INDIA – It has only been a month since Kevin Stefanski hired Ken Dorsey to replace Alex Van Pelt as offensive coordinator, and they are still acquainted.
It’s one of the reasons Stefanski hasn’t decided whether he’ll keep calling plays or delegate the responsibility to Dorsey, who did so in Buffalo in 2022 and for 10 games in 2023 before being dismissed with the Bills 5-5. Dorsey finished 18-8 as a play-caller there, including 1-1 in the playoffs.
“I think where we are right now in terms of looking at the offense and putting it back together, I don’t know if that decision is important right now,” Stefanski said Wednesday at the NFL Combine. “I’ll let you know as soon as I’ve made a decision.”
Stefanski did add that he and Dorsey will fly to Los Angeles next week for a high-level meeting with Deshaun Watson, who has yet to meet Dorsey in person. It will also provide an opportunity for the two coaches to get to know each other better as they construct the Browns offense around Watson, who underwent surgery in November to repair a fractured glenoid bone in his right throwing shoulder.
The good news is that Stefanski and Dorsey have shared offensive mentors, including former Browns offensive coordinator Norv Turner, who oversees the numbers system pioneered by the famous Don Coryell.
“I think Ken sees it exactly how I see it,” Stefanski remarked. You want to play to your players’ strengths. I don’t think either of us or anyone on our offensive staff feels that you only have to do one thing to succeed in the NFL because that is not the reality of life in the league. You need to be multifaceted. You must be able to pivot in a game. You must be versatile in what you do. So we’ll do what we believe is best for our players in every given game, as that varies from game to game.”
Dorsey worked for three seasons under former Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, who came up through the Patriots system, which could benefit Watson. That’s noteworthy since Watson’s first NFL coach in Houston was Bill O’Brien, who is also familiar with the Patriot Way and offensive philosophy.
“I think all of that is important,” Stefanski added. “Ken has been in a number of different systems. I know you recently highlighted Dabes and what they’re doing in Buffalo, but Ken has used variants of Norv’s method, which I also used, while he was in Carolina. So we perceive the game in very similar ways, but I believe all of his experiences are crucial in what he offers to us.”
Stefanski has plenty of time to decide on the best course of action, as the Browns’ offseason program does not begin until April 15 and training camp begins late July.
However, if he waits as long as he did last time to announce who will call plays, he could be answering this question for another half-year. When he hired Van Pelt in 2020, he didn’t reveal that he’d be handling the duty himself until two days before the opening.
