Expectations for the Cleveland Browns this season are already pretty low. But when even the practices are being dubbed "awful" by the coaches running them, it might be time to abandon the idea that the team will even be competent this season.
Monday's Browns practice fell into that category, much to the dismay of head coach Todd Monken. Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Monken admitted that he likely hasn't "coached it well enough" but still praised the team for "fighting their rear end off."
“I said it to the offense. I said it to those guys. I told them that in that moment, what I should’ve done, and what I didn’t do,” Monken said. “And as I’ve said to them and us, we’re human. I got fired up. I was (expletive). That was awful. That was (expletive) football. And that is going to get me fired up. And I have to own some of that. Obviously, we haven’t coached it well enough. There were other aspects about the two-minute that got me fired up that obviously [were] a reflection of coaching.
“Those things — we’re getting plenty of effort. Guys are fighting their rear end off. We’re tough. So, we’ve got that, OK. How are we going to do the little things well? And that’s coaching. That’s me, and that’s our staff.”
There have been persistent complaints that Browns practice on Monday ended sloppy. But he was still impressed by the effort after having a day off before.
“That part of it, really, I was jacked about the way our team practiced,” Monken said. “Coming off of six days, one day off, and how they attacked it yesterday. I mean, you couldn’t have asked for better energy, attitude, body language — it just wasn’t good at the end for one side. But up until that point, I thought our guys practiced their rear ends off, and I thought it was outstanding for having a day off the day before.”
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The Browns in 2026
Cleveland is widely expected to rank in the bottom of the AFC North and possibly near the bottom of the entire league this year. They've gone just 8-26 over the last two seasons and traded away their best player in Myles Garrett earlier this offseason.
And for a team bringing in a first-year head coach in Todd Monken, the learning curve is likely to be a problem.
Monken absolutely needs one of his quarterbacks - Shedeur Sanders, Deshaun Watson or even Dillon Gabriel - to show star power in 2026, otherwise the wins will be few and far between, and his tenure is likely to be short.
