The 2026 Cleveland Browns haven’t even taken the field yet, but if you polled a group of average Browns fans and asked them how they feel about new head coach Todd Monken, the sentiment would be a lot more positive than it was when they first hired him earlier this offseason. He wasn’t getting many interviews around the league and was seen as an unexciting fallback option after the Browns missed on a lot of bigger names and younger coordinators, but he could be exactly what this franchise needs right now.
GM Andrew Berry has hit a lot of home runs over the past few years when it comes to drafting, trading, and signing free agents. He has earned the benefit of the doubt when it comes to his decision-making in the hiring process as well, and one analyst recently made a strong claim in support of Monken.
During a recent episode of Afternoon Drive on 92.3 The Fan, Nick Wilson labeled Monken the most slept-on coaching hire in the NFL this offseason. A whopping ten teams will have new head coaches in 2026, and just about all of them were more universally praised than Cleveland’s hiring of Monken when the news was announced.
“I think Todd Monken is the most slept-on coaching hire in the NFL. I hear a lot about Joe Brady taking over for (Sean) McDermott. I’ve even heard a lot about Jeff Hafley long term in Miami once you get past this year. Mike McCarthy out in Pittsburgh. I feel like I’ve heard every other head coach touted this side of Mike LaFleur except Todd Monken, and I think Todd is the most intriguing because he is an outside the box hire given his age,” said Wilson.
"I think Todd Monken is the most slept-on head coaching hire in the NFL."
➡️ @NickWilsonSays and @JPeterlin discuss how Todd Monken's hire is perceived NOW as #Browns training camp pic.twitter.com/X7FubVqTmT
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) July 17, 2026
Wilson added that when Monken was hired, he started thinking about Super Bowl champion coach Bruce Arians, who was an unconventional older hire made by the Arizona Cardinals in 2013, who nearly made a Super Bowl under his watch, before he then went on to win one with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Monken is fresh off a couple of impressive stints as the offensive coordinator for the Georgia Bulldogs and Baltimore Ravens, where he racked up a pair of national championships and led the Ravens to some of the best rushing attacks the NFL has ever seen. He won’t have Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry to lean on this time around, but there’s no reason to believe he can’t push Quinshon Judkins and company to at least an above-average production rate.
It’s always fun to make the sexy head coaching hire, but it doesn’t always work out. You still have to play the games, and early reports indicate this locker room is responding well to Monken. If he can get this quarterback situation figured out, who knows what’s in store for the Browns in 2026.
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