Report: Browns supporting Freddie Kitchens

The Cleveland Browns have three games remaining in the 2019 season, and while the playoffs may be nothing more than a pleasant fantasy at this point, the team can still finish with a winning record for the first time since 2007.

That seemed like a pipe dream when the Browns were sitting at 2-6 following a loss to the Denver Broncos. But four wins in their past five games has put a 9-7 finish back in reach.

It may not be the what the team and fans hoped for given the unrealistic expectations placed on the Browns in the preseason, but a strong finish to the season may be enough for head coach Freddie Kitchens to avoid being a one-and-done head coach.

That is according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, who writes that Browns management remains “very supportive” of Kitchens and wants him to succeed:

Sources say Browns management continues to stand with Kitchens and wants him to continue to have the success necessary to remain in that position for a long time. As the end of the regular season looms, the speculation about job security is at its peak.

But as of right now, barring a horrific collapse or circumstance to end the season, it appears the Browns will be moving forward with Kitchens.

The organization will evaluate everything, but that is the direction it’s heading.

Going 4-1 in their last five games has helped, as does the fact that Kitchens is a first-year coach who understands he’s not a finished product. They knew that when they hired him.

That news will not sit well with the segment of the fan base that was ready to fire Kitchens after Week 1, but it may be the direction that the Browns are heading.

Those decisions are still a few weeks away, however, and if the Browns bumble their way through the final three games then anything is possible.