It didn't take long for Kevin Stefanski to rejoin the head coaching ranks.
The Atlanta Falcons are hiring Stefanski as their new head coach, NFL Network Insiders Ian Rapoport, Mike Garafolo and Tom Pelissero reported Saturday. The team later announced the news.
"In Kevin Stefanski, we have found a coach with the right vision, focus and demeanor to lead our team into the future," owner Arthur Blank said in a statement. "From all our research and a wonderful visit with him tonight, I believe he is the right coach to take the talent on our roster to a new level and to work with Matt (Ryan), our new GM and all our football personnel to build on the strong foundation in place and take it to new heights.
"He has a great plan for his staff, and he's learned many things during his stops in Cleveland and Minnesota that have prepared him for this moment. Our objective is to win games and contend for championships every year and that is where our shared focus will remain. We are committed to putting all necessary support and resources around Coach Stefanski to achieve that success and the work has already begun."
Stefanski is coming off a six-year stretch as the Cleveland Browns' head coach, during which he made the playoffs twice, sporting a 1-2 postseason record, and also twice won AP NFL Coach of the Year. He was fired from the Browns after finishing the 2025 campaign with a 5-12 record, which brought his career record to 45-56.
Still just 43, Stefanski garnered plenty of interest from other teams seeking a new head coach; he also interviewed with the Baltimore Ravens, Miami Dolphins, New York Giants and Tennessee Titans.
It was a mixed bag for Stefanski with the Browns, who despite winning only eight combined games his past two seasons nonetheless overperformed by delivering Cleveland two 11-win seasons, the only time the franchise has hit that mark this century.
He joins a Falcons team similarly in a rut. Atlanta has not reached the playoffs or enjoyed a winning record since the 2017 season, and has now hired Stefanski as the organization's fourth full-time head coach since the turn of the decade.
Though the recent past is daunting, there's also good reason for optimism in Atlanta, especially now with a coach of Stefanski's caliber.
It will, of course, be a very different atmosphere following complete turnover, but the Falcons fought hard to end the 2025 season with a four-game winning streak, including a comeback victory versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and a shocking win over the Los Angeles Rams.
The Falcons also boast a sturdy core of difference-makers on both sides of the ball. Running back Bijan Robinson and wide receiver Drake London represent top-of-the-line offensive talent. If the Falcons can retain tight end Kyle Pitts, he finally reestablished himself as a threat. Atlanta's defense can certainly build on secondary pieces such as A.J. Terrell and Xavier Watts and front-seven contributors like James Pearce Jr., Jalon Walker and Brandon Dorlus.
The biggest issue for Stefanski to tackle is, like many teams, at quarterback.
Michael Penix Jr. is recovering from a partially torn ACL and Kirk Cousins agreed to rework his contract, meaning he'll likely venture into free agency. It's a puzzle inherited by Stefanski after the previous Falcons regime signed Cousins to a huge free-agent deal and drafted Penix at No. 8 overall in the 2024 draft just a couple months apart, only to whiff on both as of now.
Penix showed flashes and could obviously still develop into the franchise signal-caller Atlanta so craves, but he was also inconsistent enough that a new coach would be right to weigh his options. Luckily, Stefanski has proven capable of the art of quarterback whispering, even if he was never able to find the perfect signal-caller to pair with in Cleveland.
Stefanski started his tenure with Baker Mayfield under center before the club went all in on Deshaun Watson ahead of the 2022 season, though he ended up being suspended for the first 11 games of that campaign. Injuries followed him from then on, leading Stefanski to work with a long line of signal-callers that included Jacoby Brissett, Joe Flacco, Jameis Winston and, in 2025 after another fling with Flacco, rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. He won his second COTY award for making the playoffs during a 2023 season that saw Cleveland start five different QBs.
He'd obviously like to find one who sticks, but he's also shown he's comfortable and competent when giving the QB carousel a whirl.
Finding out for sure if Penix is the guy or if it should be someone else will be one of Stefanski's top priorities, one that hopefully proves an easier task in Atlanta than it did in Cleveland.
Regardless, the Falcons have their guy, as well as some newfound optimism under an offensive-minded coach in yet another fresh start.