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Kevin Stefanski hiring Alex Van Pelt as Browns offensive coordinator; Jeff Howard as DBs & passing game coordinator

MIAMI -- Kevin Stefanski has found his man to try to help him maximize the immense talent on this Browns offense, which woefully underachieved in 2019.

He’s hiring former NFL quarterback and longtime pro quarterback coach Alex Van Pelt as his offensive coordinator, a league source confirmed for cleveland.com. Zac Jackson of The Athletic first reported it.

He also hired his former fellow Vikings assistant Jeff Howard as defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator.

Van Pelt, who was Aaron Rodgers’ QB coach in Green Bay from 2014-17, has experience as a coordinator, having been the Buffalo Bills’ OC and quarterbacks coach in 2009. Stefanski might still call his own plays, but has said he’d be willing to hand over the chore if it’s best for the team.

Van Pelt, 49, completes a coordinator trio that includes Mike Priefer on special teams and likely 49ers defensive backs coach Joe Woods as soon as he finishes the Super Bowl on Sunday. Woods told cleveland.com and another member of the Browns media on Wednesday that he’s hoping to be reunited with Stefanski, his former eight-year Vikings colleague, and is excited about the opportunity.

Van Pelt is the fourth coordinator of Baker Mayfield’s pro career. He’s also had Todd Haley, Freddie Kitchens and Todd Monken.

Mayfield, who tumbled to second-last in the NFL with a 78.8 passing rating, was a notch above the quarterback Van Pelt coached on a rebuilding team last year in Cincinnati in Andy Dalton, who finished at 78.3.

But if Mayfield likes Van Pelt as much as Rodgers did, the hire will be a success. During their four seasons together, Rodgers produced two 4,000-yard seasons and threw 125 touchdowns against only 26 interceptions. Perhaps more importantly, Van Pelt quickly earned the very public respect of one of the NFL’s top quarterbacks.

“He’s a great game-day manager, giving me exactly what I need and nothing more,” Rodgers told ESPN’s Rob Demovsky in 2017. "He cares about it. The guy puts a lot of work into it. He’s a great coach. There’s no reason why his name shouldn’t be out there for coordinator spots right now, but he’s done a great job for us. And he and I have become very close.”

When the Packers let Van Pelt’s contract run out in 2018, Rodgers was miffed.

“Well, my quarterback coach didn’t get retained,” Rodgers told ESPN’s Golic and Wingo at the Super Bowl that February. “I thought that was an interesting change, really without consulting me. There’s a close connection between quarterback and quarterback coach, and that was an interesting decision.”

Van Pelt explained his philosophy for coaching QBs to the Bengals’ website when he was hired in 2018 by Marvin Lewis, who was on the Pitt staff when Van Pelt was a QB there.

“I think you play to the player’s strengths,” he said. “Obviously Aaron can do a lot of things within the pocket to escape the pocket and have great success extending the plays ... whereas Andy is more of a pocket passer.

“I definitely think there is a certain way to train the quarterbacks, and the way they’ve done it with Green Bay in the past, they’ve had a lot of success with it. So I’d like to carry over some of those things that we would do here with Andy, and then mix in some things that suit him.”

Van Pelt helped run a version of the West Coast offense that Gary Kubiak, now the Vikings’ coordinator, installed in Minnesota last year with Stefanski running the offense. It’s virtually the same scheme that Kyle Shanahan coached to a Super Bowl berth Sunday against the Chiefs.

An eighth-round pick of the Steelers in 1993, Van Pelt spent 11 seasons as an NFL backup QB, including 10 with the Bills from 1994-2003. He threw 16 touchdowns and 24 interceptions and returned to Buffalo in 2006 as offensive quality control coach.

He was promoted to quarterbacks coach in 2008 and earned the added title of OC in 2009. He spent 2010-11 as the Bucs QB coach and then 2012-13 as Packers running backs coach before moving up to tutor Rodgers.

Howard was the Vikings’ assistant DBs coach in 2018-19. He began his Vikings career as assistant to the head coach in 2013 and moved up to defensive assistant for four seasons.

Trying to learn how to post links. I have no kids here to teach me.

This Alex Van Pelt has no OC experience??????????

WHY.

Is this how other teams do things?

Pick the people with no experience?

I hate this team.

10 years ago for 1 year .... none since ....

I wonder what his link is to Kev ... or depo ... ...

This Alex Van Pelt has no OC experience??????????

WHY.

you know, father son talks about how things are going..

Is this how other teams do things?

Pick the people with no experience?

I hate this team.

Is he the old QB from Colorado State?

If Rodgers liked him that much, he’s worth a shot lol

Yeah he does,, 1 year in Buffalo.. I think it was 2009

Kubiak/Shanahan offense.

He is from that school.

Is he, though?

He spent most of his time under McCarthy who spent most of his time under Schottenheimer in KC.

Diversity is a good thing when it works together, though.

I think that Van Pelt is a quality hire. I do wonder whether or not he'll be the one calling plays, though.

I think that Van Pelt is a quality hire. I do wonder whether or not he'll be the one calling plays, though.

Is this how other teams do things?

Pick the people with no experience?

I hate this team.

From Squires link above: Van Pelt, who was Aaron Rodgers’ QB coach in Green Bay from 2014-17, has experience as a coordinator, having been the Buffalo Bills’ OC and quarterbacks coach in 2009.

He was the interim OC in Buffalo. You know, kinda like Freddie was here.