As expected, Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz is moving on.
NFL Network reports that Schwartz is resigning.
But here’s the kicker. Per the report, he’s exiting with the expectation that he won’t coach in 2026.
The outcome speaks to the behind-the-scenes tug-of-war in which the Browns and Schwartz were engaged. The Browns claimed they wanted him to stay. Because Schwartz was under contract through 2026, he couldn’t simply leave and take a job elsewhere. (Most recently, we’d heard that he was firmly in play to join the Raiders, as the new defensive coordinator.)
Our guess is that the Browns will pay most if not all of his salary for 2026. Why else would Schwartz relinquish his ability to work?
The Browns seemed to be slow-playing the situation, as the various other teams that were looking for defensive coordinators made hires. Soon, there would have been no seats left.
The specific language of the agreement (and it would be foolish for the Browns and Schwartz not to have one) will be critical. Could he work for a team in a non-coaching capacity? Could he, for example, serve as an offensive consultant, helping a team hone its attack and spot its tendencies by having Schwartz demonstrate to the offensive coaches any and all vulnerabilities?
Beyond the question of whether the written terms of separation include any legal loopholes, the broader point is whether the Browns would spend time and effort policing whether Schwartz is unofficially assisting one or more teams during the 2026 season.
Regardless, Schwartz won’t be the Browns’ defensive coordinator. And he apparently won’t be anyone else’s, either, until 2027 at the earliest.
