During the season, quarterback Baker Mayfield pointed to “internal things” that made things tougher for the Browns in 2021 — one of which was head coach Kevin Stefanski’s play-calling.
Now that Deshaun Watson is Cleveland’s new QB1, Stefanski is going to remain the team’s offensive play-caller. The Browns finished the 2021 season 18th in total yards and 20th in points after being 16th and 14th in the respective categories in their playoff season of 2020. As the club moves on to a new quarterback, General Manager Andrew Berry said this week that he’s confident Stefanski can put together an offense that will play to Watson’s attributes.
“I think it’s just Kevin’s body of work,” Berry said, via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. “He’s very smart and he’s creative. He’s adaptable. Over the last two years, he’s done a really nice job of showing flexibility in really challenging situations, whether it’s injuries, COVID-related, you name it. He also has a really clear vision that we think aligns with Deshaun’s strengths as a player. We feel really good about him crafting and designing the offense that will maximize our starting quarterback’s strengths.”
The Browns have been a run-heavy offense in their first two years under Stefanski, finishing third in the category in 2020 and fourth in 2021. Cleveland’s also used heavy tight-end sets over the last two seasons, but that may change with Watson behind center. When Watson last played in 2020, he led the league with 4,823 yards passing.
“It’s fair to say that the offense will look a little bit differently than what we’ve seen the last two years because we do have a quarterback with a pretty unique skillset,” Berry said. “How that shakes out in personnel groupings or things like that, ultimately we want to try and run the offense for our best players.
“Last year, we felt we had a strong tight end room, a strong running back room. We dealt with different injuries and other things in the receivers room, so that’s how the offense morphed a bit. That can be different each year.”
The Browns have traded for receiver Amari Cooper and reportedly have interest in bringing back Jarvis Landry. They’ve also used the franchise tag on tight end David Njoku.
While Roger Goodell said this week Watson will not go on the Commissioner’s Exempt List, he is still expected to draw a suspension under the Personal Conduct Policy. Watson still faces 22 civil lawsuits alleging sexual assault and inappropriate conduct during massage sessions.
