Browns history: RB Coach Stump Mitchell talks being let go, his college/NFL career and so much more

25 questions with a former Browns coach   

The “Arizona Cardinals” are the oldest continuous professional American Football team in the United States. They began as a gym team that would play other athletic clubs and gyms, and small-to-medium city teams situated regionally where a day trip on a train could get them there and back in the same 24-hour period.

Much like the Cleveland Browns, the Cardinals are steeped in history.

The Cardinals have had eight different franchise names beginning with the “Morgan Athletic Club” in 1898. In 1901, they became their third moniker this time called the “Racine Cardinals.” The team name “Cardinals” was not after the species of birds, but the color “cardinal red.” Many teams at the time had the names of colors, especially in pro baseball where everyone wore the same uniform just with different colors of leggings.

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Fast forward to 1987. For years, other NFL clubs had looked at Phoenix, Arizona as a place to relocate. Often, the city was used as a negotiation ploy for a club to persuade the local politicians and community to get what they wanted if they decided to remain instead. The “St. Louis Cardinals” finally took the plunge in a move and the “Phoenix Cardinals” began in the 1988 season.

At the time, all of New Mexico and Arizona favored the Dallas Cowboys as their favorite NFL club. So, in 1994, the franchise changed its name again, this time to the “Arizona Cardinals” to help develop its fanbase regionally.

Stump Mitchell was drafted by St. Louis in 1981, taken in the ninth round after a stellar college career out of The Citadel. In his senior season, he was voted the Southern Conference Player of the Year, named Third Team All-American, and was a two-time All-Southern Conference selection. Mitchell still holds Citadel school records for career rushing yards (4,062) plus the most rushing yards in a single season (1,647).

After his final college season, Mitchell was ranked second in the nation in rushing yards behind George Rogers of South Carolina. Mitchell’s numbers that year topped Herschel Walker, Marcus Allen, Freeman McNeil, Barry Redden, James Brooks, Kelvin Bryant, Sammy Winder, Eric Dickerson, Curt Warner, Butch Woolfolk, and Roger Craig.

In his rookie NFL season, Mitchell played sparingly on offense because the franchise already had Pro Bowler O.J. Anderson entrenched at running back. But Mitchell found his calling on special teams as the main punt and kickoff returner. That season, he had 42 punt returns for 445 yards with a 10.6 yards per return average, one touchdown, and a long of 50 yards. He also returned 55 kickoffs for 1,292 yards and a 23.5 yards per return average with a long of 67 yards.

In 1985, he was finally the main running back and came through rushing for 1,006 yards on 183 carries, scored seven touchdowns, had a 5.5 yards per carry average, plus caught 47 balls for 502 yards with another three scores.

He spent nine seasons with the Cardinals (1981-1989), one with the Kansas City Chiefs (1991), and a comeback year with the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League (1993).

When he hung up his cleats with the Cardinals, he was the second-leading rusher in franchise history with 4,649 rushing yards, and 1,955 receiving yards, ranked second in kickoff return yards with 4,007, and third in punt return yards with 1,377. Currently, he is ranked #108 in NFL history in Career All-Purpose Yards.

After his playing days, he went into coaching. First, he got an assistant job with the San Antonio Riders of the World League of American Football in 1992. From there, he coached high school and college before being hired by the Seattle Seahawks as their running backs coach. Mitchell has coached for five NFL clubs, including the Cleveland Browns from 2019-2023.

In Mitchell’s senior year of high school, he was named the 1980 State Amateur Player of the Year. Mitchell was inducted into The Citadel Athletic Hall of Fame in 1987, the South Carolina Football Hall of Fame in 2023, and the National High School Football Hall of Fame last year.

If there ever was a “Beard Hall of Fame” started, we would make sure Mitchell is nominated.

At Camden County High School in Kingsland, Georgia, Mitchell played football, was an outfielder in baseball, and participated in track. His events were line jump, triple jump, 4×100 relay, and 4×400 relay.

While with the Browns, Mitchell’s production with the running back room was on full display.

Cleveland finished in the league in rushing yards 12th, 3rd, 4th, 6th, and 12th during his tenure. The year after he left, the Browns ended up 29th. During Mitchell’s time, Chubb ranked #2, #7, #2, and #3. The following season was the knee injury. In both the 2019 and 2022 seasons, Chubb shuffled with Derrick Henry and Josh Jacobs for the top spot.

The highest-ranked Browns RB this past season was Jerome Ford at #38.

Today, Mitchell lives in Georgia. He has four children and eight grandchildren.

Dawgs By Nature’s Barry Shuck caught up with Mitchell to discuss how he found out he had been drafted into the NFL, Nick Chubb’s knee injury, and why he was let go by Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski.

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DBN: We realize you have been asked this 4,000 times, but let’s get this out of the way. How did you get the nickname “Stump”?

Mitchell: My brother Trezzazant. He and I were tussling and told my mother you better get this guy before I beat him down like a stump. I was number four of seven kids. I was six years old and have been known as that ever since. My mom is the only one who calls me by my real name Lyvonia.

DBN: Out of Camden County High School, you were offered a scholarship with West Point but you turned it down. Why?

Mitchell: The Naval Academy also. Neither was going to allow me to play football. It was just going to be academics. At the time I was small, 155 pounds.

DBN: We have only met three players who have had their jerseys retired. You make Number 4. The Citadel retired your #35. Where were you when you heard the school’s football program was going to do this, and who was the first person you told?

Mitchell: I was with the Cardinals when they were in St. Louis. I heard it from Cedric Brown who was a teammate of mine and a year younger than me. I told my mom first. It was a great opportunity and a fun event. A lot of family and friends came to see it. My former coach showed up and was a great day.

DBN: Back in 1981, the NFL draft wasn’t the spectacle it is today. How did you find out that you have been taken in the ninth round by the St. Louis Cardinals?

Mitchell: I got a telephone call. I was actually a little pissed off to be perfectly honest. I was the second-leading rusher in the nation behind George Rogers. Against him, both of us had 167 yards in the same game except mine was against his defense and his was against mine at Citadel. Rogers won the Heisman and was the first overall pick in the draft. That was a draft with a bunch of future Hall of Famers. (Director of Pro Personnel) Larry Wilson of the Cardinals called and told me they had chosen me in the ninth round. I told him I should have gone a whole lot sooner but I was going to make their team. There was no question in my mind.

DBN: What was your first training camp like, and how did the veterans treat you?

Mitchell: It was tough. It was in St. Louis and was hot practicing on the turf in the summer. It was tough. With the veterans, it was different because football was different back then. There was no such thing as free agency. Guys knew already they had a place on the team. A guy in the ninth round was no big deal to them. To the coaches, they liked the guys taken in the first, second, and third rounds. Everybody else was just a practice player. That’s how it was with me. Dick Jamieson was the running back coach and didn’t particularly care for me – at the start. Otis Anderson was the main running back and eventually saw my potential as a player. He said, “Hey Coach. He’s a player. Let him play.” With Otis speaking up for me, it gave Coach Jamieson a different opinion and he allowed me to play somewhat. But I made the team by returning kickoffs and punts. Otis never treated me like somebody who was there to take his job – he didn’t have to worry about that. He was a big physical guy and quick as all get-out. He left catching balls to myself. He always wanted to carry the ball in a game or in practice. There was no one else like him. He would even take reps on the scout team.

DBN: At the end of your career with Phoenix (later renamed Arizona), you had the second most all-purpose yards in Cardinals franchise history with 11,985 behind only Larry Fitzgerald, and are now ranked #108 in NFL history. As a rookie, did you ever imagine such a career?

Mitchell: As a rookie, our special teams coach Chuck Banker told me I had no chance of making that football team as a running back. And that if I had any chance of not going back to Camden County, I better learn how to catch kickoffs and punts and return them. I hadn’t done that since high school and thought I was a running back. He set me straight right away. The next day I went out there with a better attitude. Eventually, I got a chance to play at the running back position. There is one record I hold that nobody will ever break: 105 consecutive punt returns without a fair catch signal. I had a couple of fumbles there, but no fair catches.

DBN: You attempted to make a comeback in 1993 in the Arena League with the Arizona Rattlers under Danny White who won AFL Coach of the Year. The Arena concept is great being indoors, and all the scoring, yet the league has been 19 teams then down to six, in bankruptcy court, then up and running again. Why didn’t the indoor concept catch on with football fans?

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Mitchell: It did in certain cities. In Phoenix, it caught on. Maybe it was because of Danny White who had played with the Cowboys. We had some good players like Hunkie Cooper Sherdrick Bonner, myself, and kicker Luis Zendejas who had played in the NFL before. Quarterback Paul Justin came from the Bears. It took me back to high school mentality where guys played both ways. I played running back and linebacker which I played while in high school as well. It was a lot of fun.

DBN: What initially got you interested in coaching?

Mitchell: In 1991 with the Chiefs, I went back to return a kickoff, turned, and tore everything in my right knee – ACL, MCL, and my PCL. Everything. They told me it was going to be a long recovery. I was just coming back from tearing up everything in my left knee. GM Carl Peterson asked me if I had ever thought about getting into coaching and said he thought I would be good at it. He knew Mike Riley who was the head coach of San Antonio in the WLAF. I told Carl absolutely.

DBN: You have been a head coach three times: Casa Grande Union High School, Morgan State, and Southern University. What are the advantages of running your own team, and what did you hate about running your own program?

Mitchell: In high school, it was great because I had the opportunity to be fair to the players. Everyone had to earn their spot. Teammates saw that so there were no “give me” positions. Guys came out and earned their spot. These players had been beaten down mentally when I got there. The second year we made the playoffs and lost but should have won. Mistakes and bad calls are part of the game. As far as hating parts of the job, I really didn’t hate anything because it gave me an opportunity to be a manager. You always hate when guys don’t “buy in.” Some guys always want to take the short cuts which unfortunately can affect the outcome of a game. At Morgan State and Southern University, it gave me the opportunity to be everything: the General Manager, the head coach, and to be the parent. I enjoyed both of those stops and put things in place. At Morgan State, we had nine coaches at the time and 63 scholarships. We were using part of their Pell as part of their scholarship. I was offered the RB coach position with the Chiefs under Marty Schottenheimer and offered $140,000 a year. The President of Morgan upped my pay from $70,000 to $90,000 if I stayed and made some other concessions. I wanted to follow through on some player commitments and stayed at Morgan State which pissed Marty off because they had already set up a press conference to announce me taking his RB coach job.

DBN: After coaching at Morgan State, you were hired as the RB coach with the Seattle Seahawks. How did you get that gig?

Mitchell: Tom Lovat was the offensive line coach when I played in St. Louis so he knew me as a player. At Morgan State, we had a talented offensive tackle named Willie Jones and I thought Coach Lovat was calling me about him. But he wasn’t. He was calling me about myself. They needed a running back coach and asked me to interview for the job and I said yes. Mike Holmgren was the head coach and went in to talk with him. He asked me if I was taking the job. I asked if he was offering the job and he said no, he wasn’t going to offer the job if I was going to turn him down like I did Marty. So, I told him if he was offering the job I would definitely take it.

DBN: As a coach, what are the biggest differences between the college game to the professional ranks?

Mitchell: In college, I felt the responsibility of those kids and their parents. I worried about their well-being. I just wanted to return a kid back to his parents better than we found him. As far as the game, it’s just a difference of how much time guys have available for football. In the pros, they have so many hours at work, but they have so much time to themselves. And the money to go out and do things and don’t have to devote time for studies.

DBN: In 2013 you were hired back with the Cardinals this time as their RB coach. That was a 23-year span. What was the difference about the organization your second time around?

Mitchell: Michael Bidwell was no longer the ball boy which he was when I was playing. Now, he was running the organization. Back then he was 11 or 12. I got a call from Michael and he asked me if would be the running backs coach. We talked in New Orleans with Bruce Arians who was just hired as the head coach. I made more money as a Cardinals coach than what they paid me as a player.

DBN: Some folks think you came to the Browns when Kevin Stefanski was hired in 2020, but you were actually hired by Freddie Kitchens the year before as his RB coach. After a head coach gets fired, usually all the assistants get fired, yet Stefanski kept you on as his RB coach. What is that process like waiting around to see if you have a job?

Mitchell: I didn’t get interviewed by Stefanski. After Freddie got fired, we all had exit interviews with the Haslams. My interview took about 45 minutes because we had a good team there. I was asked if we could win with Baker Mayfield and I told them absolutely. He was the right guy for the team. I told them we just didn’t manage the situation right. I asked them to allow me to be the head coach. If you don’t run it right, you are going to be in the same situation a few years later. They asked me if I would continue to be the running backs coach and I said sure. They told Kevin I was the running back coach. That’s the way it is with a lot of these teams now. The General Managers pick who they want to keep or pair people with. RB coaches are usually pretty safe because they do a great job. Usually, they are dealing with the toughest players on the team because of ego or personality. Not all of them are like that, but you do have some of them that you have to manage.

DBN: Your first season, the Browns had signed Kareem Hunt from being suspended, drafted Nick Chubb one year earlier, but Duke Johnson was considered the main runner who ended up being traded. Were you part of that decision to trade Duke to Houston?

Mitchell: No. I was not part of that decision. I loved Duke who was a Miami Hurricane. One thing about all those backs who played for Miami – they could frickin’ pass block. Duke could do it all. He was a heckuva back, a good receiver, and a four-down back. I don’t know why they traded him. He was very talented but beyond me. He and Nick together would have been outstanding. Loved the game and practiced well.

DBN: You had the task of grooming Nick Chubb into a beast in the NFL. What can you tell us about his skills, his attitude, and the amount of coaching you had to put into him?

Mitchell: First of all, it was the easiest job I ever had. I won’t take credit for nothing. His carries started to go down so I wanted his production to go up and have him average over six yards a carry. That’s exactly the pace he was on when he hurt his knee against the Steelers. The biggest thing I hit Nick on was patience. He is a powerful back and sometimes would cut back too soon on counterplays that he would cut up too soon. During the course of a year, that would only happen two or three times playing in 16 or 17 games. And he improved and worked extremely hard. He broke a lot of tackles.

DBN: We thought one of your greatest triumphs in Cleveland was the development of D’Ernest Johnson. He came in raw and left a productive back. We really thought he would be Chubb’s sidekick, especially after that Broncos game when he balled out and was named the FedEx Ground Player of the Week. Why didn’t the Browns keep him?

Mitchell: I did everything I could for the Browns to keep D’Ernest. He averaged over five yards a carry and worked really hard, especially on special teams. He improved in pass protection, third-down protection, and pass-catching. But sometimes it is not what you do but who has the last word. In Cleveland, the coaches didn’t have the last say. That was left up to Andrew Berry. He made those decisions.

DBN: When Chubb got that horrible knee injury in 2023 against the Steelers, why is this type of injury so devastating to a running back?

Mitchell: Because you have to make so many cuts and avoid so many people. I think Nick did a great job coming back from that injury. I have texted him many times including last week to let him know he was back. I saw everything I needed to see on that two-yard touchdown run against Pittsburgh. He had to come to a sudden stop, make a jump cut, and then do all this in a two-yard span. No question in my mind he was back and ready to go. Now, people may question why he is only averaging three point-something yards a carry, they aren’t looking at the fact that the Browns weren’t going to win this year. They didn’t take into account when they got rid of the coaches, a lot of players were coming back from an injury. And now, you got them trying to learn a new system. Which was awful because they weren’t going to be practicing. The opponents were going to take advantage of the guy they had out there playing as the offensive linemen even though they had big hearts they weren’t able to get it done.

Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

DBN: When Chubb went down, all of a sudden, your running back room was in shambles. You had Jerome Ford, who was a fifth-round pick, and Pierre Strong, a fourth-round guy, who was expected to replace one of the league’s best running backs. Did you suggest that maybe GM Andrew Berry try to sign or trade for another running back? Or was the conversation just, ‘Let’s go with what we got?’

Mitchell: I suggested to Andrew to bring in David Johnson. He played in Houston with Deshaun. They had a good connection in the passing game when things broke down. It was a big part of Deshaun’s game and they had a great relationship and Andrew Berry would not bring David Johnson in. Plus, I coached David in Arizona. He and Nick would have been a helluva combination. An unselfish player and talented in the receiving portion and would return kicks. In his first season as a true starter, he had almost 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving. They would not even bring him in for a workout. I was fine with Jerome and John Kelly. Pierre was drafted by Bill Belichick so I knew there was something in him although he lacked a little trust in himself. Then they brought in Kareem.

DBN: After seeing Chubb come back from his injury, do you think he has anything left?

Mitchell: There is no question he has something left. Christian McCaffrey was hurt in Carolina and when he went to San Francisco and had a good offensive line he got a chance to do the things he can do. Saquan Barkley goes to the Eagles and their offensive line and sometimes doesn’t get touched until the second level and sometimes never. Derrick Henry goes to a team where the offensive line is good and has a helluva year. There is no question Nick can do, but those guys up front you are depending upon them in the passing game as well as the run game. You know Coach (Bill) Callahan ranted and raved about tackle Tristan Wirfs who was there when we picked. But we didn’t pick him and took Jedrick Wills instead. Wirfs has been a Pro Bowler since Day 1 plus has a Super Bowl ring.

DBN: The 2023 Browns won 11 games with five quarterbacks, made the playoffs, and were the highest-seeded Wild Card team, yet their All-World running back was gone for the year. Your players loved you. You did a great job at making this room into a productive group. Yet, at season’s end, you got the call. The reason we are told is that you were “a media leak.” Is that why you were released?

Mitchell: That’s a lie. People can say whatever they want to say. Our meetings with the offensive staff were supposed to be on a Wednesday. Kevin went into T.C.’s (McCartney) office on Tuesday and told him he wasn’t coming back, and then into my office and said he wanted to go in a different direction. I said, okay, no problem. And then he decides to let go of Alex Van Pelt as well. They can spin it any way they want, that’s a bunch of bullshit. Now, I was adamant. Any time we brought up a conversation about a running back I was a big David Johnson fan respectively. Always respectively. And that happened all the time. Plus, Duce (Staley) had already gotten fired and worked with Andrew in Philadelphia. And he was younger and was no reason for him to have to listen to me anymore. I move a little slower than I used to do. But I was still vocal. There was an opportunity for them to bring in Duce. But that part was BS. He didn’t have to explain to me why he wanted to go in a different direction. Why did he want to make a change with Van Pelt as the offensive coordinator when he was with Kevin when he was named Coach of the Year twice? Those moves were crazy.

DBN: Is it your intention to coach again, and are you wanting to remain in the NFL or maybe the UFL?

Mitchell: I haven’t gotten a call to do that. My intentions are one thing – my reality is another. I was told the UFL might be a possibility but league commissioner Moose Johnson never gave me a call.

DBN: You have been a return man in your playing days. What is your opinion of the NFL using the XFL kickoff?

Mitchell: They had some exciting plays this year so it wasn’t bad. The league is trying to eliminate the tough hits. I still saw some guys taking some licks and some exciting touchdown runs as well.

DBN: When you were a player in the NFL teams had one dominant running back like Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith, or Eric Dickerson. But teams now are by committee and the RB position has been devalued. With the emergence of Derrick Henry and Saquan Barkley this year, do you think teams will revert back to a single workhorse back again?

Mitchell: The smart coaches who have a back that can do it all will allow that. But a lot of these young backs don’t pass block a lot in college. And they get free releases in protection they want to get a guy out because they are passing the ball over 60% of the time. If that guy exists, I think a good offensive coordinator will put their best players in positions to make plays whether catching passes or running it from the backfield.

DBN: In 2020 when Baker Mayfield injured his shoulder and kept playing, if the Browns had sat him and dealt with the injury early, do you think Baker would still be Cleveland’s quarterback?

Mitchell: They had an opportunity to get into the playoffs sooner when Baker threw those four interceptions against Green Bay. He didn’t practice all week and flew him in on the day of the game on a private plane. They could have gone with another quarterback that was healthy. If they had gotten shoulder surgery on Baker and let Case play during the season, Baker would have been ready for the playoffs. The defense was playing well that year. Baker wasn’t the coach – he was the player. But if they would have dealt with the injury, Baker would have gotten healthy, came back healthy, and he would be in Cleveland right now. Baker is really the type of quarterback that Stefanski is better with. He’s not good with a guy like Deshaun. Or Lamar Jackson. Stefanski can’t match their talent. They can do anything and more than what he wants done. Every quarterback he has coached passed for over 300-yards except for Deshaun. All he had to do was not to make wits with Deshaun’s talent. Andy Reid ain’t worried about what Patrick can do – he’s calling his game and if Patrick makes things happen, he makes things happen.

DBN: What is your fondest moment of being a Cleveland Brown?

Mitchell: Seeing Case Keenum and D’Ernest Johnson against Denver playing their butts off. They had the respect of the team because of how they worked. Everybody really, really loved Case. That’s why I don’t understand why when we were paying Case over $6 million in 2020 when Baker experienced almost every injury known to man why we wouldn’t play him.

Thomas Moore contributed to this article