The Cleveland Browns were in the midst of the franchise’s worst stretch of football during the late 2010s when the team fired former head coach Hue Jackson.
Jackson finished his head coaching career by going 3-36-1 in two-plus seasons on the Browns’ sidelines and was released midway through the 2018 season.
Cleveland turned to defensive coordinator Gregg Williams for the remainder of the year, and the interim coach helped the Browns to a 5-3 finish en route to a 7-8-1 season.
Williams believes that had he been retained for the next season he would have been able to accomplish something special with the franchise.
On 92.3 The Fan, Williams told the hosts of the “Baskin & Phelps” program that had he been retained for the 2019 NFL season and beyond, he would have led the Browns to a Super Bowl.
“I really believe, I said this when I was here, I believe I could have won a championship with Baker (Mayfield) at quarterback,” Williams said.
Williams recounted that before he took over the reins, the team had surrendered over 40 hits on the quarterback in 2018 and had allowed 38 sacks.
Once Williams assumed the head coaching role, the former defensive coordinator explained the way he reduced those hits by requiring Mayfield to get rid of the football faster.
Williams – who has not coached in the NFL since 2020 – said that Mayfield was one of his favorite players as the quarterback was a fiery competitor like himself.
Following the 2018 campaign, the Browns elected to reset the franchise by hiring offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens to run the team.
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