DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Kevin Stefanski II

I've heard about it, maybe because I'm in the Tampa news area, but it's been out there, not daily mainmainstream though.

https://www.newsweek.com/tom-brady-walks-off-field-not-shake-hands-jared-goff-bucs-loss-1549736

https://brobible.com/sports/article/tom-brady-jared-goff-handshake/


https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/tom-b...not-nick-foles/

https://nypost.com/2020/10/23/tom-brady-explains-why-he-didnt-shake-nick-foles-hand-after-loss/

I remember a while ado when we beat Pittsburgh on a prime time game. Hines Ward went into the locker room before the game ended. When PIT won he was always out there with that stupid grin, but wasn't man enough to accept the loss.

While I hate the Steelers I am not above respecting their players when deserved. Whines Hard will forever be a turd in my eyes because of this.

It was past Tom's bed time.

Semi-seriously, I read an article that he was upset with Arians for making practices later during the week to get ready for the late game. His typical regimen has him in bed asleep at 9-something.

Your not trying to tell me that Tom Brady has been pampered and spoiled; PREPOSTEROUS!!!

Maybe he gets up real early;

There are some references regarding the Browns reduced # of "stupid penalties" such as false starts. It occurred to me during the Football Team game, that with the very reduced amount of crowd noise, would false start penalties be down league wide.

IN the past it seemed as if at least 2-3 false starts a game were due to crowd noise, especially by teams with young OL. Makes me wonder if false starts are down league wide.

Don't misunderstand this comment to mean I don't think coach Stefanski has not done a great job, I think he has been great. Just something I thought of early in the year with before some teams started pumping fan noise in loudly.

That's a fair observation. I'd bet that, when looked at league-wide, you'd be absolutely correct.

I don't think that even begins to explain the Browns improvement, though. Look how early we're getting to the line and get to move pre-snap. That's not crowd noise, that's discipline and execution. Mayfield is also able to induce some offsides with his cadence. That's also a new thing this year (I think he might've also drawn our own guy into a false start, but we'll just ignore that one for now).

I don't think you're wrong at all, but the preponderance of evidence related to the Browns points to the arrival of KS.

Not so much with False Start penalties, but definitely with Holding calls and others, there is definitely a healthy dose of "the Refs just aren't calling them like they used to" going on.

We all know the old saying that you could call Holding on every play in the NFL.... well, they just aren't calling them on us unless they're egregious, or so it seems. We haven't had the slew of super ticky tacky calls from the Refs that have plagued us for 20 years. It's amazing how much better our offense can look without all of those extra penalties.

Also curious if offsides/encroachment is up. Seems like more people are biting on the hard counts that usual. Maybe not. I know someone knows how to find the stat for it...

My “Why I love Kevin Stefanski” moment came Tuesday. I was driving home and listening to the Kevin Stefanski show on KNR, and one of the hosts asked him if he’d seen “Anchorman”, and he said yes. Then the host referenced Brick killing a guy, and without missing a beat KS, said “He used a trident!”. That’s my coach.

"I love lamp"

From The Athletic:



https://theathletic.com/2276637/2020/12/21/browns-mayfield-offensive-line/

Belichick would have to go winless for the next 186 seasons.

LOL

j/c...

As he should be

They vote for coach of the year AFTER the playoffs right? If so, that will play into it a lot.

Right now it should be a 2 horse race between Stefanski and McDermott in Buffalo. Year over year the Browns have the best turnaround. But Buffalo went from 6-10, to 10-6 and a wildcard, to potentially 13-3 division champs.. and he got beat out last year by Harbaugh. I know it's not supposed to be about anything but this year.. but I could see them giving it to McDermott for what they did over the last 2 years. Then Stefanski can win it next year for the same reason.

I would think Flores should be considered as well.

Like I said, if the Dolphins make the playoffs and the Browns don't, that becomes a distinct possibility.

yeah, definitely. And maybe Rivera if they make the playoffs.

Thanks, coach! Liked the win, and I must admit that beating Freddie and Co. really was satisfying to me.

I am ready to watch us again, and not have the night game limits on the bar where we meet.

Let's win this one and send some flowers to Bengals. Quite a job!

What can be learned from Mike Priefer’s 2016 head coaching performance with the Vikings?

By Ellis L. Williams, cleveland.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Last year special teams coordinator Mike Priefer shared a running joke about how his sons call him “0 and 1,” based on his NFL head coaching record. Sunday versus Pittsburgh, Priefer has a chance to become “Mr. .500″, by leading his hometown Cleveland Browns to victory in the organization’s first playoff game in 18 years.

Sound like a daunting task? It is.

Not only are the Browns out their head coach and play-caller but Pro Bowl guard Joel Bitonio and receiver KhaDarel Hodge as well. It leaves the Browns very thin at guard and down one of their top special teamers and pass catchers.

However, this isn’t a death sentence for the Browns’ chances, because Stefanski’s replacement has been in a similar situation before.

In 2016, Priefer served as the Vikings’ head coach during Week 13 when Mike Zimmer sat out due to an emergency eye procedure. Minnesota lost 17-15 on Thursday Night Football against a 10-1 Cowboys team that finished 13-3. That contest came down to a late-game challenge (which Priefer won), a failed two-point conversion where the officials missed a hands-to-the-face penalty, and an onside kick Minnesota didn’t recover.

Minnesota (6-5 at the time) fought valiantly that night for their interim head coach and it nearly was enough to upset one of the NFL’s best teams.

What can we learn from Priefer’s lone head coaching performance from four seasons ago? Let’s revisit some key moments and decisions from that game to find out.

Priefer “looked the part”

I talked with a Vikings beat writer who remembers being at that Minnesota-Dallas game. He said afterward that his biggest takeaway was that Priefer simply looked the part of an NFL head coach.

Before the game, Vikings GM Rick Spielman said Priefer was the man for the job because of his familiarity with both the offense and defense. On top of his usual special teams duties, Priefer handled all game management decisions (timeouts, challenges, going for it on fourth, etc.), while the Vikings’ offensive and defensive coordinators called plays.

Without their play-caller in Zimmer, the Vikings defense still bottled up then-dynamic rookies Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott. It’s a sign Browns fans should remain confident in Cleveland’s offense.

As one coach I talked to said, “How (the Browns offense) looks won’t change. What will change is the how and when.”

Meaning that, when the Browns run power or play-action passes, it will look the same. But the frequency and situations in which Cleveland calls certain plays becomes uncertain. Mike Tomlin will lean on the Browns’ season-long tendencies to ready his defense but he’s preparing for the unknown now because there isn’t tape on Alex Van Pelt these calling plays.

Some felt that helped the Vikings’ defense bottle the Cowboys’ explosive offense. Because the situations in which defensive coordinator George Edwards called certain blitzes or coverages differed at times from Zimmer’s tendencies.

I wouldn’t be surprised if the Browns offense plays well Sunday just as the Vikings defense did four years ago without their play-caller. However, losing Bitonio is a major blow, and one they could not have prepared for.

But there were contingency plans all year for this exact situation. It was decided before Week 1 that Priefer would serve as interim head coach if COVID-19 ever made Stefanski unavailable. Remember, Stefanski and Priefer coached eight years together in Minnesota. Stefanski had a first-hand viewing experience of Priefer as a head coach. He trusts him and that trickles down throughout the locker room.

It’s no surprise someone as detail oriented as Priefer vibes with Stefanski. It’s that same focus and knowledge of the game (and all its rules) that won him a critical challenge against the Cowboys.

He handled critical late-game situations well

Minnesota featured the league’s worst offense in 2016 behind quarterback Sam Bradford. But the defense carried the Vikings to a 17-9 deficit with 2:53 to play. With Dallas near their own 30, Prescott scrambled nine yards and picked up a first down that would’ve put the game away.

However, Priefer and his staff felt the ball was spotted incorrectly because the rules state a player is down where their initial slide begins. Priefer challenged, won and the Cowboys punted a play later.

With the ball back, Minnesota drove 65 yards in eight plays and scored their first touchdown. On the two-point try, Bradford was blatantly hit in the head but it wasn’t called.

Minnesota eventually lost but without Priefer’s challenge, the game would’ve ended nearly three minutes early. Instead, he made a sharp decision and afforded the Vikings an opportunity to win late.

Players rally behind Priefer

It helps immensely that Priefer was around Berea last season to build meaningful connections with key players. He and quarterback Baker Mayfield have a friendly relationship. Given the opportunity, players rave about Priefer during interviews.

His 20 years in the NFL have taught him how to blend motivation with accountability while sprinkling just enough banter that his players either laugh or rib back. Such authenticity translates to relatable. That’s Priefer inside the locker room and on the field.

That night at USA Bank Stadium, he didn’t have to gain the respect of his 53-man roster because it was already solidified. Priefer earned that over his five years prior with the Vikings, including 2012 special teams coach of the year honors. Players rallied behind Priefer and played for both him and Zimmer that evening. His relationship with guys who made their name on special teams (like receiver Adam Thielen) helped the roster buy in.

Simply, Priefer was both highly-respected and well-liked within the Vikings’ locker room and organization.

That holds true in Cleveland as well.

What we learned

Like Stefanski, Browns fans should trust him, too. Assuming the team can practice a few days before Sunday, Priefer will have the Browns ready to play. He proved capable of that before. If it’s a close game late and swift, critical decisions must be made, he won’t hesitate, freeze or falter.

Last year, Priefer told media during a weekly press conference “Would I like to be a head coach? Absolutely. Who wouldn’t? I would love to be up in front of the team and be the leader of that team.”

On Sunday, he’ll stand up and lead the franchise into its first playoff game since 2002. Regardless of how wild card weekend ends, Priefer’s due for a new nickname.

https://www.cleveland.com/browns/2021/01...he-vikings.html

Thanks for that article. We’ll miss Stefanski and Callahan for sure. I don’t think it’s catastrophic ... but what I do think is catastrophic: Bitonio being out and watching Heyward bull rushing the crap out of our awful LG

A couple things to hope for under the circumstances.

Is Callahan back or another miss? Hate the NFL's handling of this.

Worthy in my opinion. And maybe it is Clay Matthews' year.

same here .. I’m good with him staying away for the end of the year. Let him stay safe and be a virtual voice. Hoping he decides to return next year

Honest question... at this point in the year, how much of an impact does an Oline coach have being on the sidelines on gameday?

I don't know the correct answer, but my guess is "maybe only a little, maybe a ton?".

He would see the little technique things that a guy is doing wrong, or the things a DLine is doing to beat them and be able to help our guy counter it. It would be all the little Big things.

j/c

I imagine figuring out how to pick up "new" blitzes/wrinkles they hadn't seen on tape would benefit from an experienced OL coach. Figuring out how to compensate/continuously adjust for however Bitonio's replacement holds up could also come into play.

Coach of the year: Kevin Stefanski

Posted by Mike Florio on January 8, 2021, 6:35 AM EST

I would like to congratulate Coach Stefanski and thank him for busting his butt to shape a winning football team out of this bunch of guys.

It's absolutely mind boggling that John Dorsey passed this guy up for Freddie Kitchens.

what’s worse for me: after year 1, Dorsey STILL was advocating for Kitchens.

I can see giving him a chance, but after that debacle last year ... how could you still want him?!

At the end of the day it probably doesn't make much of a difference, but Dorsey was advocating for Dorsey and circling the wagons to cling to the structure that gave him all/most authority.

Yeah, I don't think Dorsey wanted to hire a guy that was "Depodesta's" even though, from everything we've seen, Stefanski would have been fine working beneath Dorsey anyhow.