Kevin Stefanski Is Special, And The NFL World Found Out On Thursday
Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski was named NFL Coach of the Year for the second time in his young career on Thursday, and it's about time the world starts to notice this great man.
Did I think Stefanski would win coach of the year? No, I thought Houston Texans rookie head coach DeMeco Ryans would bring in that honor.
Ryans won the AFC South in his first season with a rookie quarterback, CJ Stroud, after the team had three wins the previous year.
Ryans beat Stefanski head-to-head in the playoffs ,but Stefanski did beat Ryans in the regular season, but Ryans didn't have Stroud in that game. Still, it doesn't matter because the coach of the year is a regular-season award and must be voted on before the first playoff game.
The more I thought about it, the more I felt like Stefanski winning the award was the correct answer.
If you are a head coach and lose your starting quarterback, running back, and three offensive linemen, start five different quarterbacks. Four picked up wins while playing in the most challenging division in football, where three teams made the playoffs, and another team still finished above .500; then winning coach of the year is exemplary.
I understand Ryans took a horrible football team to the playoffs in his first season with a rookie quarterback, but he did it in one of the worst divisions in football. I know Stroud was only a rookie, but Stroud played like one of the five best quarterbacks in the league for most of the season.
Stefanski beat the San Francisco 49ers with PJ Walker for crying out loud. Stefanski was the right choice for this award.
Stefanski and Ryans tied with 165 points, but Stefanski had 21 first-place votes, and Ryan only had 20, which is why Stefanski won the award.
Stefanski is a bright young mind who has won this award twice in his first four seasons. He did win his first one in 2020 while a rookie in the league, and now he gets to add another one to his legacy.
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