CLEVELAND — Will Freddie Kitchens be fired from his post as head coach of the Cleveland Browns following the conclusion of the 2019 regular season against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati Sunday?
Well, according to sportsbetting.ag, don’t bet against it.
Kitchens is considered a -160 favorite to be fired with a 60 percent implied probability that he will be dismissed before Week 1 of the 2020 season. Only Jason Garrett of the Dallas Cowboys (-500) and former Browns coach Pat Shurmur, now with the New York Giants (-175), were considered more likely to be fired that Kitchens.
Despite all of the excitement of the season because of the emergence of quarterback Baker Mayfield and running back Nick Chubb over the second half of 2018 and the addition of Pro Bowl wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to a corps that featured his long-time friend, Jarvis Landry, the Browns’ offense never got into a consistent rhythm in 2019.
The Browns enter Sunday’s season finale in Cincinnati with a 6-9 record and can do no better than third place in the AFC North Division.
“I think just continuing to go out and putting our best foot forward from the standpoint of how we execute and you leave individually and collectively with a good feeling about what we can do moving forward,” Kitchens said of what’s at stake in Sunday’s game. “That is really all you can do, and that is what you try to do every week.
“Nothing has really changed other than the fact that after the game, we will not be in the playoffs. You still want to go out and perform your best. It is only one of 16 games through a calendar year, so of course, you want to go out, play your best and leave with a good feeling and a good feeling about yourself individually and collectively.”
For the 17th consecutive season, the Browns did not qualify for the playoffs.
The Browns officially were eliminated from postseason contention with their 31-15 loss to the AFC North Division champion Baltimore Ravens at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland Sunday, a game that allowed Baltimore to clinch home-field advantage for as long as they remain in the playoffs.
The Browns (6-9) last qualified for postseason play during the 2002 season and have the longest active playoff drought in the National Football League.
“This is one of 16, and there is no quit in Cincinnati,” Kitchens said. “We expect to get their best shot. The last game [against Cincinnati] means nothing. Last week means nothing to either one of us. What they did now, they should feel very good about, and I am sure they do about what they did.
“They were down, 35-12, with six minutes to go on the clock, and then, down 16 with three minutes to go on the clock, so that was remarkable. That was one for the history books just to get it to overtime. They did a remarkable job.”