Jimmy Haslam: Kevin Stefanski should’ve won more games this year; ‘absolutely’ wants to retain defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz
BEREA, Ohio — Browns owner Jimmy Haslam said Monday that Kevin Stefanski should’ve won more games this year, and that team “absolutely” wants to retain defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz.
He also noted that the next 120 days are the most important for the organization, and the thorough head coaching search will begin this afternoon.
Here are some quick hits from his 10-minute interview:
He noted how tough it was to fire Stefanski
“This was as difficult as any we’ve ever had to make because of the quality of the person involved,” he said. “Organized, worked hard, navigated our ship for six years through the inevitable ups and downs that we face in the NFL. Outstanding father and husband. And I think even you all who are around a lot probably under appreciate how much time we all spend together. There’s nothing more fun than winning an NFL game like we did the last two weeks, beating our archrival Steelers two weeks ago and then winning yesterday on the last play of the game and seeing the joy in the locker room.
“And there’s nothing more distasteful than losing an NFL game. And it’s finite. You either win or you lose. Kevin did a lot of good things here over his time period with us. It was an extremely difficult decision we made. I, shouldn’t say I have no doubt, I would be highly optimistic Kevin will be a head coach again in the league.”
He promised a better product
“First of all, ownership takes full responsibility for where we are,” he said. “To win eight games in two years is horrible. It’s totally unacceptable, OK, it’s not going to continue. OK? And I want the fans to know we are as frustrated as you are, and we hear a lot from our fans, which we actually appreciate. We have great fans. They’re extremely passionate and they deserve better than what they’ve got in the last two years. OK?
“I don’t need to say anything else. We’re going to give you a better product. Our sole goal here is to be a consistent winner, not make the playoffs in ’20 and then make it again in ’23, not win eight games in two years. That’s not what we’re trying to do. That’s not acceptable. Our fans deserve better.”
Andrew Berry will lead the coaching search
“We’ll start the head coach search literally this afternoon,” Haslam said. “Andrew Berry will lead that effort. Key members of his organization as well as ownership will be involved in the process. You all have been through these processes before and I think we have a good plan laid out.”
He defended keeping Berry
“I think Andrew over the last year has done a very good job,” he said. “And I want to go through that because I think it’s important to talk about the moves he made to strengthen our team. OK? I think it began with what I would call a very efficient free agency. We added one player and that player made a substantial difference in our football team and that was Maliek Collins. Maliek is not only a really good player, he’s a really good person who was a leader on our defense, a leader in the defensive line room.
“Andrew negotiated a trade a week or two before the draft started, in which we added three draft picks, two last year, a second and a fourth or a fifth, and a first this year. OK? Then I think we had one of the better drafts that we’ve ever had. I think we added four really good football players who were either first-team all-rookie or second-team all-rookie. And I think Carson (Schwesinger) has a really good chance to be the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year. I think what’s important to understand about our rookies, though, and you all see them, you all know them, they’re not only really good players, they’re really good people. And they will be the cornerstone with which we’ll build and grow and develop this winning team.”
He cited the acquisitions of kicker Andre Szmyt and cornerback Tyson Campbell.
He said the next four months are pivotal
“The next 120 days are crucial for the organization,” he said. “We’ve got to find the right head coach. We’ve got to be efficient again in free agency. We have 10 draft picks, including two number ones. We have four picks in the top three rounds. And we’ve got to get really good players who are really good people again. We’ve got to be opportunistic if trade opportunities come along. We are solely focused on having a great 120 days so we can start winning games around here.”
He touted defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz
“We haven’t looked at that yet (him as a candidate),” he said. “I would say this, we think a lot of Jim Schwartz.”
Do they hope to retain him?
“Absolutely,” he said. “Great coach.”
He noted that Stefanski didn’t win enough games with this roster
“I don’t think there was one breaking point,” he said. “I think you’ve got to look at the body of work and sometimes it’s just time for a change and we felt like it was time for a change.”
Was the roster good enough to win more games?
“It’s easy for me to say yes,” he said. “So yeah, I think it was good enough to win more games.”
Is Shedeur Sanders his QB of the future?
“I’m not going to get into specifics,” he said. “We have a lot of work to do on the roster, particularly on the offensive side of the roster.”
What is he looking for in the next coach?
“The leadership required of a head coach in the NFL, it’s one of the tougher leadership jobs I’ve ever seen,” he said. “So they have to be good leaders. I think they have to be smart in terms of IQ in football acumen. And obviously they’re going to bring expertise on one side of the ball. We do not have bias on whether they should be from the offense or defense.”
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