Browns request permission to interview Bengals OC Dan Pitcher for their head coach job

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Browns looked correct successful their ain section to find a caput coach campaigner to perchance switch Kevin Stefanski.

It’s Dan Pitcher, violative coordinator for nan Bengals, whom nan Browns person requested support to interview.

He’s nan 3rd known petition aft Ravens violative coordinator Todd Monken and Seahawks protect coordinator Aden Durde. The Browns will besides question and reply 2 of their ain assistants, protect coordinator Jim Schwartz and violative coordinator Tommy Rees oon Thursday for their vacancy.

Pitcher, who will move 39 adjacent week, began his profession successful scouting pinch nan Colts, wherever he worked pinch Browns GM Andrew Berry, who’s conducting nan search.

Pitcher took complete arsenic Bengals OC successful 2024 aft being an violative adjunct location since 2016. Elevated aft years of activity pinch nan organization, Pitcher has go a trusted sound successful shaping 1 of nan league’s astir quarterback-centric offenses.

Pitcher’s NFL roots trace backmost to nan Indianapolis Colts, wherever he collapsed into nan convention connected nan unit side. He spent respective seasons successful nan Colts’ scouting department, gaining acquisition successful subordinate evaluation, beforehand activity and roster construction. That inheritance gave him a wide knowing of really offenses are built, not conscionable schemed, and exposed him to nan Colts’ quarterback-driven exemplary during nan Andrew Luck era. Those years are often cited by colleagues arsenic formative, sharpening his oculus for item and his expertise to construe information into on-field application.

He transitioned into coaching successful Cincinnati, joining nan Bengals successful 2016 and steadily moving his measurement up. Pitcher served successful a assortment of violative roles, including violative adjunct and quarterbacks coach, wherever he became intimately tied to nan improvement of Joe Burrow. Known for his calm demeanor and preparation, Pitcher played a cardinal domiciled successful Burrow’s play crippled planning, movie study habits and bid of nan offense, peculiarly during Cincinnati’s Super Bowl tally and consequent playoff seasons.

By nan clip he was promoted to violative coordinator, Pitcher was already profoundly embedded successful nan Bengals’ system, terminology and culture. His attack blends modern passing concepts pinch an evaluator’s knowing of unit strengths, allowing nan discourtesy to accommodate without losing its identity. For nan Bengals, Pitcher represents continuity pinch an separator — a coach shaped by some scouting rooms and gathering rooms, now entrusted pinch maximizing a championship-caliber backmost and offense.

Mary Kay Cabot has much than 30 years acquisition covering nan Cleveland Browns for The Plain Dealer and cleveland.com, and became only nan 2nd female successful Pro Football Hall of Fame history to triumph nan Bill Nunn...