Browns fire head coach Kevin Stefanski after 6 seasons

Berea, Ohio — The cleveland browns Head coach Kevin Stefanski has been fired after six seasons, the team announced Monday.

The Browns finished the 2025 season with a 5–12 record and second consecutive in the AFC North, their fourth losing season under Stefanski.

“We have tremendous gratitude for Kevin’s leadership of the Cleveland Browns over the past six seasons,” Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam said in a statement Monday. “He is a good football coach and an even better person. We appreciate his hard work and dedication to our organization but our results over the past two seasons have not been satisfactory, and we believe a change in the head coaching position is necessary.”

The Browns also announced that Andrew Berry, who arrived with Stefanski in Cleveland in 2020, will remain in his position as general manager.

Haslams said, “Our entire focus is on building a team that brings our fans the success they have long deserved, and we will continue to work toward that goal and invest all the resources necessary to build a winning football program.” “Andrew will immediately begin our thorough process to find an outstanding new head coach and leader of our football team. We have an exciting young core to build around, and Andrew and his team intend to add talent to this core and build a roster that can achieve lasting success.”

Jimmy Haslam told reporters later on Monday that there was no particular “breaking point” when he decided to fire Stefanski, instead saying that the organization “felt like it was time for a change.” He said he has no “prejudice” about whether the Browns’ next head coach will have an offensive or defensive background.

“Leadership is required from a head coach in the NFL – it’s one of the toughest leadership jobs I’ve ever seen, so he has to be a good leader,” Haslam said. “I think they’re going to have to be smart in terms of IQ, EQ and football skills, and obviously they’re going to bring expertise on one side of the ball. We don’t have any preconceived notions on whether they should be on offense or defense.”

The decision to part ways with Stefanski comes less than two seasons after he won his second NFL Coach of the Year award and received a contract extension.

He is expected to be a candidate for several other NFL head coach positions. Sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Monday that Stefanski is currently expected to speak atlanta falcons, New York Giants And tennessee titans,

From 2020 to 2023, Stefanski led the Browns to two playoff appearances and had the highest winning percentage (.552) for the team over a four-year period since 1986–89. But Cleveland has struggled the last two seasons with a combined record of 8-26. This season was the Browns’ fourth losing season under Stefanski.

“After six seasons as head coach of the Cleveland Browns, I am leaving with a sense of immense gratitude,” Stefanski said in a statement released by the team. “When I arrived in January of 2020, this organization, this community and Browns fans embraced me and my family with open arms. I cannot properly express in words how well we have been treated. A sincere ‘Thank You’ to everyone I have had the privilege of working with these six seasons. I especially want to thank our coaching staff and the players who did everything that was ever asked of them. They battled through injury and adversity, While always putting the team first, I wish you all nothing but success.”

Stefanski compiled a 45–56 regular season record and guided Cleveland to the playoffs in 2020 and 2023. He won his first Coach of the Year award in 2020 after a season in which the Browns defeated pittsburgh steelers in the wild-card round of the playoffs, the franchise’s first postseason win since 1994. Stefanski was not on the sidelines for the game and was unable to coach after testing positive for COVID-19. He won his second Coach of the Year award for helping Cleveland return to the playoffs in 2023 despite numerous injuries that forced the team to start five different quarterbacks.

The Browns’ next head coach will be the franchise’s 11th head coach since 1999. Stefanski’s dismissal is the second high-profile departure from the organization in the past few months. Paul DePodesta, who served as the team’s chief strategy officer for nearly a decade, left the organization in November to become president of baseball operations for the Colorado Rockies.

“This was a difficult decision and today is a difficult day for our organization because of Kevin’s impact and the deep, meaningful relationships he has built in our building,” Berry said in a statement. “We have great respect for Kevin, who has led our organization through both unique and challenging circumstances over his six seasons. During that time, he has been more than a coach, but also a partner, friend and steadying force for our team. He has always led authentically and cared deeply for the Browns players, coaches and staff while also investing every ounce of energy into making the team better. Most recently, Kevin’s steady hand has helped us guide our strategic pivot and Coming through the most turbulent part of the transitional period, working with a young team and an incomplete roster, he laid the foundation for professionalism as well as a learning environment for a new wave of Browns players.

“I am disappointed that we could not accomplish more together and the collective underperformance of our group is my responsibility. We will remain steadfast in our commitment to our fans to build the Browns into an organization that can sustain success. Now, our focus is on finding the person who will lead and develop a young offense with a heavy investment over the next six months that will match and build on the performance of a young defense that is already playing at an elite level.”

Cleveland’s issues in recent seasons were highlighted by ineptitude on offense, which was supposed to be Stefanski’s calling card as a playcaller. The Browns scored fewer than 20 points in 11 games this season, tied for the most in the league. When Cleveland returned from its Week 9 bye, Stefanski announced that he was turning over playcalling duties to offensive coordinator Tommy Rees. This is the second consecutive year that Stefanski has relinquished the responsibility.

The Browns used three different starting quarterbacks in 2025 – Joe Flacco and beginners dillon gabriel And shadure sandersFlacco, who helped lead Cleveland to the playoffs in the 2023 season deshaun watson He was sidelined with a shoulder injury at the end of the season, started the first four games but after a 1-3 start he was moved off the bench and then traded. cincinnati bengals On 7th October.

Third-round pick Gabriel started six consecutive games until suffering an injury Baltimore Ravens In Week 11, that paved the way for Sanders, a fifth-round pick, to make his first start. Sanders started the final seven games of the season.

Watson, whom the Browns selected three times in the first round houston texans and given a fully guaranteed deal worth $230 million in March 2022, did not play in 2025 after tearing his right Achilles tendon in Week 7 of last season. He underwent a second surgery in January after re-injuring his Achilles and spent the first 13 weeks of the season on the physically unable to perform list. The Browns designated Watson to return to practice on December 3, but decided not to activate him to the 53-man roster at the conclusion of the 21-day practice window.

League sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter in December that the Browns plan to add the 30-year-old Watson to the roster in 2026. Sources told Schefter that Watson’s practice window has been opened so he won’t be away from football until next spring.

Watson has played in only 19 games since debuting with the Browns in 2022 due to suspensions and injuries. He has a 33.1 total QBR since joining Cleveland, a figure that would rank last in the league (tied with tennessee titans rookie quarterback cam ward) among qualifying quarterbacks this season. Watson has one more year left on his contract and will have an $80.7 million cap hit in 2026, the largest in the NFL.