The Cleveland Browns are making a change in play caller, as offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey will now call plays instead of head coach Kevin Stefanski, Stefanski announced in his press conference today.
The Browns will start Jameis Winston at quarterback after Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending Achilles injury Sunday in a loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. With the Browns at 1-6, Stefanski will cede play calling duty to Dorsey, who’s in his first year in Cleveland.
“I’m very confident in Ken, and I’m very confident in our offensive staff,” Stefanski said. “When you’re talking about playing good football and putting game plans together, it’s never one person’s job. It’s a collaborative effort, so I have a ton of faith in all of our coaches, and Ken calling the plays doesn’t change that collaborative approach. We need to improve. I felt like this is the right move for right now.”
The Browns did get some help with RB Nick Chubb returning from his severe knee injury last week, and Chubb scored a touchdown in Cleveland’s loss to the Bengals. The Browns have another divisional opponent up on Sunday with the Baltimore Ravens traveling to Cleveland.
Stefanski had been the Browns’ play caller since he became their head coach before the 2020 season, so it’s a major change for him to take a step back. Dorsey was fired last season as the Buffalo Bills’ offensive coordinator, but he was the primary play caller in Buffalo before he was let go. Cleveland needs to find a way to spark a season that looks to be lost with the Browns being five games under .500 and down their starting quarterback. Their hope is that Dorsey can find a way to get an offense going that’s struggled all season.
The Steelers haven’t played a divisional game this season, meaning they still have two matchups against Cleveland, which will come in Week 12 and Week 14. While Stefanski will probably still be on the sidelines by then as Cleveland’s head coach, the Steelers will face a new play caller for the first time in his tenure with Dorsey.
The Steelers only faced the Bills once with Dorsey calling plays, which was a 38-3 drubbing in Buffalo in Kenny Pickett’s first career start.
