The straight-up trade the Steelers should make with the Browns — seriously — and it is not at QB

Kevin Stefanski, an Ivy League graduate of Penn and native of Philadelphia, is now coach of the Browns and facing the Kansas City Chiefs

… this is not just in jest

There is no doubt that the Pittsburgh Steelers are in trouble, and the loss to the Cleveland Browns in the first round of the NFL playoffs after starting 11-0 is just the tip of the iceberg. 

They have serious salary cap issues that may lead to the release of Cam Heyward, Bud Dupree, and JuJu Smith-Schuster, among others. 

They have to deal with an aging quarterback who played sporadically in the final weeks of the season and costs $41 million against their salary cap. 

When I read a few of the Steeler blogs after the Cleveland game, I was not surprised at the anger levied by fans at the players, coaches. and management. 

Consequently, I have a recommendation for the Steelers, a rather unconventional trade that could benefit the team. 

Who is Kevin Stefanski?

The funny post that I read a few days ago related to the fact that Cleveland head Coach Kevin Stefanski had outcoached the Steelers Mike Tomlin, but because of his contracting Covid, he was not even in the building. He had to remain in Cleveland. 

Many Steeler fans did not even know the name of the Browns’ coach, but here is a little about him. 

Stefanski grew up in the Philadelphia suburbs where his father was, at the time, in the banking industry. He is now an NBA executive, but at the time, he played football for a Catholic high school in Philadelphia, St. Joseph’s Prep. 

He earned MVP honors in the Catholic League, playing quarterback and defensive back, and he received good grades, earning him a spot at the University of Pennsylvania, where he played for the Quakers and became all-Ivy League while tearing out two knees. 

Stefanski served for one year at Penn as an intern and assistant director of football operations to the head coach, and then was fortunate to land a similar job with the Minnesota Vikings. 

Last year, after developing quarterbacks like Case Keenum, who led the Vikings to the NFC championship game three seasons ago, and then Kirk Cousins, he was hired with the Browns,

In almost every way, Stefanski defies the caricature of the old-school NFL head coach. He never played in the league and attended an Ivy League school. He despises talking about himself, yet lights up when asked about his assistants. He almost never loses his cool, underscored by a subtle tendency on the headset to defuse a game’s tensest moments with his dry sense of a humor.

“Sometimes you’re like, ‘Did he just crack a joke?’ He can work one into any situation,” said tight ends coach Drew Petzing, who came to Cleveland with Stefanski from Minnesota. “But Kevin is also extremely smart, very organized, willing to understand and very calm, cool and collected. He's not going to yell or scream or give you that absolutely epic speech from ‘Any Given Sunday.’ That's not maybe what he's the absolute best at.

“Now, does that mean he doesn't motivate guys and drive guys and push guys? No. But he understands how to do that, knowing his personality and how people view him. He’s very self-aware, which is a great quality to have.”

Jake Trotter, “Scottish accents, pranks and humor: Unflappable Kevin 

Stefanski perfect fit for Browns,” ESPN, January 12, 2021

The proposed trade

On the other side is Mike Tomlin, who was a hero with the Steelers in his early years. In his second year after succeeding Bill Cowher, Tomlin led the Steelers to a Super Bowl victory over Arizona. Two years later, they again reached the Super Bowl, losing to the Green Bay Packers in a good effort. 

Then, the bottom fell out in terms of the Steelers post-season accomplishments. Tomlin has won 64 percent overall, 65 in the regular season, but his postseason record drops significantly, 8-8, .500. 

The problem has occurred over the past decade as the Steelers have won just three postseason games. That is what upset the people on the Steelers blogs. 

That is why I am proposing a straight-up trade with the Browns, sending a guy who has won 65 percent of his NFL games to the Browns for a young coach with little experience. 

Seems like a good trade since it would quiet the commenters on the blogs. 

May help Mason Rudolph

While some Steeler fans were upset with some of the problems that backup quarterback Mason Rudolph had in 2019 after Ben Roethlisberger, remember that he had no time to work with the primary receivers without being pressed into service. 

And, from watching the highlight clips of the game that Rudolph played against the Browns the week before, you cannot help but be impressed with the quality of his arm. He had three passes of over 40 yards, and while his interception led to a TD, he has showed promise that a great QB coach could improve. 

He could not do much with Roethlisberger, but the fans hope that Ben will come to his senses and retire. I am not one of them, so he may be around for another season. However, with Stefanski not tied to the past, he would not hesitate to put in Rudolph. If the latter does not show next year that he can compete, the Steelers can draft up and try to secure a first-round pick. 

Then there is the race factor

When Mike Tomlin was hired for the Steelers in 2007, a good friend had a discussion with me over how a black head coach would be accepted in Western Pa. My answer was succinct, “They will be okay with him if he wins.”

And he did that with regularity in his first few years, and he has done that during the regular season after that. Winning 65 percent of your games is no small feat, but I have felt that some of the virulent antipathy in comments on these blogs reflect the fact that racism is rampant in Pennsylvania. 

In a sense, hiring a Pennsylvania guy, albeit one who grew up in the eastern part of the state would help, but having a white coach may help some. However, note that Bill Cowher was very popular when he was winning, but when he lost, like he did in his first Super Bowl in the 1990s, made him persona non grata. 

Then, when he had a few losing seasons, the wolves were out in full rage. So, race is not always the primary factor. 

Winning is, but Cowher was more readily accepted by many fans than Tomlin has been. Even when Tomlin was winning, he was still being criticized. 

Proviso

As I have written many times, I have been critical of Tomlin for one reason: His lack of discipline, but never for his race. I also criticized Cowher for losing four of six AFC title games at home, and particularly for the loss to the Patriots in which they were something like 17 point favorites. 

I still respect Tomlin and root for the Steelers, but I think that some of his problems with the players have reflected a change in posture. In his first season, he was a hard-ass, putting them through the toughest camp in recent memory. 

Then, he wanted to become a buddy with the players, and I think that some of the problems with Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell were the result of that. 

As for the trade, it is an interesting idea, and throw in a few draft picks,  and it could be quite interesting.