Report shares how much say Kevin Stefanski has had in Browns' QB decisions

It's no secret that head coach Kevin Stefanski was one of the members of the Cleveland Browns who traveled to Houston in March 2022 to recruit then-Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson. 

With that said, it appears Stefanski has only had so much say regarding Cleveland's quarterback situation since the club replaced Baker Mayfield with Watson roughly three years ago.

"Stefanski...has never had a strong presence in draft preparations other than to sit in on video and in-person interviews and workouts at the NFL combine," Browns insider Tony Grossi of ESPN Cleveland/The Land on Demand shared. "Stefanski never has attended the Senior Bowl, for instance, which has become an increasingly important stop in the pre-draft journey. Further, Stefanski had no say-so in [general manager Andrew Berry's] decision to trade QB2 Josh Dobbs a week before the 2023 season and none, according to a source, in the decision to not bring back Joe Flacco last year."

The Browns giving Watson a fully guaranteed five-year, $230M contract to convince him to accept a trade in March 2022 will almost certainly go down as one of the worst moves in NFL history. He has left much to be desired with his play over just 19 regular-season starts with Cleveland, has suffered multiple serious injuries and seemingly will never take another meaningful snap for the club before he's released in March 2026. 

During a Thursday morning appearance on Cleveland sports radio station 92.3 The Fan, The Athletic's Jason Lloyd indicated Stefanski could now hold more power as it pertains to certain personnel decisions. However, Browns reporter Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer later noted that "Berry holds the power with decision-making in the Browns' draft." 

Cleveland possesses the second overall pick of the 2025 NFL Draft and could use it to acquire Miami quarterback Cam Ward or Colorado's Shedeur Sanders. It's widely believed Stefanski will, if necessary, try to convince Berry to sign Kirk Cousins to serve as a bridge option and as a mentor for either Ward or Sanders assuming the Falcons move on from Cousins this March as is expected. 

Stefanski was Cousins' quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator when they were with the Minnesota Vikings in 2018 and 2019.