Browns' Coaching Search Hampered by Deshaun Watson Contract Burden

Key Quotes

"nfl fans spend an average of 690 minutes a week thinking about football that's over 11 hours you're checking matchups tweaking your fantasy roster reliving big plays arguing calls football lives rent free in your head all week long and when the game's on every decision matters a winning play or the right timeout just 60 seconds can flip the entire outcome but here's the thing off the field we forget to plan we get so caught up in the pre game hype the food the drinks the vibe and forget the most important part of the day how you're getting home you put serious time into your tailgate your outfit your playlist so why not give just one minute to plan a safe ride whether you're hosting heading to a local bar or going to the game make it part of your ritual take a minute make a plan never drive impaired this message was brought to you by diageo mad and the nfl please drink responsibly diageo new york visit takeaminutenow com"

The hosts highlight the intense focus NFL fans have on the sport, dedicating significant time to various aspects of the game. They contrast this deep engagement with a potential oversight in planning for safe transportation after games. This observation underscores the importance of prioritizing safety alongside the enjoyment of football activities.

"welcome into another live edition of pushing the pow brought to you by fanduel sportsbook make every moment more we're coming to you because news dropped monday morning kevin stefanski former head coach of the cleveland browns now out now on his own we we postulated this yesterday with the falcons pod saying that he might be the strongest candidate for an interim head coaching opening that now makes four head coaching openings across the nfl we think it's one of a few names to drop here but 45 and 56 multiple time coach of the year there for the cleveland browns obviously had some of their best success since you know the franchise started again back in the late 90s there in cleveland but the past two seasons 8 and 26 obviously hard to continue with your messaging when you're just not winning football games"

JP Acosta and Mike Renner are reporting on the firing of Kevin Stefanski as the head coach of the Cleveland Browns. They note his previous success, including multiple Coach of the Year awards, but emphasize the recent poor performance with an 8-26 record over the last two seasons. This context sets the stage for discussing the implications of the coaching change.

"yeah it feels like stefanski sort of burnt out towards the end in cleveland i think all the stuff that happened with the watson trade and everything that sort of stemmed from that really became an anchor on stefanski specifically and it just felt like both sides needed to mutually part ways and that's okay sometimes sometimes that stuff happens sometimes you just need to have a change of scenery i do think stefanski's a pretty good coach it's just you know like the browns beat down on you especially if you're not good and especially if you have a contract tied up with a quarterback who actually is not good at football yes"

JP Acosta suggests that Kevin Stefanski may have experienced burnout towards the end of his tenure with the Browns. Acosta believes the circumstances surrounding the Deshaun Watson trade became a significant burden for Stefanski. He posits that a mutual parting of ways was necessary for both Stefanski and the team, indicating that Stefanski is a capable coach but faced difficult conditions.

"and to me the big storyline obviously is that they keep andrew berry as well so they keep gm andrew berry but fire kevin stefanski and say that berry is going to lead the coaching search so obviously they're tied to him long term what that says to me is i think even more confirmation the haslams have never gone out and said it but that to me is confirmation that the deshaun watson trade guaranteed contract all of that was a product of ownership and not andrew berry because if it was andrew berry banging the drum leading the charge saying we got to go out and do this he set your franchise back you know that move has set their franchise back since it's been made five six years i mean truly you cannot win a super bowl with that contract on your books right now"

JP Acosta interprets the decision to retain General Manager Andrew Berry while firing Head Coach Kevin Stefanski as significant. Acosta believes this indicates that the ownership, the Haslams, were the primary drivers behind the Deshaun Watson trade and its associated guaranteed contract, rather than Andrew Berry. He argues that this move has negatively impacted the franchise's long-term prospects.

"yeah i definitely think that this rookie class bought him some more time i mean if you look at what he did with that class outside of um trading for travis hunter you get a whole bunch of picks and you turn it into mason graham who looks like a quality starter you get quinton johnston who looks like a quality starter carson swensen who looks like the defensive rookie of the year already harold fannin jr led all tight ends in receiving yards i believe you have you've those are your first like four or five day two picks and you know like that's building a core that's building a centerpiece for this franchise for years to come and it really is unfortunate for both stefanski and berry that they will have the deshaun watson trade on their resume because it was clear that it was a haslam move it was clear that that's what the ownership wanted so they went out and had to do it and you can tell that neither berry or stefanski actually wanted to make the deal"

JP Acosta credits the Browns' recent rookie class with buying General Manager Andrew Berry more time. Acosta highlights several promising players from this class, such as Mason Graham, Quinton Johnston, and Carson Swensen, suggesting they form a strong core for the franchise's future. He reiterates that the Deshaun Watson trade was an ownership decision, not one made by Berry or Stefanski, and expresses that it's unfortunate this move is on their résumés.

"but until that contract's gone you just you are going to have 8 and 26 over two years you aren't going to win a lot of football games but i do trust in my opinion i think andrew berry is still a very good gm take that move out and just look at draft pick for draft pick trade for trade all the moves he's done how he handles the cap and how he has throughout this i do think he's a good gm it's just that is what's looming over this franchise right now"

JP Acosta asserts that the Browns will struggle to win games until the Deshaun Watson contract is resolved, predicting continued poor performance like an 8-26 record over two years. Despite this, Acosta expresses confidence in Andrew Berry's abilities as a general manager, separate from the Watson situation. He believes Berry has a strong track record in draft picks, trades, and cap management, but acknowledges the Watson contract remains a significant issue for the franchise.