Back in February, when the Cleveland Browns officially announced the hiring of new head coach Todd Monken, the focus around the team was on defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, who apparently had believed he would get the job that went to Monken. Schwartz was angry and despite being under contract, vowed not to coach for the Browns again. There had been some concern because of a social media post from star edge rusher Myles Garrett in the wake of the Monken decision, showing a man hanging his head in disappointment.
At the time, there was still hope of salvaging the relationship with Schwartz. But in his introductory press conference, Monken made clear he came to Cleveland to coach Garrett and others, not to work alongside Schwartz.
As he put it: “I’d tell you, because of the players that are here, the ownership, Andrew Berry and the ability to build this roster from the ground up on the offensive side. And I said this to the other guys, I didn’t think I’d say it, but I’m going to say it. When I was preparing for the Cleveland Browns, I wasn’t trying to chip Jim Schwartz, I was chipping Myles Garrett.”
Todd Monken: ‘I Wasn’t Assured of Anything’ by Browns
Over the course of four months on the job, though, Monken’s tune changed. Not only did Garrett not show up for offseason workouts, but he never even met with or spoke with Monken. It was an odd situation for the new Browns coach.
On Monday, while GM Andrew Berry was hammering out the details of a trade that sent Garrett to the Rams, Monken met with reporters and revealed he’d never been assured that Garrett would be on the team in 2026.
Monken said: “No, I wasn’t assured when I took the job. I was never assured of anything when I took the job other than, once I signed my contract and whatever my contract said, that’s what I was assured. No matter what any of us coaches sign up for, we show up every day and we coach the guys who are in the building. We’ve done that since we have been here, that has not changed.”
GettyMyles Garrett was traded by the Cleveland Browns
Jared Verse Will Replace Myles Garrett
That was at about 12:45 ET. Around a half-hour later, news broke that the Browns had traded Garrett. Monken now will be coaching Jared Verse instead of Garrett, and will be overseeing what is more clearly a rebuilding project than it was a day earlier.
But Monken said he is ready to coach whomever the Browns have on the roster, and that signing or trading players is not in his orbit.
He said: “I am never told who’s going to be on the team, who’s not going to be on the team. That’s a question—I mean, every day we evaluate the roster, Andrew evaluates the roster, management evaluates the roster. He’s no different that any other player we’ve got, so I don’t know how to respond to that because it’s really no different today than it has been any other day since I have been coach.”
Browns’ Todd Monken Makes Myles Garrett Admission