Browns offensive coordinator search | Meet the 4 candidates who have already interviewed

One week ago, the Browns opened the offseason after a 3-14 season by firing offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey and offensive line coach Andy Dickerson. A week later, Dickerson’s replacement has been found in former Rice University head coach Mike Bloomgren.

The offensive coordinator job remains unfilled to this point. That’s not to say progress hasn’t been made to find Dorsey’s replacement in the days since it opened.

The Browns, specifically head coach Kevin Stefanski, have conducted four interviews in the last week for the job. Those interviewed were Browns tight end coach/pass game specialist Tommy Rees, Miami Dolphins quarterbacks coach Darrell Bevell, Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks coach Charles London and Atlanta Falcons tight ends coach Kevin Koger.

There are likely to be a couple of more interviews done before the process is completed, depending on the availability of candidates because their teams still in the playoffs. For now, however, those four are the only interviews completed.

Here are the bio breakdowns of each of the four interviewees, listed alphabetically:

Darrell Bevell, Miami Dolphins quarterbacks coach/pass game coordinator

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) quarterback Tyler Huntley (18) and quarterbacks and pass game coordinator Darrell Bevell, look on from the bench in the second half during an NFL game at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington on Sunday, September 22, 2024.

Age: 55

NFL playing experience: None

NFL coaching experience: 2000-02, Green Bay Packers assistant quarterbacks coach; 2003-05, Packers quarterbacks coach; 2006-10, Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator; 2011-17, Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator; 2019-20, Detroit Lions offensive coordinator; 2020, Lions interim head coach; 2021, Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator; 2021, Jaguars, interim head coach; 2022-present, Miami Dolphins, quarterbacks coach/passing game coordinator

Other notable coaching experience: 1996, Westmar University passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach; 1997, Iowa State graduate assistant; 1998-99, Connecticut wide receivers coach

Browns organization connection(s): Bevell worked with both Stefanski and wide receivers coach Chad O’Shea with the Vikings. Stefanski was assistant to the head coach (2006-08) and assistant quarterbacks coach (2009-10), while O’Shea was an offensive assistant (2006) and wide receivers coach (2007-08).

What to know: You can guess there is some crossover between Bevell and Stefanski in terms of philosophy since they were together in the same Vikings organization. Bevell’s offenses regularly have finished in the top 10 in rushing percentage, with such running backs as Adrian Peterson in Minnesota and Marshawn Lynch in Seattle. However, he’s worked with his share of elite quarterbacks: Brett Favre with both the Packers and Vikings; Aaron Rodgers in his rookie season with Green Bay; Russell Wilson for the quarterback’s first six seasons with the Seahawks; Matthew Stafford in Detroit; rookie Trevor Lawrence in Jacksonville; and, now, Tua Tagovailoa in Miami. Five times in Minnesota or Seattle, Bevell coordinated offenses that finished top 10 in scoring.

Kevin Koger, Atlanta Falcons tight ends coach

Age: 35

NFL playing experience: None

NFL coaching experience: 2019-20, Packers offensive quality control coach; 2021-23, Los Angeles Chargers tight ends coach; 2024-present, Atlanta Falcons tight ends coach

Other notable coaching experience: 2013-14, Michigan graduate assistant; 2015, Tennessee graduate assistant; 2016-18, Eastern Kentucky wide receivers coach/special teams coordinator

Browns organization connection(s): No direct connections

What to know: Koger is a Toledo native who played at the University of Michigan. His NFL experience is still relatively small compared to a couple of the other candidates, with just four seasons as a position coach. However, in his short time, Koger has had a chance to work with some successful tight ends. He helped Chargers tight end Gerald Everett to his best season to date in 2022, while working last season with the Falcons’ Kyle Pitts. Koger’s lineage in the league, though, has connected him to some of the NFL’s most successful offensive schemes. That starts with Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, a direct connection to his former boss with Washington in 2010-13, Mike Shanahan, whom, along with Gary Kubiak, form the schematic tree that Stefanski’s philosophy has come about. The offensive coordinator under whom Koger worked in Los Angeles, Joe Lombardi, worked with Sean Payton for years with the New Orleans Saints. Koger worked under offensive coordinator Zac Robinson, a Sean McVey disciple, in Atlanta.

Charles London, Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks coach

Age: 49

NFL playing experience: None

NFL coaching experience: 2007-08, Chicago Bears offensive quality control coach; 2010, Philadelphia Eagles scout; 2011, Tennessee Titans offensive assistant; 2014-17, Houston Texans running backs coach; 2018-20, Chicago Bears running backs coach; 2021-22, Atlanta Falcons quarterbacks coach; 2023, Titans quarterbacks coach; 2024-present, Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks coach

Other notable coaching experience: 2004-05, Duke graduate assistant; 2006, Duke running backs coach; 2012-13, Penn State running backs coach

Browns organization connection(s): London was quarterbacks coach in Tennessee in 2023 for Mike Vrabel, who spent this past season as a coaching and personnel consultant for the Browns.

What to know: London’s never coordinated an offense, either in college or the NFL. However, his background meshes with the kind of offense Stefanski prefers — run-based with play-action tendencies. The variety of schemes through London’s background provides an interest potential for blending ideas, from working under Bill O’Brien in Houston to Matt Nagy — thus an extension of Andy Reid’s coaching tree — in Chicago before joining Arthur Smith’s staffs in Atlanta. Even a year in Seattle with Ryan Grubb, who had been exclusively a college coach previously, as offensive coordinator was something different. London’s time as a quarterbacks coach has allowed him an chance to work with both Matt Ryan and Geno Smith, the latter of whom could be a potential target for the Browns this offseason. Smith was fourth in the league in passing yards this season.

Tommy Rees, Cleveland Browns tight ends coach/pass game specialist

Age: 32

NFL playing experience: None

NFL coaching experience: 2016, San Diego Chargers offensive assistant; 2024-present, Cleveland Browns tight ends coach/pass game specialist

Other notable coaching experience: 2015, Northwestern graduate assistant; 2017-19, Notre Dame quarterbacks coach; 2020-22, Notre Dame offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach; 2023, Alabama offensive coordinator

Browns organization connection(s): Rees coached Browns tight ends last season

What to know: Rees was the first interview of the group, having been completed last Wednesday. While he may have been a first-time NFL position coach last year, he was held in high regard by a number of individuals in the organization. That includes Vrabel, who worked closely with Rees and the tight ends early in his time as a consultant and may also be interested in him if/when he lands another head-coaching job in the next few days or weeks. There may not be much in terms of an NFL offensive philosophy to draw from with Rees, there’s plenty of it to draw from during his time coordinating Notre Dame and Alabama, two of the biggest programs in college football. Those years show a philosophy that mirrors, in a lot of ways, the one Stefanski prefers. Rees is a big believer in utilizing the run game to establish the passing game, and multiple-tight end sets are a given in his schemes. Rees was known to utilize motion a lot in college, whch would be a noticeable change from the norm with the Browns.

 

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