After leading Cleveland to his first playoff game in 25 years, Kevin Stefanski’s first season as Browns head coach culminated in winning the award for AP NFL Coach of the Year in 2020, as announced during NFL Honors Saturday night.
With 25 votes, Stefanski takes half of the ballots. Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott had seven points and Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores had six.
In a year in which all NFL teams suffered adversity due to COVID-19 – which resulted in a limited off-season and no preseason matches – Stefanski overcame a serious situation for any novice coach and managed to get a much-needed sense of continuity for a Browns team that would be well prepared for the unfavorable road ahead.
Stefanski’s Browns had their first 11-win season since 1994, the last time the Browns had won a playoff game.
As the main thought of Cleveland’s offense, Stefanski put forward a system that played its strengths and created an ideal situation for Baker Mayfield, who showed unmistakable growth in a key season for the third-year. quarter. Based on backs Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt and a first-class collection of offensive lineouts, the Browns found their identity as a physical, ground-and-pound soccer team that could not only control a game on its own merits, but also great play opportunities and can raise points if needed. Browns of 2020 ranks third in the NFL in running yards (148.4 yards per game), scores the second most points in franchise history (408) and has the league’s third best red zone offense with deliveries at 73 , 6% of their trips.
The Browns did it all while enduring a storm of several major injuries, including Odell Beckham’s ACL tear that ended the season, Chubb’s absence from four games and a multitude of hits in the offensive line and secondary , which constantly forced the team to recalibrate and adjust. The Browns never faltered under Stefanski, yielding two streaks with four games and winning every game that came after each of their five defeats, including a must-win game in Week 17 to clinch a playoff spot.
The Browns scored a No. 6 series in the playoffs, heading off to face their AFC North rivals the Pittsburgh Steelers, and may have faced the most unfavorable situation for a team – the absence of Stefanski. The Browns coach was forced to stay home for the Browns’ first playoff game in 18 years after testing positive for COVID-19, but a well-groomed Cleveland team defeated the No. 3-seeded Steelers 48-37. Super Wild Card weekend.
Stefanski returned to the sidelines in the Divisional Round, where the Browns fell short against the soon-to-be AFC champion, Kansas City Chiefs. However, the Browns did not go out without a fight and left the city of Cleveland with a positive outlook on his future, which could cause the erasure of his tormented past.
Stefanski’s rapid turnaround in Cleveland came after a turbulent year in which the Browns experienced their second coaching change in as many seasons. Stefanski, 38, is just the second Browns coach to win the Coach of the Year award ever since its launch in 1957. He joined Forrest Gregg, who won the title after the 1976 season.