The writing was on the wall for Kevin Stefanski for practically the entirety of the 2025 Cleveland Browns season. The sixth-year head coach needed to churn out wins following a 3-14 season in order to stay in the good graces of general manager Andrew Berry and owner Jimmy Haslam. Stefanski was only able to win five games, although he had to deal with a musical chairs situation at quarterback.
That excuse wasn’t enough to save his job, though. Stefanski was fired and has already been hired as the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. Meanwhile, the Browns haven’t picked a replacement for him yet, and the team has no idea who their starting quarterback will be heading into 2026. Shedeur Sanders, despite being named to the Pro Bowl, had a thoroughly unconvincing rookie season. Deshaun Watson is still recovering from a torn Achilles, and new additions at QB are likely to come in the offseason.
Many fans believe Sanders showed enough potential in his half-season of starts. They also believe Stefanski had it out for the quarterback, claiming that the head coach was sabotaging Sanders. That seems very far-fetched, especially considering Stefanski was coaching for his job.
Kevin Stefanski has nothing but praise for Michael Penix Jr.
But Stefanski’s initial comments on his new starting quarterback in Atlanta, Michael Penix Jr., certainly raises eyebrows and lends credence to the conspiracy theory.
I think you see a player on tape that can get through progressions, can layer the ball, can push the ball to all areas of the field. Obviously, he was very productive in college, has had some really, really, really good moments her in the pros. So I just see a young player that will continue to develop and continue to get there.
No one expected Stefanski to say anything negative about Penix, especially since he hasn’t worked closely with him yet. But it’s fair to say that Stefanski never spoke glowingly about Sanders like he already has about Penix. Perhaps the fresh start comes with a new outlook on the quarterback position as a whole for the offensive-minded head coach.
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