The Browns‘ catastrophic roller coaster of a season is finally over and Freddie Kitchens is out as head coach. In the postgame press conference the first year head coach sounded confident he would return next season and told the media, “We’ve got meetings scheduled through next week, and I’m looking forward to going to work tomorrow. They have not given me any indication of anything else. Mr. Jimmy and Dee, I think they want me to do my job, and that’s what I’m gonna do — until they tell me not to, if they tell me not to.”
Unfortunately for Kitchens that wasn’t the case. When the team’s jet landed in Cleveland following an inexcusable 33-23 loss to the 2-14 Bengals, owner Jimmy Haslam and general manager John Dorsey spoke with Kitchens at the team’s practice facility firing him after his first full season as head coach. The former understudy of Bill Parcells finished the season with a 6-10 record.
According to a team source, Jimmy and fellow owner Dee Haslam announced the decision while they were still in a meeting with Kitchens. “We thank Freddie for his hard work and commitment to this organization but did not see the success or opportunities for improvement to move forward with him as our head coach. Our focus is on hiring an exceptional leader for this football team and we will take a comprehensive approach to this process. We are excited about the core players we have to build around and develop and we look forward to bringing in a strong head coach that will put this group of players in the best position to succeed,” the Haslams said.
Since buying the team in 2012, the Haslams have now gone through six head coaches, including interims. In the last 20 years the franchise has had 12 different head coaches and terrible leadership. The last time Cleveland made the playoffs was in 2002.
Kitchens started his career with the Browns as a running back’s coach in 2018 before taking over for fired coach Hue Jackson last season. Kitchens went 5-3 in 2018 and was praised for helping Baker Mayfield break the rookie record for touchdown passes with 27.
However, the success didn’t last. There were too many distractions on and off the field including the infamous altercation between defensive end Myles Garrett and Steelers’ quarterback Mason Rudolph. Going into their second matchup of the season after Garrett was suspended for ripping off Rudolph’s helmet and striking him with it, Kitchens was seen wearing a t-shirt that read “Pittsburgh started it.” It was an immature act and just sums up what Cleveland is known for, dysfunction.
With high expectations going into the season Kitchens was unable to get the offense going and failed to keep Mayfield out of harm’s way. The second year quarterback finished with 21 interceptions and the offense ranked 22nd in efficiency, according to NFL Stats.
Sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter that the Browns have requested permission to meet with Patriots’ offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Ravens’ offensive coordinator Greg Roman. If Cleveland can hire either of those guys it will surely be an upgrade over Kitchens.
30 SPORTS FIGURES WHO DIED IN 2018 – TRIBUTE SLIDESHOW
