When you hire a first-time head coach like Todd Monken, it’s tough to know what exactly you’re signing up for until the pads are on. The Cleveland Browns were certainly familiar with Monken from his days as the Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator in addition to the fact that he was Cleveland’s offensive coordinator in 2019, but the 60-year-old is a first-time head coach and the fans don’t have much insight into what kind of head coach he is going to be.
Luckily, Browns fans have heard a lot of former players and colleagues speak up in support of Monken this offseason. The endorsements have been universally positive and have painted Monken as a straight shooter and a proven winner, which is an assessment that another player recently agreed with.
During an appearance on Wake Up on 92.3 The Fan, Cecil Shorts III had high praise for his former coach. He believes Monken is special and believes the Browns found the right guy.
“He’s real. He’s straightforward. He’s honest. He’s a guy that’s a straight shooter. He just tells it how it is, he doesn’t care how you like it, how you’re going to take it, that’s just who he is. For a player, that means a lot because now I can trust him. He’s the real deal, one of the best receivers coaches I’ve ever had,” said Shorts.
"He's honest. He's a guy that's a straight shooter. He's special. He's the real deal. He's a proven winner. He gets the best out of his guys. He finds ways to put them in positions to succeed."
🚨 Cecil Shorts III w/ @earldapearl_216 and @Spencito_ on his experience playing for… pic.twitter.com/NlshFijD6l
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) July 18, 2026
Shorts couldn’t say enough great things about Monken, even praising him for being a great family man who does a great job taking care of the people in his life. Monken was the offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2016-18, which is where Shorts played for him for one year.
The 2016 season was Shorts’ last in the NFL and he caught 11 passes for 152 yards for the Bucs under Monken. It says even more about Monken that Shorts had such high praise for him even though he overlapped with him during the most unexceptional year of his career.
Monken’s honesty and blunt nature have been apparent already during his interviews and press conferences at OTAs. It’s going to be fun to get to know him even better once training camp starts soon because this team desperately needed more personality and straightforwardness from the head coaching spot, and Monken seems like just the type to provide it.
NEXT: Analyst Has An Encouraging Projection For 2 Browns Rookies
