There was a time not too long ago when Cleveland Browns fans weren’t sure if Kevin Stefanski was the right head coach for the team.
In three previous seasons with the team, he led them to a playoff appearance and playoff win in 2020, but he had gone a combined 15-19 in 2021 and 2022.
This season, however, the Browns have been winning consistently despite a rash of major injuries to key players.
Star pass rusher Myles Garrett said on Fox Sports 1’s “Speak” that Stefanski’s calmness and willingness to let players be themselves have been the keys to him keeping things together.
“He hasn’t flinched one second,” Garrett said.
.@Flash_Garrett talks about the greatness of HC Kevin Stefanski
“He hasn’t flinched one second.” pic.twitter.com/bdGWs2a5cT
— Speak (@SpeakOnFS1) January 4, 2024
The Browns’ bad luck started in Week 2 when running back Nick Chubb, arguably the best pure rusher in the NFL, went down with a severe knee injury that ended his season.
Not too long later, quarterback Deshaun Watson dealt with a shoulder injury that also prematurely ended his season.
Most teams would find themselves floundering without their star running back and starting quarterback, but instead, Cleveland has been admirably defiant.
They hold an 11-5 record going into the final week of the regular season, and they have clinched the fifth seed in the AFC, which will set up a wild-card playoff game against the first-place team in the AFC South.
Such a contest should be winnable for the Browns, as they have beaten the Indianapolis Colts, Houston Texans, and Jacksonville Jaguars, the three candidates for first place in the AFC South, this season.
The scene is set for them to win only their second postseason game since the 1994 season.
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