Cleveland Browns assistant wide receivers coach Callie Brownson is joining USA Football as Senior Director of High Performance and National Team Operations, USA Football announced in a press release Friday.

“I’m thankful for the opportunity to join USA Football and help the U.S. National Teams continue their international success in flag and tackle football through the 2028 Olympics and beyond,” Brownson said in the press release. “This is a historic time for football’s global growth with the Olympics on the horizon. I’m thrilled to be part of what USA Football is building as we look to uphold our standard against improving competition across the world.”

Brownson, 35, will be a “critical part of the staff responsible for selecting, training and leading the U.S. Men’s and Women’s National Teams that represent the United States on the world’s stage, including when flag football makes its Olympic debut in Los Angeles in 2028,” the release says. She will also “oversee the operational execution of USA Football’s U.S. National Team program and the implementation of the program’s long-term strategic plan.”

Brownson joined the Browns’ coaching staff in 2020 as Cleveland’s chief of staff, and has been an assistant wide receivers coach for Cleveland since 2022. Her first season with the team, Brownson made NFL history as the first woman to coach a position group in a game as Cleveland’s tight ends coach during Week 12.

“Callie has been a valuable member of our coaching staff for the last five seasons, and it’s been rewarding to see her growth,” Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said in the press release. “We appreciate her many contributions to our team and look forward to seeing her continue to serve and grow our sport at USA Football.”

.@CalBrown17 making 𝙝𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 🙌

Callie is set to be the first woman to coach a position group in an NFL game as she fills in for our TEs coach Drew Petzing! pic.twitter.com/U0Fb6XRBka

— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 29, 2020

Brownson has also previously worked in the NFL interning with the New York Jets in 2017 and Buffalo Bills in 2019. Prior to joining the Bills, she worked at the college level at Dartmouth, and was the first woman to coach full-time in Division I football after becoming an offensive quality control coach for the program in 2018.

In 2022, Brownson coached the Women’s U.S. Tackle National Team to the International Federation of American Football’s Women’s World Championship. She also played for the U.S. Tackle National Team that won gold medals in 2013 and 2017. Brownson also played eight seasons in the Women’s Football Alliance with the D.C. Divas during her career, winning two championships.

“USA Football is thrilled to welcome Callie Brownson to our staff as our Senior Director of High Performance & National Team Operations,” USA Football CEO Scott Hallenbeck said in the press release. “Callie has been part of the USA Football family for many years, and her leadership, athlete development and program building skills as part of our U.S. National Teams have consistently stood out throughout the past decade. Her expertise and experience across all levels of the sport, along with her understanding of the aspects of competition, team dynamics and logistics unique to the international game, will be invaluable as football enters the most internationally competitive period in the sport’s history.”

Brownson familiarity with USA Football makes her a strong candidate

Brownson’s previous experience with USA Football makes her a fit. In addition to five years as a full-time member of the Browns’ staff, she coached the USA’s Women’s National Team to a world title in the summer of 2022, which came at the start of her first of three seasons working as the team’s assistant wide receivers coach. She’d previously handled an administrative role as Stefanski’s chief of staff, and last January she served as a wide receivers coach at the Senior Bowl, where she worked with a group of NFL draft prospects as they prepared for the nation’s most prestigious postseason all-star game. Stefanski encouraged Brownson’s outside work as part of her professional development; Stefanski himself started in a chief of staff-type role for the Vikings before he started to climb the coaching ladder. — Zac Jackson, Browns beat writer

(Photo: Sarah Stier / Getty Images)