Browns owner seemingly rules out Urban Meyer as possible coach

It has been widely reported that Urban Meyer is among the candidates the Cleveland Browns are considering for their head coaching position, but team owner Jimmy Haslam threw cold water on that talk while speaking with the media on Thursday.

Haslam said the Browns are focused on candidates with previous coaching experience in the NFL, which Meyer does not have.

#Browns Haslam on Urban Meyer: "Right now we're just focusing on people with #NFL coaching experience"

— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) January 2, 2020

Things could change for the Browns throughout the interview process, and it is also possible that Haslam is simply trying not to tip his hand. However, hiring Meyer would carry plenty of risk, and Cleveland just took a big one that backfired with Freddie Kitchens this past season. It would make more sense for them to find an experienced coach, assuming any are interested in the job.

The Browns interviewed Mike McCarthy on Thursday, and the former Green Bay Packers coach appears to be drawing serious interest from at least one other team. They are also expected to meet with Josh McDaniels and San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh.

A report from earlier on Thursday claimed the Browns have “strong interest” in Meyer, but it seems like an unlikely match at this point.