The Cleveland Browns have been on the hunt for a new head coach for weeks. Cleveland fired Kevin Stefanski after the regular season following another underwhelming campaign. Now the Browns have finally landed their replacement for Stefanski after an extensive search.
The Browns are hiring former Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken as their next head coach, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Monken was previously the offensive coordinator in Cleveland in 2019 during Baker Mayfield’s second season in the NFL. Now he will be the face of the team during the next phase of their rebuild.
There is no question that Monken was a dark horse candidate to land the job. Many expected that Monken would land in New York with head coach John Harbaugh as his next offensive coordinator.
However, Monken instead decided to take a promotion with the Browns.
Monken was one of five candidates who had in-person interviews with Cleveland over the past month. The Browns also interviewed DC Jim Schwartz, Jaguars OC Grant Udinski, Rams pass game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase, and Commanders run game coordinator/running backs coach Anthony Lynn.
Browns fans should be optimistic about Monken’s ability to elevate Cleveland’s offense. When Monken joined the Ravens back in 2023, he helped Lamar Jackson win his second MVP award. Monken followed that up in 2024 by leading the Ravens to have the best total offense in the NFL.
Now that the Browns have locked in a new head coach, the next step is building a strong assistant coaching staff. It will be interesting to see who, if anyone, Monken decides to keep from the Stefanski regime.
Cleveland will also need to add a ton of young talent this offseason to give Monken something to work with.
The Browns have a decent foundation to build upon. Quinshon Judkins, Harold Fannin, and Shedeur Sanders all had solid rookie seasons on offense. Meanwhile, the Browns still have superstar Myles Garrett and a host of other talented players on defense.
Browns fans have plenty of reason to be excited about the future of the team. Especially with Monken now running the show.
