The Atlanta Falcons are officially ushering in a new era, which starts and ends with the hiring of Kevin Stefanski to be their next head coach. Whether you love him or hate him, there's no denying that this is one of the Falcons' most important decisions in recent memory and is a massive get for Matt Ryan.
Despite being regarded among the best available head coaching candidates, not everyone is on board with the move. The 43-year-old stumbled near the end of his time in Cleveland, which prompted NFL "analyst" Skip Bayless to chastize the decision by calling Stefanski "overrated".
The Atlanta Falcons hiring Kevin Stefanski is a big mistake. He's overrated. Talks a good game with owners. Doesn't connect with players. Arrogant, condescending. Now all that Falcons' talent will be wasted.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) January 18, 2026
Take his words with a grain of salt, because we all know by now that Bayless is a petulant man-child who is never on the right side of history. He's the same man who said Johnny Manziel would be bigger for Cleveland sports than LeBron James, so his track record with discussing the Browns is off.
Skip Bayless proves how out of touch with reality he is with analysis of Kevin Stefanski hire
I really question why Skip still maintains a platform, because he doesn't deserve it. Frankly, I can't think of anything that's a bigger endorsement of Stefanski, because if Bayless is trying to argue that the front office made a mistake, he's solely attempting to rile up a fanbase that should be fired up.
Honestly, Bayless would have at least some merit if he brought up his 8-26 record across the last two seasons, but even that argument falls flat. He was shackled by horrendous ownership and was not given enough autonomy in making key decisions like trading for Deshaun Watson or drafting Shedeur Sanders.
Even still, Stefanski dragged some rough Browns teams to the playoffs, The two-time Coach of the Year broke an 18-year playoff drought in his first season at the helm, and led Cleveland to an 11-5 record in 2023 with Joe Flacco starting. And he has a good track record with player development.
Bayless is the type of pundit who is perpetually negative and seems to only speak his mind to bash teams or players. Raheem Morris connected with players, but it never resulted in wins, so his point makes no sense when all the Dirty Birds really want is a coach who will break their playoff drought.
I would rather bring in someone who has a proven track record like Stefanski than gamble on a first-time head coach, especially when he's an innovative offensive mind. Hopefully he's the one calling plays, but so far he's assembled a solid staff and the Falcons are better off despite Bayless' qualms.