Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski speaks during a news conference after Saturday’s 45-14 loss against the Houston Texans in an AFC wild-card playoff game in Houston.
CLEVELAND — For the second straight year, Browns coach Kevin Stefanski has made a major offseason change to his staff.
Offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt has parted ways with the team, leaving just days after Cleveland was blown out in the wild-card round by Houston and following a season in which the Browns were ravaged by injuries.
A team spokesman confirmed Wednesday that Van Pelt is no longer with the Browns. Also, Stefanski fired running backs coach Stump Mitchell and tight ends coach T.C. McCartney was not retained after his contract expired.
The shakeup might not be over as the Browns continue to hold staff evaluations.
Following a 7-10 season in 2022, Stefanski fired defensive coordinator Joe Woods and special teams coordinator Mike Priefer. Those moves led to the hiring of Jim Schwartz, who turned Cleveland’s defense into one of the NFL’s best this season, and Bubba Ventrone, who dramatically improved special teams.
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Van Pelt’s departure is a surprise. It was immediately known if he was fired or resigned.
Certor Sports: Mahomes’ helmet ‘did its job’
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The manufacturer of the helmet that Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes shattered during their AFC wild-card game with Miami says it “did its job” by protecting the league MVP “during a head-to-head impact in unprecedented cold temperatures.”
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The game Saturday night was the fourth-coldest in NFL history. The temperature at kickoff was minus-4 degrees Fahrenheit, and winds gusting to more than 25 mph made the wind chill approach minus-30 during the game.
“Extreme conditions like those are bound to test the limits of even the highest-performing products,” Certor Sports, which makes the VICIS ZERO2 helmet that Mahomes was wearing, said in a statement Wednesday.
Mahomes was scrambling toward the end zone in the second half of the Chiefs’ 26-7 victory when he was hit by Dolphins safety DeShon Elliott. Their helmets clashed and, likely because of the extreme cold that made the outer shell brittle, a fist-sized chunk went flying from Mahomes’ helmet just above the facemask covering his left eye.
“I’m sure it had to do with it being really cold,” Mahomes said afterward, “but yeah, I didn’t know that happened in the moment. I got to the huddle and everyone was telling me, and I was like, ‘I got you all, but I’m not coming out of the game.’”
BRIEFLY
RAMS: Los Angeles head coach Sean McVay understands the coaching carousel could take away one of the key members of his staff. McVay hopes to have defensive coordinator Raheem Morris back next season, while recognizing his status as one of the more desirable candidates to fill any of the seven head coaching vacancies around the NFL. Morris has at least three interviews scheduled this week, as he is set to meet with the Carolina Panthers, Washington Commanders and Seattle Seahawks.
SAINTS: New Orleans general manager Mickey Loomis is defending his retention of Dennis Allen as the club’s coach and says blaming the coach for unsatisfying results is “lazy.” Loomis urges Allen’s critics to consider the records that several of the most successful coaches in NFL history posted in their first few seasons. He points to Chuck Noll, Bill Belichick, Tom Landry and Bill Walsh as examples of coaches who posted several losing seasons before going on to win multiple Super Bowls.
COLTS: First responders found Indianapolis owner Jim Irsay unresponsive and struggling to breathe in early December when they responded to an emergency call from inside the home, TMZ.com has reported. The online outlet cited police records that detailed the Dec. 8 incident. The police report revealed Irsay had a “blue skin tone” and was treated with Narcan, a medicine that can reverse an opioid overdose.
BILLS: Neither frigid blowing winds, the prospect of another two feet of snow being dumped on the region nor an Erie County-imposed travel ban could prevent Buffalo from showing up for practice. Bills coach Sean McDermott credited snow removal crews for having the roads clear, and also got a break with the storm moving north.
COWBOYS: Mike McCarthy will get another chance to end a nearly three-decade stretch without a deep playoff run for Dallas. Owner and general manager Jerry Jones said McCarthy will be back for a fifth season as coach after a stunning 48-32 wild-card loss to Green Bay.
