Mike Rutenberg is the new Cleveland Browns defensive coordinator. Rutenberg will be charged with getting the most out of a Browns defense led by Myles Garrett that was one of the stiffest of 2024.
Rutenberg had received interest from the Tennessee Titans, per a Jan. 25 report by NFL insider Jeremy Fowler, but the Browns ended up with Rutenberg in the end, Fowler reported on Monday. Here’s a look at what to know about Rutenberg.
Mike Rutenberg’s Coaching History
Most recently, Mike Rutenberg was the defensive pass game coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons. He had only spent 2025 with the organization after a four-year run with the New York Jets as the team’s linebackers coach.
In 2020, he spent a season with Robert Saleh’s San Francisco 49ers during the team’s 6-10 season. In total, Rutenberg spent five consecutive seasons with Saleh across two different franchises.
Before his run with Saleh, Rutenberg spent seven consecutive years with the Jacksonville Jaguars in three different defensive roles.
The best record of a team Rutenberg has ever worked with in the NFL was a pair of 10-6 seasons with the 2005 Washington Redskins and 2017 Jacksonville Jaguars. Rutenberg’s 8-9 season with the Atlanta Falcons was his third-best run with an NFL team.
Why the Browns Hired Mike Rutenberg
Mike Rutenberg’s work with C.J. Mosely when he was with the New York Jets was arguably his biggest selling point. Under Rutenberg, Mosely posted his career high in tackles, sacks, tackles for loss, and passes defended in 2021, per Falcons media. Mosely had already been established as a great linebacker before joining New York, but was elevated under Rutenberg.
Now paired with Myles Garrett, who is coming off arguably the best season of any pass rusher in NFL history, the Browns have reason to hope he might be able to get even more out of Garrett.
Additionally, the coaching cycle was moving along by the time he was hired, with many teams filling in assistant coaches after having already filled their coordinators. Cleveland settled on Rutenberg in part due to the shrinking talent pool.
The Browns were one of the last teams to settle on their next head coach, so the franchise has been behind other teams since.
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