefinitely not ruling him out.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added that Njoku, who\u2019s missed the past three games with a knee injury, should be back with the team tomorrow. Stefanski said he\u2019s still rehabbing his knee injury \u201cbut he can update you guys when appropriate.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Wyatt Teller finishing the season on IR with his calf injury<\/p>\n
Stefanski said he was disappointed Teller\u2019s season ended with a trip to IR with his calf injury. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe fought, rehabbed very hard to get back to playing in that one, then reaggravated that injury early in that (Steelers game),\u201d Stefanski said. \u201cSo that was disappointing for him and for us. Obviously, he\u2019s played through a lot of injuries before in the past as well. He\u2019s played really good football for us, so disappointed that it ended a week early.\u201d<\/p>\n
Zak Zinter could get the nod <\/p>\n
Stefanski acknowledged that 2024 third round pick Zak Zinter could get the start at right guard with Jenkins in the concussion protocol and Teller on IR.<\/p>\n
\u201cCertainly, could be Zak,: he said We have options there. We\u2019re working through all of that.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said Zinter, who played 16 snaps vs. the Steelers, has been working extremely hard behind the scenes. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m seeing a lot of that hard work show up in these games,\u201d Stefanski said. \u201cSo, I\u2019m bullish on Zak.\u201d<\/p>\n
He explained that Zinter hasn\u2019t gotten a chance because he\u2019s had players in front of him.<\/p>\n
\u201c(He\u2019s) a young player that has worked very hard, is ready to go at a moment\u2019s notice,\u201d Stefanski said. \u201cSometimes the opportunity comes for a variety of reasons, and obviously there\u2019s opportunities coming here now potentially at the end of the season, but doesn\u2019t mean that we\u2019re not working very hard throughout the week with him. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd all the work that he\u2019s put in with Coach (Mike) Bloom(gren), with Coach (Ben) Wilkerson on the field, I think it\u2019s been a really positive season. While it hasn\u2019t necessarily been represented in a lot of reps in the games, I do think it\u2019s been a positive season.\u201d<\/p>\n