The Cleveland Browns have their head coach of the future in Kevin Stefanski as he has his team in the playoffs again after a win against the New York Jets.
Not only is he now the favorite to win NFL Coach of the Year for the second time in four years, but he also matched multiple franchise milestones this season. With the Browns sitting at 11-5, they have at minimum clinched the fifth seed in the AFC as they still have a slim shot at the AFC North title.
It has been a while since a head coach has lasted three seasons in Cleveland, let alone four. While he may have come into the season with a question mark next to his name, there is no doubt about it. Stefanski is here to stay well beyond 2023.
Here is every milestone Stefanski hit Thursday night in Cleveland’s playoff-clinching win over the Jets.
Only two coaches in franchise history have had two years of 11+ wins.
One of them is Paul Brown. The other is now Kevin Stefanski. And guess what? He has a chance to make it 12 against the Cincinnati Bengals next week.
Stefanski the first coach since who with multiple playoff berths?!
For the first time since Marty Schottenheimer, the Browns have a head coach who has clinched multiple playoff berths during their tenure in Cleveland. And Stefanski has only been here for four years.
Can Stefanski break the franchise record for longest win streak?
The longest win streak in franchise history is four wins in a row. Stefanski has done it three times. With a win against the Bengals this week, however, the current head coach has a chance to re-write that record.
Stefanski passes Bill Belichick in franchise wins
With 37 career regular season wins as the head coach of the Browns, Kevin Stefanski has passed future Hall of Famer Bill Belichick in Cleveland’s record books. It took Belichick five years to hit that mark while it has only taken Stefanski four.
He is now just 11 wins from passing both Marty Schottenheimer and Sam Rutigliano to get himself into third place all-time.
