First-year Cleveland Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens is already off to a rocky start leading a group that went 7-8-1 during the 2018 season. Hired as head coach after his quarterbacks coach tenure last year with then-rookie Baker Mayfield, Kitchens is still working on disciplining a squad teeming with talent, but a bad Week 1 loss to the Tennessee Titans by 30 points has people talking negatively.
Per Mike Sando in The Athletic:
The hype surrounding the Browns was so over the top this offseason that Kitchens could realistically be on the hot seat in Year 1, as ridiculous as that seems.
“Who is my locker room glue that when you have a tough loss is going to step in?” an exec asked earlier this offseason. “Is ownership really prepared to stand by this group if they hit a two- or three-game losing streak? Freddie Kitchens is coaching for his job this year! There is a real chance if they do not make the playoffs that he could be fired, which is insane.”
With Kitchens rumored to already be on the “hot seat,” controversy is creeping into Cleveland once again. The Browns have been the epitome of organization turnover and a turnstile of head coaches and quarterbacks in the last two decades. Cleveland selected Oklahoma quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Mayfield with the first overall pick in last year's draft—and he looked the part, especially in the latter part of the 2018 season.
Mayfield threw three interceptions on Sunday against the Titans, including a pick-six that sealed the blowout defeat. How will Kitchens and the Browns respond to a deflating 0-1 start?
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