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There's a lot of new for the Cleveland Browns. New wide receiver, new sense of hope and a new head coach. That newness is all too apparent in their 1-2 win-loss record.
Freddie Kitchens, the much-praised new head coach, is shouldering his fair share of the blame; for a good reason.
On multiple instances, Cleveland has looked rusty and flat-out not prepared (see: Week 1 43-13 loss to the Tennessee Titans). Then there are the questionable play calls, such as the inability to turn four attempts at the four-yard line into a game-tying touchdown or calling a draw play on fourth-and-9. Rustiness, not playing prepared and poor play-calling is on that new head coach.
Kitchens understands that. After taking time to think about the Browns' 20-13 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, he has confronted that being a head coach is new for him — last year, he was a running backs coach until his promotion to offensive coordinator. He also knows that he'll grow as he'll learn from mistakes.
“Some of these situations, hell, they’re new for me,” said Kitchens on Tuesday, via Pat McManamon of The Athletic. “I understand that. But I understand I will get better from it, and our team will get better from it.”
2019 is a learning year for Kitchens. Unfortunately, he doesn't have the luxury that many first-year head coaches have: he's expected to win now. Winning becomes tougher when that new head coach is facing a gauntlet of high-tier teams for the next month. That starts with the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.
