Freddie Kitchens to be named head coach of Browns

The Cleveland Browns have decided to hire from within for their next head coach, as they are reportedly promoting former offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens.

ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reports that the Browns are expected to name Kitchens their new head coach on Wednesday.

Freddie Kitchens will be named new Browns head coach later today, per sources.

— Chris Mortensen (@mortreport) January 9, 2019

Cleveland’s offense took off under Kitchens once Hue Jackson was fired, so it makes sense that the Browns are giving him a shot at the head coaching job. In eight games under Kitchens, Baker Mayfield threw 19 touchdown passes, 8 interceptions, and was sacked just five times, compared to 8/6/20 in the first eight games. His completion percentage also improved by more than 10 points under Kitchens.

While the Browns had been linked to bigger names in their head coaching search, going with Kitchens seems like a smart choice. Mayfield is obviously the future of their franchise, and he seemed to thrive under Kitchens. The Browns likely viewed that as the biggest factor in giving him the job.