Joel Bitonio decided to retire from the NFL this offseason, meaning the Cleveland Browns’ offensive lineman will not get to experience what Todd Monken is like as his head coach. However, based on their relationship when Monken was the Browns’ offensive coordinator in 2019, Bitonio has a pretty good idea of what’s in store.
In fact, before Bitonio became a free agent and subsequently called it a career after a memorable 12 seasons, he was looped into the Browns’ hiring process. Now, he’s looking forward to seeing the results of that in action.
The former Browns veteran recently revealed why he’s excited about Monken’s hire, saying the 60-year-old’s direct approach should work well with the team’s young roster.
“I was talking to Andrew Berry when they were kind of making this process of hiring him known. It’s kind of a new era in Cleveland, and so to have this guy that’s going to kind of be no-nonsense, like teach these young guys how to play in the NFL,” Bitonio said.
"I was talking to Andrew Berry when they were kind of making this process of hiring him known… It's kind of a new era and so to have this guy that's going to kind of be no nonsense like teach these kids how to play in the NFL"
Joel Bitonio described why he liked the hiring of… pic.twitter.com/Of1l7ZcQt7
— Ryan Ripken (@ryanripkenshow) July 23, 2026
Monken noticeably started to put that culture in place during minicamps and OTAs this spring. About to embark on his first training camp as an NFL head coach, he has the opportunity to further implement his standards, which include no veteran rest days.
As Bitonio pointed out, Monken did not call plays on the Browns’ staff under head coach Freddie Kitchens. But the guard said he saw the potential for a successful play-caller back then, a reputation Monken enhanced the past three seasons as the offensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens.
Interestingly, Monken worked with one of the best rushing quarterbacks in NFL history, Lamar Jackson, while with the Ravens. Bitonio said he believes that Monken would like to bring that aspect to the Browns’ offense.
“The quarterback runs and the option plays that [Todd] brings to the table are pretty special,” Bitonio said.
It will be interesting to see how that plays out during the course of training camp. Veteran quarterback Deshaun Watson is still seen as a very good athlete, but after shoulder and Achilles injuries have limited him to seven games since November 2023, it may not be a good idea to put him at risk with designed runs.
The other QB in the ongoing competition, Shedeur Sanders, has potential in that area despite limited athleticism compared to Watson and Jackson. He posted a 49-yard game on the ground, and five in a row of at least 20 yards, among his seven starts as a rookie.
It is good to see Bitonio still engaged with the Browns franchise after retiring, and hopefully his optimism about Monken will prove to be warranted.
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