There are a ton of new faces in Cleveland Browns camp this year. New head coach Todd Monken has brought in an entirely new coaching staff to support him in his first venture as an NFL head coach, drafted ten more rookies, and now the face of the team is gone following the Myles Garrett trade to the Los Angeles Rams, which brought back an exciting young pass rusher in Jared Verse.
Offseason programs are a great time for all the new faces to get to know one another, and so far it sounds like Verse, the rookies, and Monken are all impressing those in attendance. In addition to all the obvious new faces, Monken brought a friend along on Wednesday.
ESPN Cleveland’s Tony Grossi shared a photo from Wednesday’s practice that showed Monken spending time with long-time friend and associate Brian Kelly, who used to coach LSU and Notre Dame for many years.
“Former LSU coach Brian Kelly on hand. Long-time friend & associate of Todd Monken,” Grossi wrote.
Former LSU coach Brian Kelly on hand. Long-time friend & associate of Todd Monken. pic.twitter.com/lDiAVejBrR
— Tony Grossi (@TonyGrossi) June 10, 2026
LSU ousted Kelly last season amidst a disappointing campaign, but someone with his level of experience is always good to have in the facility. There is no word on whether or not Monken plans to bring him aboard in any capacity, but hopefully he was able to spend some time with many of the intriguing young talents in the building to share some of his wisdom.
Monken reportedly has this offense looking much better already, which is no surprise given his success over the past few years. Monken wasn’t first on many people’s wish list for the next Browns head coach, but he helped lead Georgia to two national championships before helping Lamar Jackson post the best numbers of his career.
Kelly didn’t end his LSU tenure on the best terms, but he is a proven winner at the college level who crossed paths with Monken a few times over the years. It will be interesting to see if Monken has any other wise friends who might be interested in stopping by to impart a little knowledge on this young roster over the next few months.
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