The Cleveland Browns decided to ‘kill two birds with one stone’ Monday afternoon, firing both their head coach Hue Jackson and offensive coordinator Todd Haley.
Jackson was hired in the offseason of 2016 and went 3-36-1 during his two-plus years with the organization. After a winless 2017 season, the Browns decided to stick by their head coach and provided Jackson with a newly revamped roster. Players such as Jarvis Landry, Baker Mayfield, Carlos Hyde, and Denzel Ward were added this offseason among others.
A couple of minutes after the Jackson news was announced, news broke that Haley had been fired from his position as well, per Ian Rappaport.
The Ball Out had reported Sunday in the firing of Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue, that multiple sources mentioned a firing of Jackson and/or Haley was very likely to happen in the near future.
Cleveland started the 2018 season very well, miscapitalizing on a few opportunities to win games, but they did tie the Pittsburgh Steelers week one and lost by three points to the New Orleans Saints in week two. The Browns finally got their first franchise win in nearly two years in a Thursday night game versus the New York Jets week three. The victory gave people around the league a sense that this team was different, and their young quarterback Baker Mayfield was special.
However, after three straight losses where the team has looked unprepared and unmotivated, the Browns decided to pull the plug on Jackson.
Haley’s news came as a slight surprise because many assumed he would fill the interim head coaching position. The former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator was brought in this off-season to call plays, but Jackson became conflicted with the direction the Browns offense was headed. Jackson wanted to have input in Haley’s playcalling, leading to a dysfunction that General Manager John Dorsey did not want to expose to Mayfield.
With both coaches gone, defensive coordinator Greg Williams will take over as the interim head coach, per Adam Schefter. Assistant coach Freddie Kitchens will now be the offensive coordinator, per Aditi Kinkhabwala.
Williams has only been a head coach once with the Buffalo Bills from 2001-2003. He has served as a defensive coordinator for 21 years in the league. Kitchens has been an assistant in the NFL for 12 years and this will be his first time serving as an offensive coordinator.
