Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski told reporters on Tuesday that he's not concerned with rumors he's going to be fired amid the team's struggles this season.
And he couldn't be more wrong to be unconcerned.
"I think probably because I grew up listening to [Philadelphia radio], I'm smart enough to not worry about outside noise," Stefanski said, per Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN, "I get that's part of this gig. That's life in the big city. My sole focus is getting this team ready to get a win on Thursday night. That's it."
The Browns are in the midst of a lost season, having gone 2-8, and ranking in the bottom third of the league in both scoring offense and defense. They traded away veteran wideout Amari Cooper and featured one of the worst quarterbacks in the NFL in Deshaun Watson for the vast majority of the season.
But there's plenty of blame to go around on this lost season, not just Stefanski. Owner Jimmy Haslam was the one who pushed for the Watson trade, and the roster was built not by Stefanski, but by general manager Andrew Berry. On top of that, star running back Nick Chubb has struggled to find his form after last season's catastrophic knee injury.
Giving Stefanski a full season to figure out the team's issues and make changes with a better roster next year would be the smart decision for Cleveland. With two playoff berths in five seasons, and a history of building offenses much more capable than this year's unit even with flawed rosters (the Browns have consistently had a middle-of-the-pack offense under Stefanski prior to this season).
That said, when was the last time the Browns did the smart thing? Pulling the lever and firing both Stefanski and Berry would allow Haslam to deflect blame once more from his decision to deal for Watson, and it certainly seems like the wolves are circling in Cleveland now. The fans want a change, and when you reach that point, it's probably time to start packing up boxes. Barring a late-season surge in Cleveland, Stefanski may not be listening to the calls for his job, but he probably should listen a little more closely.
