Bruce Arians reiterated that there is only one NFL coaching job that he’d consider as a reason to return to the sideline.
“I would listen to the Browns and only them,” Arians said, via Ian Rapoport of NFL Media. “… I’ve always loved Cleveland. The fans, shoot, one of the best groups in the league and when I called their game this past year, I got that feeling about them.”
Arians said that he’d have Freddie Kitchens serve as offensive coordinator and consider keeping interim head coach Gregg Williams as the defensive coordinator. Kitchens was on Arians’ staff in Arizona for his entire run as the Cardinals head coach.
The 66-year-old Arians’ comments come on the heels of his previous statement earlier this month that said the following: “Cleveland is the only job I would consider,” Arians said in response to the inquiry by Canton (Ohio) Repository’s Steve Doerschuk.
The Browns fired head coach Hue Jackson and offensive coordinator Todd Haley last month.
Arians served as the offensive coordinator of the only Browns team to make a postseason appearance since the rebirth of the franchise via expansion in 1999. He was fired by the club after the 2003 season.
Arians retired after posting three double-digit-win seasons in five years as head coach of the Cardinals. He owns a record of 49-30-1 with a 1-2 mark in the playoffs as a head coach in the NFL.
A two-time NFL Coach of the Year, Arians also posted a 9-3 record as an interim head coach for the Indianapolis Colts in 2012 while Chuck Pagano was undergoing treatment for cancer.
Arians also has two Super Bowl rings during his eight seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers as wide receivers coach and offensive coordinator.
