Even the most optimistic Cleveland Browns fans, and maybe even some of their players, had to be very concerned following their awful performance in Week 1 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. But head coach Todd Monken never wavered, and with plenty of motivational tactics available to him, he got his team to rebound with an inspiring upset of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 2.
Afterward, Monken used his postgame press conference to puff out his chest a bit. He has said since the day he was hired that he was going to change the narrative around the beleaguered franchise, and he certainly relished his first step toward doing that.
Ex-player Marcus Spears said Monken’s viral message means more than you think, and it will have a positive impact on his players going forward.
“It plays for real. That matters. Coach went out there and said what he needed to say. He respects us as men that’s trying to compete. That got me fired up. I like that from Todd Monken. That message permeates beyond football, and I think it can resonate with those guys,” Spears said.
With very few Browns remaining who were teammates with Baker Mayfield, the idea of a revenge game against their former quarterback likely didn’t resonate with much of the roster. But many of them have a history of competing against former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, as does Monken, based on his time with the Baltimore Ravens over the past three seasons.
In his first season as an NBC analyst, Tomlin took some glee in mocking Cleveland for its season-opening defeat, saying, “The Browns is the Browns.” Monken filed that comment away, and after holding off the Buccaneers for his first win as an NFL head coach, he was more than happy to bring up Tomlin’s words, punctuated with “F*** that.”
According to Spears, that mic-drop moment means a lot to the Browns players. In fact, if the team goes on a reasonably potential winning streak, it is possible that the coach’s fiery response will show up on some merchandise in the coming weeks and could become the motto of their postgame celebrations.
The Browns will be looking for two in a row against the Carolina Panthers in Week 3, with Monken trying to build on the momentum he has established so far.
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