The Browns interviewed Washington Commanders run game coordinator/running backs coach Anthony Lynn on Saturday for the team's head coach opening.
Lynn, 57, is the 10th candidate to interview. Lynn finished his second season with the Commanders after joining the coaching staff in 2024. In 2024, the Commanders finished the season with the third-most total rushing yards at 2,619 yards, averaging 154.1 rushing yards per game. They followed up by averaging the fourth-most rushing yards per game during the 2025 season, recording 134.7 yards per game for a total of 2,290 yards.
He previously served as the assistant head coach/running backs coach for the San Francisco 49ers from 2022-23. He worked closely with RB Christian McCaffrey after he was traded to the 49ers in 2022, and McCaffrey was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week twice and NFC Offensive Player of the Month for December/January. In 2023, McCaffrey who won AP Offensive Player of the Year and led the league in rushing yards with 1,459 yards and finished fourth with 14 rushing touchdowns. Lynn also worked with FB Kyle Juszczyk who earned Pro Bowl honors for the eighth consecutive season. The 49ers earned their second consecutive NFC West title and their first NFC championship since 2019.
Prior to joining the 49ers, Lynn served as the offense coordinator for the Detroit Lions during the 2021 season. RB D'Andre Swift rushed for a then career-high 617 yards and finished second on the team with 62 receptions. WR Amon-Ra St. Brown led the Lions with 90 catches for 912 yards and five touchdowns.
Lynn also has head coach experience in the NFL. From 2017-20, he was the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers. The 2018 Chargers finished with a 12-4 record and the team reached the playoffs for the first time since 2013. Then in 2020, Lynn worked with rookie QB Justin Herbert, who set NFL rookie records for most passing touchdowns with 31 and offensive touchdowns with 36. Herbert was named the 2020 Associated Press Offensive Rookie of the Year and the PFWA Rookie of the Year.
From 2015-16, Lynn was the assistant head coach/running backs coach for the Buffalo Bills. In 2016, he also served as the offensive coordinator for the final 14 games of the season. The Bills led the NFL in rushing yards, rushing touchdowns and yards per carry during his time in Buffalo.
Lynn spent six seasons with the New York Jets from 2009-14, serving as the running backs coach from 2009-13 and then the assistant head coach/running backs coach in 2014. In 2014, the Jets ranked third in the NFL with 142.5 rushing yards per game.
Lynn has previous ties to the Browns, as he spent two seasons in Cleveland as the running backs coach from 2007-08. During those two seasons, RB Jamal Lewis had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons with Lynn as his coach.
He began his coaching career with the Denver Broncos as an offensive assistant/assistant special teams coach from 2000-02, before spending two seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars as the running backs coach from 2003-04. He also was the running backs coach for the Dallas Cowboys for two seasons from 2005-06.
Lynn also had an NFL playing career as a running back, first entering the league as an undrafted free agent in 1992 with the New York Giants. He spent time with the Denver Broncos from 1993-94 and 1997-99, and the San Francisco 49ers from 1995-96. Lynn played in 83 career games and won two Super Bowls (XXXII and XXXIII).
Bio Blast
Anthony Lynn – Commanders run game coordinator/running backs coach
Age: 57
Hometown: Celina, Texas
College: Texas Tech
NFL experience: 26 years
