The search is officially on for the Cleveland Browns to identify their next head coach. After a 5-12 season in 2025, the franchise parted ways with head coach Kevin Stefanski after serving six years in the role. 

As executive vice president of football operations and general manager Andrew Berry remains, he's now tasked with overseeing Cleveland's search for a new head coach. As Berry explained in the aftermath of Stefanski's dismissal, his focus is "on identifying and finding the leader and partner to bring along this young team, as well as the young players that we're going to add in the next several months." 

There are a number of directions this could obviously go. The Browns could look to replace Stefanski's with another well respected offensive mind, who can transform the offense from one of the worst in football and finally find a franchise QB. 

On the other hand, they could lean into what they do best and hire a defensive-minded coach, who will already be set up for success with one of the game's best units. There are also likely to be both internal and external options considered as this process plays out over the next few weeks. 

Here are some important notes about the recently tweaked hiring cycle rules across the NFL

- Teams can make interview requests with potential coaching candidates starting the week of Jan. 5, and teams can interview candidates on teams who aren't playing in the wild-card round beginning Tuesday (in the case of the four teams playing Saturday night) and Wednesday (for everyone else playing Sunday).

- For the two playoff teams on a bye this week, their assistants can hold virtual interviews this week

- Any interviews with currently employed coaches can only be virtual up until Jan. 19, except for candidates who aren't currently employed (so for example, Kevin Stefanski can interview in person because he's no longer employed)

- In-person interviews can officially begin for employed coaches on Jan. 19, except for coaches on team's still playing for a conference championship, while second in-person interviews can't take place until Jan. 26, which is also when coaches on those respective playoff teams can also interview. 

- Coaches on the Super Bowl teams are allowed to be interviewed through Feb. 1 but are forbidden from talking to other teams after that until Feb. 9, the day after the Super Bowl

- Teams must fulfill the Rooney Rule by interviewing at least two in-person interview with at least two external diverse — minority and/or female — candidates for any GM or head coaching position

Keep track of every candidate the Browns are linked to with our official Browns head coach candidate tracker: 

John Harbaugh, Jan. 10, 2026: Reports indicate that the Browns are one of the handful of teams that hare seeking an appointment with Harbaugh, who isn't expected to take interviews until next week. After 18 years with the Baltimore Ravens, his reputation precedes him. Harbaugh is regarded as one of the best coaches in football and has interest from every team with a head coach opening so far. 

Chris Shula, Jan. 14, 2026: Shula became the second Rams assistant to earn an interview request from the Cleveland Browns. He's the grandson of NFL legend and the winning coach in league history Don Shula, and had a brief stint at his grandfather's Alma mater, John Carroll University, as a defensive coordinator in 2014. He made the leap to the NFL one year later with the Los Angeles Chargers and stayed there for two seasons before jumping over to Sofi Stadium's other tenant in 2017 and climbing the ranks to his role as DC the last two years. 

Tommy Rees, Jan. 8, 2026: Reports indicate that the Browns will interview current OC Tommy Rees for their vacant head coach role. Rees is a hot commodity in coaching circles both at the college level and the NFL, and nearly got the UNC job last offseason, before the school hired Bill Belichick. Rees joined Stefanski's staff in 2023 as a TE coach, but was promoted to OC this past season. He took over the play-calling from Stefanski in Week 10. 

Jim Schwartz, Jan. 8, 2026: The Browns other internal candidate, and one who received several endorsements from players in the locker room, Schwartz is also expected to interview for the job during the first week of the hiring cycle. Schwartz has previous head coach experience after spending five years with the Detroit Lions from 2009-2013. On Monday, GM Andrew Berry stated that Schwartz had "certainly earned the right for consideration." In his three years in Cleveland, Schwartz has transformed its defense into one of the best in football. 

Aden Durde, Jan. 9, 2026: Cleveland requested to interview Seahawks DC Aden Durde, while Seattle sits on a bye week in the first round of the playoffs. Durde has risen through the ranks over the last decade, getting his start with the Dallas Cowboys as a coaching intern from 2014-15. He's spent the last two seasons as the Seahawks DC. His unit was just outside the top 10 in total EPA in 2024 and ranks second this season. 

Dan Pitcher, Jan. 9, 2026: The Browns put in a request to interview their rivals' OC for their head coach vacancy. Interestingly, Pitcher has experience on both the operations/personnel side, getting his start with the Colts as a scout in 2012, and the coaching side. He's spent the entire coaching part of his tenure in Cincinnati, starting out as an offensive assistant and climbing the ranks to OC in 2024. He and Berry overlapped in Indy from 2012-2015. 

Todd Monken, Jan. 10, 2026: The Browns requested to interview Baltimore Ravens OC Todd 'Monken and he went through an initial interview on Jan. 10. The 59-year-old spent time in Cleveland as the offensive coordinator on Freddie Kitchens' staff in 2019. He joined John Harbaugh's staff in 2023 and helped turn the Ravens offense into one of the best in football. His unit ranked top 5 in points per game in 2023 and 2024. This year it was just outside the top 10, averaging 24.9 points per game. 

Mike McDaniel, Jan. 12, 2026: Tom Pelissero was the first to report that the Browns will interview the recently fired Dolphins head coach. That was followed by a report from Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot, that McDaniel will interview for the job on Monday, Jan. 12. Hailing from the Kyle Shanahan tree, McDaniel is considered one of the best offensive minds in football. During his first two years in Miami between 2022-2023, his offenses ranked top 10 and top five, respectively, in EPA, and top 11 and top 3 in points per game. 

Nate Scheelhasse, Jan. 16, 2026: After requesting to interview Scheelhasse, the Browns held a virtual interview with the Rams' passing game coordinator on the Friday before Los Angeles faces the Bears in the NFC Divisional Round. He's the latest Sean McVay disciple to be gaining momentum in the NFL's coaching carousel, following a season where Los Angeles led the league in passing by averaging a whopping 269.6 yards per game. Veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford also posted one of the best seasons of his career, throwing for a league best 4,707 yards and 46 touchdowns. 

Jesse Minter, Jan. 16, 2026: Minter had an initial interview with the Browns' on Friday. He's spent the last two seasons as the Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator. The 42-year-old has experience across the college and NFL ranks, particularly on Jim Harbaugh's staff. Prior to joining the Chargers, Minter served in the same role on Harbaugh's staff at Michigan from 2022-2023. He also spent time with John Harbaugh in Baltimore between 2017-2020. 

Grant Udinski, Jan. 17, 2026: The Jaguars OC officially had an interview with the Browns on Saturday. Udinski is a young, up-and-coming name in the coaching ranks and is already seeing some head coach attention after a successful first year with the Jacksonville Jaguars under Liam Coen. He's be the youngest head coach ever hired if he got the job. Under Udinski, the Jags ranked 12th in total EPA this season, while finishing seventh in points per game at a clip of 27.7. 

Jim Schwartz: Cleveland.com reports that Schwartz will undergo a second interview with the team on Monday, Jan. 19. 

Todd Monken: The Browns are also expected to conduct a second interview with Monken in the week ahead. His is reportedly scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 20. 

Mike McDaniel: NFL Network's Ian Rapoport was the first to reveal that McDaniel will have a second interview on Wednesday, Jan. 21. McDaniel canceled his interview with the Browns the night before after accepting the Chargers OC job instead. 

Grant Udinski: Reports indicate the Browns are planning to host Udinski for an in-person interview after being "blown away" by his first conversation. The second interview is scheduled for Friday, Jan. 23. 

Jesse Minter: The Browns were scheduled to host Minter for a second interview on Thursday, Jan. 22, but the Chargers DC bowed out of the meeting, according to Cleveland.com, citing other opportunities being more certain landing spots. 

Nate Scheelhaase: The Browns are also looking to set up a second interview with Scheelhaase as well. He's the last coach still in the playoffs, and his availability will depend on whether or not the Rams advance to the NFC Championship. If so, he can't interview in person until Jan. 26.