2-Time NFL Coach of the Year Kevin Stefanski's Secret? Madden

The Atlanta Falcons tapped Kevin Stefanski to take over as their new head coach in January, and he apparently learned how to make in-game decisions in a rather unique way.

In an old interview with Barstool Sports’ Pardon My Take, which has since resurfaced, Stefanski discussed how he learned how to manage a football game. Funny enough, it was just like you and me. Show host PFT Commenter jokingly asked the then-Cleveland Browns, now-Falcons head coach, if he would ever use the Madden video game to practice using timeouts in late-game situations.

Kevin Stefanski says that playing Madden helps coaches with time management @PardonMyTake pic.twitter.com/oFqetGVJwe
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) February 15, 2026

“Honestly, so I grew up playing Madden,” Stefanski said. “And I really believe our generation is maybe a little bit better at game management because we’ve done that, because we know you’re down 10 and, ‘hey, we’re going to kick a field goal now, and then I’m going to get the onside [kick], and I gotta get the seven later.’ I do think all those games, I know it’s silly, but I do think that all helps when it comes to game management.”

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This is not the only time that Stefanski called out the popular video game. In a different interview that the ex-Browns coach did with 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland last season, Stefanski said, “If you’ve played Madden, you’ve called plays.”

The Madden video game has been around for a very long time, dating back to 1988, before really taking off in the early 2000s and growing into the biggest video game in the sport. The 43-year-old Stefanski would have been in his teenage years when the game really started becoming popular, and in his college years when former Falcons quarterback Michael Vick was on the cover in 2003.

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It feels a little silly, but the idea that coaches would have been actively calling back to moments from a video game makes a little bit of sense. Users can make contract decisions, call plays, and manage games without the stress of tens of thousands of fans and millions of dollars on the line in real life.

Nothing beats real-life experience, obviously, but this is a lighthearted reminder that these guys grew up loving the game of football just like the average fan. That experience has seemed to help Stefanski, who is now a two-time NFL Coach of the Year, and it is fun to think that the next generation of coaches is probably doing the same thing that he did when he was their age.