The Cleveland Browns revealed what is potentially a major organizational fissure with the trade of quarterback Joe Flacco this week, which indicated that significant changes to leadership could be on the way.
Cleveland flipped the veteran signal-caller and a sixth-round pick to the Cincinnati Bengals on Tuesday in exchange for a fifth-round selection in next year’s NFL draft. The following day, head coach Kevin Stefanski spoke to reporters and made comments that indicated the team may not have consulted him on the decision beforehand.
“Well, first I’d tell you the Joe [Flacco] trade took us by surprise. That was not something that we saw coming,” Stefanski said. “You know, they called us, and it happened very fast — and happened not too long ago. So, still working through all roster types of things.”
Browns Insiders Believe Kevin Stefanski Upset Over Team’s Decision to Trade Joe Flacco
Stefanski could also have been merely saying that the opportunity to trade Flacco for a reasonably valuable draft pick took the entire franchise by surprise. And in that context, the front office may have kept Stefanski in the loop and included him in the decision-making process from the jump.
However, that is not how Emmett Golden of ESPN Cleveland interpreted the situation when Aaron Goldhammer asked him over the radio waves Wednesday if Golden believed that Browns general manager Andrew Berry consulted Stefanski on the Flacco trade.
“No, I think he was told,” Golden said flatly. “And again, this is just what I believe, no inside knowledge to it. But I think he was told, ‘Hey, we got an offer from Cincinnati, and we’re going to take it.'”
“I fully believe that Kevin decides the depth chart, [Berry] decides the roster, and that was a roster move,” Golden continued.
Both men agreed that Stefanski “sounded bothered” by Berry’s decision to move Flacco.
Kevin Stefanski Now Faces Polarizing Decision Involving Shedeur Sanders, QB2 Role
Stefanski now faces a potentially awkward position with regards to rookie signal-caller Shedeur Sanders and the role of backup quarterback.
Stefanski kept Sanders at QB3 after demoting Flacco in favor of Dillon Gabriel ahead of the team’s Week 5 contest against the Minnesota Vikings in London. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network asserted that the team was trying to protect Sanders from stepping into a game for which it had tailored the offensive plans to Gabriel’s skill set rather than to Sanders’.
However, Stefanski must now make a call on promoting fourth-year veteran Bailey Zappe to QB2, who has spent all season on the practice squad to this point, or moving Sanders up the depth chart.
“With young players, I’m always thinking about last week, making the change to Dillon [Gabriel],” Stefanski said Wednesday in response to a question about whether Sanders will be Gabriel’s backup against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday. “You have to think long and hard about that. … So, I’ll let the week play out and make a decision later on.”
