CLEVELAND — Does the Cleveland Browns’ first-year coach Freddie Kitchens have too many responsibilities on game days?
Well, that might depends on who is asked the question, but it was a resounding “no” from the Browns’ first-time head coach.
When asked about considering giving up play-calling duties to offensive coordinator Todd Monken for the final nine games of the 2019 regular season, Kitchens stood steadfast in the face of the inquiry and denied that any such change will be taking place.
“No, that’s not happening,” Kitchens stated, unequivocally, following Monday’s film session at team headquarters in Berea. “I’m the head coach, so it’s not happening.”
Currently, Kitchens holds the play-calling duties, and as head coach, he is tasked with managing the entire game, everything from decisions to punt or go for it on fourth down, what personnel packages will give the plays the best chances to succeed and when to throw the challenge flag, among a myriad of other tasks.
While Kitchens calls the plays from the sideline, Monken is in the coaches’ box in the stadium and makes recommendations based on what he sees from the “All 22” perspective.
Also, the Browns have a replay advisor in the booth, and he makes recommendations for when Kitchens should challenge a call on the field.
“I think we have a pretty good setup in the box,” Kitchens said. “Those guys, they give their opinion pretty quickly. The one with Antonio with the offensive PI, that was a big play in the game right there. I felt like that would have been a big conversion if we could have gotten it. Now, we need to get better at our technique.
“The guy was pressed at one yard, and I thought it was a good opportunity to take a chance. Sometimes, you have to take a chance in those situations and see what they see. Would they have come back and said, ‘Well, he actually did not initiate the contact’ or ‘Yeah, he was inside just over a yard, so they may pick it.’ You just have to go off what the rule says and try to make a calculated risk versus the reward, and that is what I did in that situation.”
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Although unwilling to give up play-calling duties, Kitchens understands that the ultimate responsibility of the team’s success or failure on game days is up to him.
“Everything about the program should reflect on me, and I’ll accept it, but I also have a hand in fixing it,” Kitchens said.
“We need to win every game in the worst way. You don’t look ahead. You stay in the moment. I think our guys are doing a great job of staying in the moment and preparing on Wednesday, coming back and preparing on Thursday and Friday, and then, go play the game. Eliminate the penalties, eliminate the turnovers and we’ll be fine.”