Football never left him.Shortly after he stopped playing quarterback at Alabama Riley Ridley Jersey , where he started for three seasons, Kitchens spent his weekends washing FedEx trucks to supplement his income as a car salesman. When those Saturday afternoons in October and November that shaped his life ended, Kitchens worked to the sounds of his beloved Crimson Tide on the radio.When the crowd roared, he ached.“It almost brought me to tears listening to it,” Kitchens recalled. “I knew I couldn’t live without the game of football.”Two decades and six coaching stops later, he and the Browns are going on together.The 44-year-old Kitchens, who grew up admiring his father’s dogged work ethic, was introduced Monday as Cleveland’s 17th full-time coach, completing a sudden, stunning climb up the NFL coaching ranks.Despite his lack of any head coaching experience, the Browns selected Kitchens, who began last season as the club’s running backs coach, over several other quality candidates primarily because of his unique ability to connect with people and a deep drive to win.Trading his bright orange game-day “Dawg Pound” sweat shirt for a plaid sport coat, tie and Browns cap, Kitchens said he realizes he might not be viewed as the ideal candidate. Sitting at a podium across from large windows framing Cleveland’s skyline, Kitchens politely praised owners Dee and Jimmy Halsam — “Mr. Jimmy and Miss Dee” — for their “guts” in picking him.“I won’t let them down. I know that I am not a popular choice,” Kitchens said. “I understand that and I don’t care.”Kitchens, though, endeared himself to Browns fans during his eight-game audition as the club’s interim offensive coordinator. After he took over the offense in late October, the Browns — and especially rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield — clicked under Kitchens, who helped them win five of their last eight games and finish 7-8-1 after going winless in 2017.Now that he’s in charge of more than the offense, Kitchens has bigger plans.“It drives me crazy that people are happy with 7-8-1 Greedy Williams Jersey ,” he said. “If I was in a different setting, my vocabulary would demonstrate that. That is not acceptable. Nobody here wants that. We all understand that it was an improvement, but under no circumstances is that ever going to be acceptable. We only have one goal here and that is to hoist the Lombardi Trophy.“There’s not but one team that’s happy in this league. If you’re happy we finished, ‘We made the playoffs,’ well, hell, that’s not my goal. I’ve been to the playoffs, I’ve been to the Super Bowl and I lost the Super Bowl. That was the most-gut wrenching thing I’ve ever dealt with in my life. And that’s what drives me every day, is to get back there and win it.”Since agreeing to become Cleveland’s coach last week, Kitchens has been busily assembling his staff. He added former Arizona coach Steve Wilks as his defensive coordinator and Todd Monken, who spent the past three seasons in Tampa Bay, will handle the Browns offense.However, Kitchens will continue to call plays.General manager John Dorsey said the team’s coaching search committee met regularly for the past nine weeks to discuss candidates. As time passed, their list shrunk but every time it did, Kitchens’ name was at the top of it.Dorsey acknowledged the team had “really nice discussions” with former Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy, and that New England offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels’ decision to back out on Indianapolis last year had no bearing on the Browns’ interest in him.“He didn’t make the final list,” Dorsey said.There were several other coaches who got serious consideration, and the committee formally interviewed six other candidates. None of them though, was more impressive than Kitchens.“We got it right,” Dorsey said.When Kitchens was hired a year ago, Dorsey couldn’t have imagined that he would become Cleveland’s next coach. But as the season unfolded, and after Kitchens called Cleveland’s plays in the team’s final exhibition game Sione Takitaki Jersey , Dorsey began to see him in a new light.“Freddie is really good with people,” he said. “You could see how much, even in his previous role, how much the players actually liked being around him. We walked away from the fourth preseason game in Detroit going, ‘He just did that, didn’t he?’ And he made it look easy. Play-calling is an art and just when you sit and talk with him you just know. We knew it was the right decision.”While he has a new title, and more responsibility, Kitchens won’t change.In some other city, on some other team, he might do things differently.There’s a reason why he wanted to be in Cleveland.“I can be myself,” he said. “I don’t have to put on a show. It kills me with some guys that they think they have to be more head coach-ish. I won’t be that. I will be who I am. I can be myself and we are going to have fun. The fun is in the winning and we are going to have fun.“We are going to win and we are going to have a damn good time doing it.” DETROIT (AP) — Matt Patricia weaved his way through a crowd to hug the man who helped him live a dream.Patricia beat mentor Bill Belichick, seemingly making all the right moves to help the Detroit Lions defeat the New England Patriots 26-10 Sunday night.“I’m sure it meant a lot, his first win as a head coach,” Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford said. “Probably no sweeter than to do it against your old team.“We needed this one.”The Lions (1-2) suddenly looked like a team with a plan on offense and defense under their first-year coach, and former New England assistant. They opened the season with a 31-point loss to the New York Jets at home and fell short in a comeback at San Francisco.Patricia was given a game ball by his players, but refused to relish in the moment.“I’m just happy for the guys,” he said. “They’re the ones who deserve it,” he said.The Patriots (1-2) have had weaknesses exposed on both sides of the ball, losing two of their first three games for the first time since 2012.And, Belichick was in no mood to reflect on his former defensive coordinator earning his first win.“My job is my football team,” said Belichick, who is 14-9 against former assistants. “That’s what I’m worried about. That’s what I’m concerned about.”Patricia and Patriots quarterback Tom Brady also hugged briefly at midfield after the game and other New England players made a point of connecting with their former coach.Detroit was in control from the start Sheldrick Redwine Jersey , creating holes for rookie running back Kerryon Johnson and giving Matthew Stafford time to pass.Johnson had 101 yards rushing on 16 carries, becoming the first player to reach the mark for the Lions since Reggie Bush ran for 117 yards against Green Bay on Nov. 28, 2013. Detroit’s 70-game stretch without a 100-yard rusher was the longest since the NFL-AFL merger.“We knew we needed to run the ball and take some of the pressure off Stafford and the receivers if we wanted to win this game,” Johnson said. “The offensive line was hitting holes and we were attacking. That’s the most physical game they’ve played all year, and we were able to take advantage of it.”Brady pulled the Patriots within three points on a 10-yard TD pass to James White early in the third.Detroit refused to let the five-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback get any closer.Stafford responded with a 33-yard TD pass, capping a 10-play, 75-yard drive that took more than 6 minutes off the clock.Darius Slay picked off Brady’s pass at the Detroit 15 midway through the fourth quarter, helping the Lions seal the win.While Patricia and his players downplayed how much he could help them prepare for a team he helped coach the previous 14 years, Slay said it was a factor.“He knows everything about that team and he made sure we knew it as well,” Slay said.THE QBSStafford was 27 of 36 for 262 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Brady was 12 of 24 for 113 yards with a touchdown and an interception.THAT’S COACHINGDetroit ran the play clock down often in the second half, seemingly choosing to shorten the game and keep Brady off the field.“That was a key part of the game,” Patricia said. “You certainly don’t want to give the ball back to them.”Fans booed at Ford Field when Patricia chose to kick a 38-yard field goal instead of going for it on fourth-and-1.“Any points against a team like that is going to be a good thing,” Stafford said. “We had a positive drive and you would hate to come away from it with no points.”Patricia also won a challenge , getting a call overturned that gave Stafford a 5-yard touchdown pass to put Detroit ahead 10-0.ALMOST A LIONNew England tight end Rob Gronkowski confirmed an ESPN report in which sources said he threatened to retire instead of being traded to Detroit in the offseason.“Yeah, it happened,” Gronkowski said. “Brady’s my quarterback. That’s all. I’m not going anywhere without Brady.”INJURY REPORTPatriots: WR Josh Gordon (hamstring) was inactive, delaying his New England debut, after warming up with teammates. S Patrick Chung and DE Trey Flowers were inactive because of concussions. RB Rex Burkhead left the game in the second half with a neck injury.Lions: DE Ezekiel Ansah (shoulder) was inactive.UP NEXTPatriots: Hosts the AFC-East leading Miami Dolphins (3-0).Lions: Play at Dallas (1-2).