CLEVELAND — It has been a busy day for the Cleveland Browns’ coaching search committee.
Hours after concluding their interview with former Green Bay Packers and Super Bowl-winning coach Mike McCarthy, the Browns’ leadership committee boarded a plane and paid a visit to an AFC North Division rival in Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Greg Roman.
The Browns confirmed the interview with Roman Thursday evening.
The Browns were able to interview Roman this week because the Ravens earned the No. 1 overall seed and a bye to the second round of the AFC Playoffs courtesy of their victory at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland on Sunday, December 22.
Roman is a veteran NFL coach with 22 years of experience, most recently leading one of the league’s most prolific offenses with quarterback Lamar Jackson putting up historic numbers on the way to being considered the heavy favorite to win the Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player Award.
A two-year starter and All-Ohio Athletic Conference defensive lineman at John Carroll University in University Heights, Ohio, Roman began his coaching career with the expansion Carolina Panthers (1995-2001).
Roman continued his NFL career with the Houston Texans (2002-2005), first as the tight ends coach, and later, quarterbacks coach, where he guided franchise signal-caller David Carr to his best professional season.
During the 2006-2007 seasons, Roman was an offensive assistant with the Ravens before moving onto Stanford University (2009-2010), and later, reentering the NFL ranks with the San Francisco 49ers (2011-2014), where he served as the offensive coordinator and helped the team make three straight trips to the NFC Championship Game.
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After spending 2015 and 2016 with the Buffalo Bills, Roman returned to Baltimore and helped the offense flourish with Jackson at the controls.
The Browns are far from done talking with candidates regarding their head-coaching vacancy, as reportedly, they have interviews scheduled with Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll and several San Francisco assistants (Robert Saleh, Mike McDaniel and Mike LaFleur), which are expected to take place Saturday.
Daboll’s interview will be on Sunday after the Bills compete in a Wild Card Playoff game against the Houston Texans.
Additionally, the Browns reportedly have asked permission to speak with Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy.