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Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski yells during the first half of an NFL wild-card playoff football game against the Houston Texans Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
Cleveland Browns interviewing former Eagles player Brian Johnson.
The Cleveland Browns are interviewing Brian Johnson, the former offensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles, for the same position.
With a former offensive coordinator from the Philadelphia Eagles, the Cleveland Browns have found success on the defensive end of the ball, and it seems coach Kevin Stefanski is thinking of returning there with the team’s offensive coordinator opening.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Mary Kay Cabot reports that the Browns will interview Brian Johnson on Thursday in order to choose his offensive coordinator. Earlier in this cycle, Johnson had been interviewed for the coaching position with the Tennessee Titans; however, the position went to Brian Callahan, the former offensive coordinator of the Cincinnati Bengals. This is Johnson’s first interview f
The Browns would be an intriguing destination because defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, a former Eagle, performed admirably in the same capacity in 2023 and coach Kevin Stefanski is expected to win his second Coach of the Year Award shortly. With quarterback Deshaun Watson missing 11 games due to injury, Cleveland really exceeded expectations, and their offensive line helped former Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco return to form.
In the end, though, the Browns’ investment in Watson was astounding considering that they received three first-round picks, a third-round pick, and a fourth-round pick in exchange for the quarterback when they acquired him from the Houston Texans in March of 2022. They completed the transaction by extending an unconditional contract offer to him worth a total of $230 million over five years.
After Watson’s first two years in Cleveland, the trade appears to have been a complete and utter bust. Watson has only appeared in 12 games during the first two years of his contract due to an 11-game suspension for breaking the NFL’s personal conduct policy in 2022 and season-ending shoulder surgery three quarters of the way through 2023. Furthermore, since joining the Browns, Watson has thrown for 14 touchdowns to nine interceptions, demonstrating that the superstar-caliber quarterback who once played for the Texans has not yet returned to prominence. The final season Watson appeared like a franchise quarterback was 2020.