Todd Monken was asked Wednesday whether he has had any face-to-face interaction with Myles Garrett yet. His answer was one word.
“No,” Monken said.
"No." #Browns head coach Todd Monken on whether he's had any face-to-face interaction with DE Myles Garrett, yet pic.twitter.com/XWoPMIISnU
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) May 21, 2026
A head coach not yet meeting one of his players during voluntary OTAs in May is not a crisis. OTAs are not mandatory, and veteran players around the league routinely skip the early voluntary sessions without any fanfare or consequence. Technically speaking, there is nothing wrong with what has happened here.
But context matters, and the context surrounding Garrett and his relationship with this franchise heading into 2026 makes this particular one-word answer worth paying attention to.
There have been whispers all offseason about Garrett’s level of satisfaction in Cleveland. The Browns are installing an entirely new system under a first-year head coach, building relationships with a new defensive coordinator in Mike Rutenberg, and establishing a culture from scratch. That process is easiest when your best and most influential players are in the building, visible, engaged, and leading by example for younger players who are trying to find their footing in a new environment.
Garrett is not just a player. He is the face of this franchise, the NFL’s all-time sack record holder, and the unquestioned leader of a defense that is the foundation of everything Cleveland is trying to build in 2026. His presence in OTAs would send a message to every young player in that locker room about what the standard looks like and what the commitment level should be. His absence sends a different kind of message, even if it is an unintentional one.
To be clear, nothing here is alarming on its own. Voluntary is voluntary. Players are not required to attend. Garrett has earned the right to manage his offseason the way he sees fit after everything he has given to this organization. And the reality is that once training camp opens and the mandatory work begins, none of this will matter.
But a new head coach who has not yet had a face-to-face conversation with the most important player on his roster is hard to completely dismiss. Monken cannot begin to build that relationship from a distance, and Garrett cannot begin to buy into a new system and a new defensive coordinator without being in the building.
Again, this is almost certainly nothing. But nothing has a way of becoming something if the right conversations do not happen soon.
Browns fans need Myles Garrett fully locked in and leading this defense. Everything the Browns are trying to accomplish in 2026 depends on it.
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