The Cleveland Browns had a great season in 2020 behind a dynamic offense that mixed run and pass beautifully. The offensive line, with Bill Callahan running the show, provided ample time to throw and great running lanes.
Baker Mayfield quieted doubters in 2020 to clear cement himself as the team’s franchise quarterback.
The Browns also broke their playoff and winning season droughts behind the great offense. They followed that up with a win in the Wild Card round against AFC North rival Pittsburgh Steelers.
The man calling the shots, Kevin Stefanski, took home the Coach of the Year award but, despite calling plays on offense, wasn’t good enough to break Pro Football Focus’ top six offensive play-callers in the NFL:
The top offensive play callers in the NFL, per @PFF_Eric
Do you agree? pic.twitter.com/ZBI5DrqhDb
— PFF (@PFF) June 9, 2021
The list just begs for questions starting with Marr LaFleur being ranked at the top, continuing with Andy Reid only ranked third, and finishing with questions about Jon Gruden and Joe Brady.
Maybe even more notable than the Stefanski snub is not having Kyle Shanahan on the list and continues with the exclusion of Sean Payton and Sean McVay.
If Stefanski was left off the list due to his lack of experience, they would have to explain the presence of Joe Brady and Byron Leftwich.
Obviously “play-caller” doesn’t mean for certain team success nor offensive statistics but the Raiders and Panthers failed to make the playoffs while the Panthers offense was bottom third in the league in scoring.
The rankings also seem to minimize teams who have success on the ground. Only LaFleur’s Packers, ranked eighth, were among the top 13 rushing teams of this group of “top six play-callers.”
In the end, this list posted by PFF doesn’t seem based on much logical data. While many could argue the names and order, a list of top play callers without Shanahan, Payton, McVay, and Stefanski just doesn’t fit what we saw last season. Reid, Daboll, and LaFleur would be a part of that argument as well.