CLEVELAND — Cleveland Browns fans have become accustomed to seeing their head coach toward the top of preseason odds lists this time of year.
After all, it was just a year ago the Hue Jackson was given the second-best odds of being the first head coach fired in the 2018 season -- a 5-to-1 wager he would eventually make good on.
As the 2019 season approaches, new Cleveland head coach Freddie Kitchens finds himself toward the top of at least one odds list -- albeit one Browns fans typically haven't had much use for. According to betting site Bovada (via Odds Shark), Kitchens possesses the second-best odds to win the NFL's 2019 Coach of the Year award.
At +1100, Kitchens trails only San Francisco 49ers head coach -- and former Browns offensive coordinator -- Kyle Shanahan (+1000) on the list. For the betting uninitiated, a successful $100 wager on Kitchens would return a profit of $1,100, while the same bet on Shanahan would return $1,000.
The full list of current NFL Coach of the Year odds is as follows:
- Kyle Shanahan +1000
- Freddie Kitchens +1100
- Sean McVay +1200
- Bill Belichick +1200
- Frank Reich +1400
- Sean Payton +1400
- Andy Reid +1400
- Doug Pederson +1600
- Matt LaFleur +2000
- Matt Nagy +2000
- Vic Fangio +2000
- Bruce Arians +2000
- Dan Quinn +2000
- Anthony Lynn +2000
- Pete Carroll +2200
- Doug Marrone +2500
- Bill O'Brien +2800
- Adam Gase +2800
- Mike Zimmer +2800
- John Harbaugh +2800
- Mike Tomlin +2800
- Jason Garrett +2800
- Mike Vrabel +3300
- Ron Rivera +3300
- Sean McDermott +3300
- Kliff Kingsbury +3300
- Zac Taylor +4000
- Jon Gruden +4000
- Pat Shurmur +5000
- Jay Gruden +5000
- Matt Patricia +5000
- Brian Flores +5000
That Kitchens ranks so highly in Coach of the Year odds doesn't necessarily come as a surprise. Following the emergence of Baker Mayfield and the offseason acquisition of Odell Beckham Jr., Cleveland enters the 2019 season facing no shortage of expectations, as the Browns are favored to win the AFC North and possess the fifth-best odds of winning Super Bowl LIV.
Those very expectations that make Kitchens a front-runner for Coach of the Year, however, could ultimately work against his actual ability to win the award at season's end.
Should Kitchens -- who possesses no previous head coaching experience -- make good on his team's preseason hype, he'll merely be doing the job he was expected to. And if he doesn't -- well, it may not be long before he finds himself on a different odds list.