With two weeks remaining in the 2025 NFL season, the Cleveland Browns are floundering to the finish line with the 2026 NFL draft and Myles Garrett’s pursuit of the single-season sack record the only glimmers of hope on the horizon. The Browns could play spoiler versus the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 17, but that would only open the door for the Baltimore Ravens; no one wants that either.
Cleveland fans and rumors seem to be mostly in agreement on the following:
- HC Kevin Stefanski is likely to be gone
- GM Andrew Berry is likely to be retained
- The Browns offense lacks a ton of talent
- Cleveland’s salary cap needs some work
Cleaning house of both Berry and Stefanski
could delay the Browns rebuild, especially after a solid 2025 NFL draft class, but should that group be enough to spare the GM’s job? A very good group of rookies, including two that continue to ascend, but the class also lacks any players from the premium, more difficult positions to fill: QB, LT, DE, WR, and CB.
If Berry is unable to find good-to-great players at those positions, nothing else really matters. On top of that, if Stefanski is being judged by wins and losses, why isn’t Berry held to the same standard? Especially when everyone agrees that the Cleveland offense (how teams win in the NFL now due to all the rule changes) has one of the worst rosters in the NFL.
That doesn’t mean Stefanski should be off the hook for the overall team’s struggles. Retaining DC Joe Woods and ST coordinator Bubba Ventrone for multiple years when their units were/are problematic epitomizes Stefanski’s loyalty and, perhaps, stubbornness. There are many play calls, playing on the safe side of things too often, and overall management decisions that could lead to his dismissal.
However, the same could be said for Berry as well, including numerous “smartest guys in the room” decisions.
When the Browns went searching for a new head coach and general manager, in that order, alignment was considered vital. For the majority of their tenure together, Berry and Stefanski have often sounded like mirrors of each other. Now, coming up on the end of their six years together, that alignment should lead to the same decision about their future.
Daryl Ruiter shared his thoughts that Stefanski and Berry being a package deal:
Earlier this offseason, we shared that there was a feeling around the NFL and the team that 2025 was “Year 1” for Cleveland’s power duo. That the restart would be entrusted to Berry and Stefanski. At this point, besides a good draft of players at positions of lesser importance, it seems illogical to treat the head coach and general manager any differently than the other.
If you think only one of Berry or Stefanski should be fired, why? How could an aligned pair see such different outcomes after this season?
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