Happy New Year everyone!
It's great to be back doing Donovan Live Postgame Shows with Jimmy after a bit of a hiatus in December.
So what's new? Although the Browns lost to the Ravens on Sunday in a heartbreaker, there's more reason to be optimistic about the future of the franchise than at any time since they returned to the field in 1999.
Why? Two words: Baker. Mayfield.
If you need a refresher, listen to the man who called all of Mayfield's highlights on the radio this year:
And those are just a few of the many great moments involving Baker from 2018 that Jimmy got to call. It leaves you excited for what the future may hold.
First things first, the Browns have to find a head coach. Here's what we know so far:
As of Thursday night, they've interviewed Gregg Williams, Jim Caldwell, and Kevin Stefanski.
They reportedly are not allowing teams to interview offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens for the same post elsewhere. Kitchens is slated to interview for the Browns head coaching job next week. I think he is going to get a serious look.
The Browns are expected to interview Dan Campbell on Friday and have pushed an interview with Mike McCarthy back to next week as well.
Here's where it starts to get fun.
There's a report from the Canton Repository's Steve Doerschuk that Patriots offensive coordinator (and Stark County native) Josh McDaniels has serious interest in the Browns job. According to Doerschuk, the feeling is mutual.
The Browns had been linked to other names last weekend, including former Dolphins head coach Adam Gase. Could we get more surprises in the days ahead? Absolutely. Could a college coach enter the picture or perhaps a coach from a team still in the NFL playoffs? For sure.
Make no mistake, the Browns job is highly sought by coaching candidates. This team has a strong front office, owners who want to win, draft picks, cap space, plenty of young, talented players (think Garrett, Chubb, Ward, Landry,), and of course, a franchise quarterback. It also has a fan base that was re-energized this past fall.
To quote the son of the owner of another Cleveland sports franchise: What's not to like?
Watch the Donovan Live Postgame Show in the player above