Cleveland Browns head coach Todd Monken
Todd Monken Takes Blame After Getting 'Emotionally Hijacked' as Browns Practice Turns Ugly Monday 1
Todd Monken has demanded discipline from his Browns team all camp, but his own emotions got the better of him this week. The Browns are still chasing a fresh start after finishing 5-12 last season under previous coach Kevin Stefanski. Monday’s training camp practice tested that fresh start in a big way, and what Monken admitted afterward says a lot about where this Cleveland team stands.
Todd Monken Ends Practice Early After Ugly Two-Minute Drill
The Browns offense had shown solid progress on cadence work in Saturday’s practice. But Monday’s final two-minute drill fell apart fast, undoing that momentum almost immediately.
Both quarterbacks in the Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson QB battle got a crack at the drill, and neither group finished clean. Sanders’ possession featured multiple pre-snap penalties that stalled the drive before it could develop. Watson’s turn was worse, with a sack, an illegal formation penalty and another false start piling up, as first reported by Scott Petrak.
Monken had stressed discipline all camp, warning players about avoiding self-inflicted mistakes. Watching his offense repeat the same errors in a critical situational drill pushed him past his limit, and he ended practice early, visibly frustrated with what he saw.
The next day, speaking to reporters and later to his Cleveland Browns offense directly, Monken didn’t dodge the moment. “We did such a good job on Saturday cadence-wise, and then at the end of two-minute just couldn’t get out of our own way. I did a poor job of working through it,” Monken explained.
He told his players plainly what he should have done differently in that moment, and took the blame himself, saying the coaching staff hasn’t gotten the little things right yet even with the effort the players are putting in.
Penalties Add Pressure to Browns’ Quarterback Competition
The mistakes carry extra weight given the current QB competition unfolding in Cleveland. Monken has already offered an honest read on Sanders’ growth since arriving, but Monday’s drill was a reminder that neither quarterback has locked down the starting job.
Beyond the drive itself, Monken framed the outburst as a human moment rather than a lapse in leadership. He told players directly that getting fired up is part of competing, but that his response in the moment wasn’t the example he wants to set going forward.
That admission points to something Monken has repeated since taking the job, and it hints at how he plans to handle the next big test on the field.
For now, Monken and the Browns are refocusing after a rough finish to camp. Cleveland opens the preseason Saturday against the Chicago Bears, its first real test of the new coaching staff and an early look at how the quarterback race shapes up.
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