Path for Cleveland Browns To Hire Nathan Scheelhaase Becomes Clearer on Saturday

The dominoes are falling for the Cleveland Browns to name their next head coach.

The team has taken their time finding a replacement for Kevin Stefanski, who was fired on January 5th after leading the organization for six seasons.

According to several reports, the frontrunners are Los Angeles Rams passing game coordinator Nathan Scheelhaase and Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator Grant Udinski. Scheelhaase is scheduled to meet with the Browns in person on Monday, which will be the team’s first known in-person interview with a minority candidate. They’ll need to add one more to be compliant with the NFL’s Rooney Rule.

On Friday, Udinski, the fast-rising coaching prospect who just turned 30 years old last week, interviewed with the team in person. He’ll have his first interview with the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.

Scheelhaase will coach the Rams on Sunday in the NFC Championship. Regardless of the outcome, the Browns will be permitted to interview him after the game. However, they would not be able to officially hire him until after the Super Bowl in February.

How the Browns can hire Scheelhaase

But the path for the Browns to hire Scheelhaase became more clear on Saturday. The Pittsburgh Steelers were also expected to want to speak with Scheelhaase for a second time. However, they proceeded to hire former Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy over Scheelhaase and fellow Rams coordinator Chris Shula, who coaches Sean McVay’s defense.

Scheelhaase only has two seasons of NFL experience. But prior to the NFL, he served as the offensive coordinator of the Iowa State Cyclones. His reported preference to keep Schwartz on the staff likely helps to make him a frontrunner, as his lack of experience could make it difficult to build out a deeply connected staff. Udinski would also reportedly be interested in keeping Schwartz.

Unless Scheelhaase were to accept an offensive coordinator role, which would technically be a promotion from his current position, the Browns are the only team with known interest in the 35-year-old as a head coach with a second interview. Scheelhaase met with the Las Vegas Raiders about their opening, but there’s no update on if he will be invited for a second meeting.

According to cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot, the Browns are planning on traveling to Los Angeles to meet with Scheelhaase on Monday.

After the Browns interview Scheelhaase and one more external minority candidate, they’d be able to hire him at any point next week. The same goes for Udinski, if that’s the candidate that the team decides to proceed with.

Scheelhaase’s current role includes drawing McVay’s plays that get installed into the game plan. He finished his college football career as a dual-threat quarterback in 2013 as the all-time offensive leader with a total of 10,634 yards. A promotion to head coach would be quite the leap.

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