The Cleveland Browns’ busy offseason rolls on as they’ve got to address several roster needs on both sides of the football to hopefully set up a more competitive 2026 NFL season. The 2025 NFL campaign was considered a developmental year for the franchise, as several young players needed experience and reps to develop, so this upcoming season is a pivotal one for the group.
Leading the locker room is new head coach Todd Monken, who beat out several qualified candidates for the job. Cleveland cast a wide net in its head coaching search, but ultimately landed on Monken, who has a proven track record of offensive success both at the college and NFL levels.
Some criticized the Monken hiring because he’s an older coach who has largely served as a coordinator, but that shouldn’t diminish what he’s been able to do at his stops. Most recently, Monken was the driving force behind the Baltimore Ravens’ success during his tenure there, and the hope is that he can replicate that with the Browns.
Publicly, the jury may still be out on Monken, but executives within the organization sound excited for Monken’s second stint.
For example, JW Johnson explained why he’s looking forward to seeing what Monken can do.
“We’re excited to have Todd back. We’ve seen what he can do from an offensive perspective. The three years he was with Georgia, they won two national championships. They haven’t really been the same offensively since he left. You saw what he did with Baltimore with Lamar, MVP season probably should have had back-to-back MVP seasons,” Johnson said.
Haslam Sports Group partner @JDubsIII takes Browns fans though the "arduous" head coaching search resulting in the Todd Monken hiring. #DawgPound
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As Johnson laid out, Monken has seen his teams go on to accomplish great things under his guidance, so there’s optimism that will follow to a Cleveland team that’s desperate to get things right. The quarterback position remains a question mark, but Monken’s shown that he can make things work so long as he’s got the talent to mold.
How the Browns attack free agency and the draft will be worth monitoring as they have to start adding pieces that fit Monken’s vision, both for the short and long-term.
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