The Cleveland Browns fired Kevin Stefanski and then watched their former head coach land a new job relatively quickly with the Atlanta Falcons. Soon afterward, offensive coordinator Tommy Rees followed him to remain his offensive coordinator.
It took a while longer for the Browns to name Todd Monken as Stefanski’s replacement. But now that they’ve done so, Monken is acting even faster to build his staff with assistants he worked with the past three seasons as offensive coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens.
As the coaching carousel continues to spin, Stefanski is calling on his Cleveland connections again, as another former Browns coach is joining him in Atlanta, with former offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt reportedly becoming the Falcons’ new quarterbacks coach.
“The Falcons are hiring Alex Van Pelt as their quarterbacks coach, per source. Another reunion with Kevin Stefanski, who had Van Pelt as his offensive coordinator in Cleveland from 2020-23,” Tom Pelissero wrote.
The Falcons are hiring Alex Van Pelt as their quarterbacks coach, per source.
Another reunion with Kevin Stefanski, who had Van Pelt as his offensive coordinator in Cleveland from 2020-23. pic.twitter.com/xcpVk54vud
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 31, 2026
Van Pelt was dismissed by the Browns following the 2023 season. Reports said it was because the front office was unhappy with the way he failed to get better results from quarterback Deshaun Watson.
That year, Joe Flacco joined the team late in the season, after Watson was injured, and helped it reach the playoffs with a late surge. Flacco did not return the next year, when Ken Dorsey was promoted to offensive coordinator and Rees joined the staff as its tight ends coach and pass game specialist.
The Browns have been searching for solutions on offense ever since. Dorsey was fired after the 2024 season and Rees was promoted for his one season in the role. In those two seasons, the Browns used seven different starting quarterbacks and won eight of 34 games.
It is why the Browns focused their new search on an offensive-minded head coach. Though it looked like they were heading toward hiring a young assistant, namely Nate Scheelhaase or Grant Udinski, they instead chose Monken, who turns 60 next month and is one of the oldest first-time head coaches in NFL history.
He has replaced Rees as offensive coordinator with Travis Switzer, who was Baltimore’s running game coordinator, and also added offensive line coach George Warhop from that staff.
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