Seattle Seahawks' defensive coordinator Aden Durde has been officially linked to the open head coaching position with the Cleveland Browns. This is a great opportunity for Durde, one of the underappreciated architects of Seattle’s stifling defense. Even if he fails to land the job, taking his first official interview is a big step for a coach.
NFL head coaching jobs are scarce.
The first thing a coach like Durde must do is get his name out there. He needs to stop being anonymous and become one of those respected up-and-comers – the kind of coach that fans and the media – and especially NFL team owners – think of when there is an opening. This Cleveland interview moves Durde a bunch of spaces ahead on the head coach board game.
Seattle Seahawks' Aden Durde got an interview for a job hopefully he won't get
The only thing is … well, how to put this without angering a fine, fine city?
The only thing is … it’s Cleveland.
I’m not talking about the current Browns’ situation. True, they do not have a sure thing at quarterback, and that is the single biggest potential coach killer out there. But they do have a good young running back and tight end. The offensive line isn’t bad. The defense, led by Myles Garrett, can be very good at times.
Rosters like the Browns can be overhauled in a season or two. They should only be yoked to the horrific Deshaun Watson contract for one more year.
The problem with going to Cleveland is that, as a football franchise, they just seem to be snakebit. They are one of four current NFL teams to have never played in a Super Bowl. Two of those teams, Houston and Jacksonville, are in the playoffs this year. And they have been in existence for far fewer years than the Browns.
That leaves Cleveland and Detroit as the two oldest teams to have never experienced a Super Bowl. Detroit is currently in much better shape, and, lest we forget, Detroit’s owner never snuck the team out of town in the middle of the night.
That kind of thing – like the entire Deshaun Watson fiasco - only seems to happen to Cleveland.
So, back to Aden Durde. He is one of five candidates for the Browns’ top spot to have been officially confirmed. The others are Todd Monken, Dan Pitcher, Tommy Rees, and Jim Schwartz.
These are all fine football men, and there may be a name or two in there who will one day make for a fine coach. But right now, the fact is that none of these men have been approached by any other teams looking for a head coach.
The hottest names on the market right now – Vance Joseph, Klint Kubiak, Kevin Stefanski, Matt Nagy …. none appear on the Browns' list. Two of the five men Cleveland intends to interview are their own current coordinators, Rees and Schwartz.
Now this could all change tomorrow. Maybe Mike McDaniel or John Harbaugh will jet into Hopkins International and be announced as the Browns’ 23rd head coach. Stranger things have happened.
Well, maybe they haven’t. I mean, it is hard to look at the Browns right now and not feel like their coaching candidates are sitting at the rejects table at a wedding. That is not a reflection on the quality and ultimate viability of a coach like Aden Durde. It is a reflection on a franchise that doesn’t seem to believe it can attract one of the coveted coaches and therefore must go looking for bargains.
If Aden Durde lands the Browns’ job, I hope he thrives. I hope he thrives so much that he will one day point to this story and call the writer an idiot. I just don’t think that is a very likely outcome. I guess what I really hope is that Aden Durde gets more interviews and eventually lands a better job.