In the Atlanta Falcons' first offseason with Kevin Stefanski at the helm, there's a lot to be excited about, but some still have their doubts. After all, the 43-year-old went 8-26 across his last two seasons with the Cleveland Browns, which has some of his former players weighing in on the hire.
In Stefanski's case, the guys that love him will follow him to the ends of the Earth, but the players like Jarvis Landry, who never fully bought into his vision, are another story. Landry has been critical of the Stefanski hire all offseason long, but his recent comments may have put the nail in the coffin.
During an episode of the 4th and South podcast hosted by himself and Leonard Fournette, Landry had some choice words about his ex-head coach. While the five-time Pro Bowler called him "cool to be around", Landry revealed that he didn't think Stefanski knew what he was doing as a head coach.
While Landry said that the start of his overlapping tenure with the Browns was great, he said things got progressively worse over time. He said that after some time, the early spark dimmed and connection between the players and coaches faded, which Falcons fans need to really worry about.
If Kevin Stefanski wants to succeed in Atlanta, he needs to learn from his past mistakes
Frankly, he and Fournette seemed butthurt that Stefanski got another shot as a head coach while their careers are over, but this is still scary. The Dirty Birds are giving the two-time Coach of the Year another shot by betting that he wasn't the problem in Cleveland, but clearly he played a part in them.
Fournette noted he doesn't think that Stefanski connects well with younger players, referencing the Browns' QB controversy with Shedeur Sanders as proof of that. And for a Falcons' team that's amid their own quarterback dilemma between Michael Penix Jr. and Tua Tagovailoa, it's fair to be worried.
The bigger issue is that Landry responded to Emmanuel Acho on the pod, where his assessment of the 43-year-old got even worse. He claimed that when the Browns' offenses were struggling that Stefanski surrendered play-calling duties to then-OC Alex Van Pelt, who is now Atlanta's QBs coach.
Landry went on to say that he thinks the only thing Stefanski has to hang his hat on are his two Coach of the Year awards, while he believes he only won because of the Browns' history. He also said he doesn't think he cuts it as a play-caller, and claimed that Stefanski pinned play-calling on assistant coaches and took over when the team was successful in order to take credit, which sounds false.
This is something to take with a grain of salt given the circumstances and fans should take note of throughout the season. Thankfully, Tommy Rees will be the primary play-caller for Atlanta and Falcons fans won't have to worry, but hopefully history doesn't repeat itself if Landry's recollection is true.