Cleveland Browns qualified for the playoffs for the first time in 18 years – and will not have the coach who led them in Sunday’s wild-card clash with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Kevin Stefanski tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday and trained the team remotely during the week while in quarantine.
According to the NFL’s COVID-19 protocol, Stefanski will not be allowed to coach the Browns in this week’s playoff match. Special team coordinator Mike Priefer is the team’s head coach, while offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt will make the offensive plays (Stefanski called the plays for Cleveland). ESPN’s Adam Schefter revealed Stefanski is going to watch the Browns game in his basement with no communication available.
So why can’t Stefanski train the Browns in his home, with all the Zoom technology available? Here’s why the Browns’ head coach can’t orchestrate the team this week:
NFL Policy
The NFL has had a policy in place for years that prohibits external communication (phone calls, text messages, emails, for example) before the start of the game on game days that extend until the end of the game. That’s why Stefanski will have the phone off during the game, watching alone.
Detroit Lions interim coach Darrell Bevell has not been authorized to train for two weeks under the same protocols. The NFL is not breaking the rules for Stefanski and the Browns because it is a playoff game.
Can Stefanski speak to the team on match day?
Yes, until the kickoff. Stefanski can address the team before the game and give a speech in the locker room, if necessary. Once the game starts, he cannot contact anyone on the Browns staff – so he cannot call moves.
Stefanski will not speak to the team on the day of the game.
“I will speak to the team the night before the game, as I normally do,” Stefanski told reporters on Friday. “When the time comes for the game and in that locker room, Coach Priefer will be doing that. I have a lot of faith in him. The guys know the message. They don’t need a call from me before the game to understand what they need to do.”
How did the Browns train with Stefanski outside and the facilities closed?
Let’s leave that to how Stefanski described the situation on Friday.
“Similar to last week, when we went out on the field briefly on Wednesday, nothing on Thursday and we really had a Friday more, so that’s how we’re going to treat today,” said Stefanski. “We will have a practice on Friday, add some periods and add a step by step. We spent a lot of time on Zoom, so we had a lot of virtual work and now, we can do some physical work there today.”
How are the Browns going to conduct game day without Stefanski?
Stefanski clearly had a plan in place before the season on what to do if coaches hired COVID-19. Cleveland did all the game planning during the week, ensuring smooth operation without Stefanski present.
“When you get to the day of the game, there are long days of waiting for the games to start. I’m sure there will be some calls here or there, but in general, a lot of the work is done,” said Stefanski. “We will have a review on Sunday morning at some point with attack and defense for each one to go over some of the most important points. Once again, I cannot help emphasizing how much I trust the coaches we have and the players to do their job. It won’t be me joining the game plan on Sunday. “
Who is Mike Priefer?
Priefer has been in the NFL since 2002 and has trained special teams throughout his NFL career. He was on the Minnesota Vikings coaching staff with Stefanski from 2011 to 2018, serving as a coach for special teams (he left Minnesota to occupy the same position with Cleveland in 2019).
In fact, Priefer served as an interim coach once in his career, being named the head coach of the Vikings for a Week 13 game in 2016 against the Dallas Cowboys, when Minnesota coach Mike Zimmer underwent emergency eye surgery . Stefanski was the running back coach that season.
Who is Alex Van Pelt?
Van Pelt, a former NFL quarterback with Buffalo Bills, is serving his 16th season as an assistant coach in the league (first with Cleveland). Van Pelt played for Bills from 1995 to 2003, throwing 477 passes with 16 touchdowns and 24 interceptions.
His most successful coaching spell in the NFL was as a coach for Green Bay Packers quarterbacks from 2014 to 2017, when Aaron Rodgers tied for second in the NFL with 125 touchdown passes and won MVP in 2014.