FREDDIE MUST PROVE HIMSELF DOWN THE STRETCH

By STEVE KING

Head coach Freddie Kitchens will begin fighting for his professional life when his Browns (5-7) host the Cincinnati Bengals (1-11) on Sunday at FirstEnergy Stadium.

Oh, sure there will be so much else to watch as well on the Browns when they play Sunday, and in the three games to follow, as they finish this oh-so-disappointing-and-dreadful season, the one in which they were supposed to do so much but will end up doing so very little – yet again in this nightmarish, two-decade expansion era.

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There is the continued development of all of these young players, most importantly quarterback Baker Mayfield. Without him, the Browns have no hope. Regardless of what you may have read elsewhere or heard from one of the talking heads, this guy is the real deal. As a lifelong Bengals fan said to me the other day, “I’m jealous of the Browns because they have their quarterback.” Do the eye test, just as she did, and you’ll see that.

You can include Nick Chubb and all the rest. These guys, as good as they may appear — and Chubb certainly seems to be at the very top of the list in that category – still must get better, and they have these final games to do so.

But who will be their coach as they go forward here? That is so important, too. In fact, with Mayfield and General Manager John Dorsey in place – I believe in the latter strongly, too – the Browns have two-thirds of the crucial quarterback-GM-head coach triumvirate. Without that, no team can be good. Now the Browns – most specifically Dorsey – have to make a determination about Kitchens. Does he belong as well? The jury is still out, but the chances seem to be less than 50 percent that he will stay.

He can, however, affect this – change this. He can do much to state his case and ensconce himself, and it starts against the Bengals.