The Cleveland Browns head coaching search has officially begun. A few days after letting go of HC Kevin Stefanski, the Browns list of candidates for their open head coach position is off to an interesting
start:
- Baltimore Ravens OC Todd Monken
- Seattle Seahawks DC Aden Durde
- Cincinnati Bengals OC Dan Pitcher
- Cleveland Browns OC Tommy Rees and DC Jim Schwartz
Former Ravens HC John Harbaugh makes sense
as an option, but he is reportedly going to wait a week before starting his interview process.While the Browns have requested interviews with the three outside candidates, partially due to NFL rules, none have been set up yet. On Thursday, the team announced that they were interviewing Rees:
A half hour later on Thursday came the announcement that Schwartz was also being interviewed:
Rees does not have any head coaching experience, but has interviewed for a number of top college jobs recently. Prior to coming to Cleveland two years ago, Rees’ had a variety of coaching jobs following the end of his playing career:
- A year at Northwestern
- A year with the San Diego Chargers
- 6 years at Notre Dame, first as their QB coach, then as offensive coordinator
- A year with the Alabama Crimson Tide as Nick Saban’s OC
The 59-year-old Schwartz was the head coach for the Detroit Lions for five seasons from 2009 to 2013, finishing with a record of 29-51, including one playoff appearance.
Rees and Schwartz are under contract with the Browns for next season and could be retained in their current roles if they do not get the head coaching position.
