Browns agree to terms with Joe Woods as defensive coordinator

kyle shanahan, joe woods, r m

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, rear, tosses a ball as defensive backs coach Joe Woods looks on during a combined NFL training camp with the Denver Broncos Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019, at the Broncos' headquarters in Englewood, Colo. AP

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Browns GM Andrew Berry pointed to the 49ers as one of the industry leaders in incorporating information and research into their decision-making during his introductory press conference on Wednesday. Now the Browns, as expected, are poaching one of the 49ers assistants to run their defense.

Joe Woods, the 49ers defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator, emerged as the Browns’ likely defensive coordinator shortly after Stefanski was hired. The Browns had to wait until the 49ers playoff run ended to hire Woods.

Cleveland.com reported on Monday, the day after the Chiefs beat the 49ers 31-20 in Super Bowl LIV, that the Browns were, indeed, hiring the former Vikings assistant, and they agreed to terms with him on Thursday. An official announcement is expected on Friday.

Woods has a long history with Stefanski, having spent eight seasons as Minnesota’s defensive backs coach from 2006-13. Stefanski began his NFL coaching career in Minnesota in 2006.

Woods then spent a season in Oakland as defensive backs coach, where Browns cornerback T.J. Carrie credits him with teaching how to be a pro and seeing the seventh-round pick out of Ohio University as someone who could pay in the league for a long time. After a season in Oakland, Woods moved on to Denver where he was defensive backs coach from 2015 until he took over as defensive coordinator in 2017 and 2018.

The Broncos had the No. 5 overall defense in DVOA in 2018, according to footballoutsiders.com, and No. 4 against the pass. They ranked No. 10 in DVOA in 2017.

By traditional stats, his defense was No. 3 overall in 2017 and No. 22 in 2018.

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