The Cleveland Browns ushered in some significant changes to their coaching staff with the arrival of Kevin Stefanski this offseason. Fortunately, there appears to be a sense of familiarity for guard Joel Bitonio.

The restrictions placed in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic have prevented Stefanski from getting his players adequately acquainted with the new scheme on offense. According to Fred Greetham of 247Sports, Bitonio feels the ‘wide zone' approach is similar to the system he played in as a rookie under then-offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan.

“I do see similarities,” Bitonio said in a Zoom conference call on Tuesday. “There are probably six or seven teams that run this outside zone system. I think Shanahan is probably the most entrenched in it. He runs it all the time. I think there are a lot of similarities to that system. You get the boots off of the runs. It is a marriage of the run and pass. We want to make the runs look just like the passes and the play actions just like the runs. It all kind of works itself together. I am excited to get back in it. I thought we had a good offense my rookie year. Obviously, we had some quarterback difficulties and things of that nature, but I think we showed that it can be a successful offense. Obviously, Shanahan has taken the Falcons and the 49ers to the Super Bowl with the offense. There is definitely a chance to do some things on offense that we are excited to do.”

Bitonio feels Mayfield's skill set makes him an ideal fit in this offense.

“Baker, I think he works in this offense great,” he said. “He’s going to be able to sell those runs and set up in the pocket. It’s not just drop-back passing 50 times a game, which is a benefit to the O-line, too. If you can sell the run and play action and boot and run keepers off the run game, it’s going to give Baker another second or two to two to have guys get open and run routes.

Bitonio added that Mayfield is at his best when he can get out in space.

“If you look at the stats from the last couple years, Baker’s actually been a really good roll-out quarterback and a quarterback that’s been able to throw off the run,” Bitonio said. “So I think this offense fits him really well and I’m excited to get some reps and see him in it.”

It is certainly encouraging to see that Bitonio is optimistic about what the new offense can do for Mayfield. Of course, he will be tasked with playing an integral role in making this scheme come to fruition as one of the more well-versed players on the roster.

Although the Browns had no problem generating headlines with their influx of star power in recent years, they struggled to live up to the hype during the disastrous 2019 campaign. Perhaps even more concerning was the fact that their franchise quarterback had seemingly regressed in Year 2.

Fortunately, Bitonio's comments indicate that the new Browns coach's approach will be tailor-made for Mayfield's skill set as a dual-threat quarterback. Regardless, expectations remain as high as ever, and any hope of a potential resurgence on offense will need to begin under center.