CLEVELAND, Ohio \u2014 The Browns have added at least four more names to their second interview list this week in Rams pass game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase, Jaguars offensive coordinator Grant Udzinki, Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter and former Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel, league sources tell Cleveland.com. <\/p>\n
They already had second interviews scheduled Monday with Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, as cleveland.com reported on Friday, and Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken on Tuesday. <\/p>\n
Of the second-interview candidates, Scheelhaase, must now wait until Jan. 26 to talk to the Browns a second time, and for the first time in person. His Rams beat the Bears 20-17 in overtime Sunday in the divisional round, and rules stipulate that coaches playing in the championship games next weekend are off limits until the Monday after the games, when they\u2019ve either been eliminated or are in their bye before the Super Bowl. <\/p>\n
Two of the Browns\u2019 initial interviewees are playing in the NFC Championship in Scheelhaase and Seahawks defensive coordinator Aden Durde. It\u2019s unknown if they\u2019re working to schedule a second session with Durde like they have the others. <\/p>\n
The Browns interviewed Scheelhaase, 35, and Minter, 42, on Friday, and Udinski, 30, on Saturday. They represent the young, rising stars in the game who will soon be NFL head coaches, and it depends on if the Browns are willing to take a calculated risk on them a little early. <\/p>\n
If the Browns hire Udinski, who turned 30 on Jan. 12, he\u2019ll be the youngest head coach ever hired in the NFL. He\u2019d beat out Rams coach Sean McVay, who was hired by the Rams in 2017 just two weeks shy of his 31st birthday. <\/p>\n
Schwartz and Monken, both 59, represent the older, more experienced candidates with playcalling duties on their respective sides of the ball. <\/p>\n
The Browns also hope to retain Schwartz as defensive coordinator if he doesn\u2019t get promoted. When they talk to him on Monday, they\u2019ll get a better feel for his comfort level with staying on as coordinator depending on who they pair him with. <\/p>\n
It probably won\u2019t be Browns offensive coordinator Tommy Rees, who\u2019s expected to join new Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski in Atlanta, league sources have told cleveland.com. Rees, the first candidate to interview with the Browns, won\u2019t interview a second time, a source said. <\/p>\n
If the Browns hire Minter as their head coach, Schwartz might not want to stick around considering they run vastly different defenses. Schwartz has also interviewed for the Ravens head coach job and isn\u2019t expected to have a chance to join Stefanski, who is set to retain Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich. <\/p>\n
One possible candidate for the Browns defensive coordinator job is safeties coach Ephraim Banda, who\u2019s interviewed for the coordinator jobs in Dallas and with the Jets. <\/p>\n
The Browns must still interview two minority or female candidates in person for head coach to satisfy the Rooney Rule before they make a hire, and the same goes for their coordinator positions. Their first interview with McDaniel, who\u2019s biracial, was virtual, so it didn\u2019t count for the Rooney Rule. <\/p>\n
Ideally, the Browns would love to name their head coach this week, but they\u2019ll exercise patience to end up with the right leader for their team.<\/p>\n
Question is, will they wait for Scheelhaase if he makes it all the way to Super Bowl? <\/p>\n