Todd Monken knows somebody will have to be QB1 when players take the field in two weeks, but he cares more about September than April. (TheLandOnDemand)
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.
Takeaways from the first press availability of the Browns voluntary offseason program …
Since Todd Monken was hired as head coach and Jim Schwartz resigned as defensive coordinator, the undeniable storylines of the 2026 Browns have been:
1. The upcoming quarterback competition.
2. The future of Myles Garrett with the Browns.
So, on the first availability of Monken’s offseason program, this is what happened:
1. Neither Shedeur Sanders nor Deshaun Watson nor Dillon Gabriel was made available to the media. No explanation given.
2. And Garrett was a no-show, as expected.
The QB competition
Everyone wants to know who will take the first snap when the QBs take the field in Phase 2 of the voluntary program in two weeks.
Monken was right when he said, “It’s not where they start, it’s where they finish. It’s where they end up.”
“We’re going to have to line up in two weeks. We’re going to have to roll a first unit out there and there’s some past history that plays in that and a little bit of guesswork on where they’re at and what we’ve seen up till this point in the classroom. And maybe a little bit of what we’ve heard. I mean, that all goes into it, but eventually it’ll all work itself out.
“Whatever the number of reps – I said it a week ago – it doesn’t eliminate the competition. It just doesn’t. I mean, it’s players decide who plays. I don’t decide who plays. The players decide that.”
By now, Monken understands the history of Watson, Sanders and Gabriel with Cleveland fans. Sanders is the undisputed fan favorite. But that popularity is not going to dictate the competition as it stretches from the classroom to limited practice opportunities in the spring, right into training camp.
Monken, 60, also has been around long enough to know that completing 75% passes in 7-on-7 drills is not going to be the winning ticket to the competition.
“There’s heated competition everywhere,” Monken said. “From a quarterback’s perspective, it’s a little bit more difficult just because their number one job is to get us in the end zone. And that’s a little bit harder to really drill down. A couple of different reasons why. One is you’re not playing any games. You don’t have pads on. No one’s live. So you really don’t get a real feel for that athleticism, ability to escape and playmake.
“That’s probably one of the hardest things over the years when you have athletic quarterbacks. Like, this guy looks a little better at 7-on-7. Yeah, well, the game isn’t 7-on-7. It absolutely isn’t. Who makes plays? Who’s got an inner toughness to move the offense and get us in the end zone? And then ultimately, who does the team believe in? And usually that correlates.
“The team’s going to believe in the guy that gives us the best chance to score and win. And when the game’s on the line. Whether it’s third downs, fourth downs, two-minute, that they feel comfortable like we would want the ball in their hands.”
Monken remains non-committal about who might have the edge from the onset.
“There’s enough there to really like Deshaun, the way he plays, and there’s enough there to really like the way Shedeur played the back end of the year. And there’s enough early in the year from Dillon that is playing the position at a very high level,” he said.
“It’s been brought up a lot more to me than really what I think about, other than, yeah, someone’s going to have to start off first and someone’s going to go second, someone’s going to go third, and then we’ll be willing to switch that. That’s easily on a daily basis, what we see, just like any position that’s not set in stone, that’s something we can flip. Just like the practice phase, we can flip that any given day to how we see fit that gives us the best chance to develop our players.
“Now, how they go about it, how they study, how they take care of their body, how they manage our team, how they lead, those are set in stone. Those are non-negotiables.”
Myles being Myles
It seems ludicrous to single out Garrett as a no-show in the strength-and-conditioning phase of the voluntary program.
Nobody on the team is in better shape than Garrett and nobody shows up better on Sundays in season than the two-time defensive player-of-the-year.
It’s just that …
Garrett hasn’t been heard from since Schwartz resigned in protest of not getting the head coach job. And then came the out-of-leftfield contract modification that every contract analyst insists was done ostensibly to make it easier to trade Garrett, who hasn’t at all lost his desire to play for a Super Bowl contender.
And the fact that Garrett will be playing for a new head coach and a new defensive coordinator would seem to merit Garrett reporting for a few days, at least, to get acquainted with the new coaches in charge.
“First of all, as I’ve said before, this is voluntary for our players to be here,” Monken said. “I think if you asked every coach in the NFL, would they like every player to be there for that? Of course.
“I think there’s certain parts of what we do from a connection standpoint, you know, that I think it is important to be here. From a schematics standpoint, from a work standpoint, not so much.
“And it is our job to make it to where the guys want to be here. Not just by the job, but by their development, by the camaraderie by being part of a team. And hell, I’ve been part of a team since I was five years old. There’s nothing like it. I wouldn’t miss it because that’s me, that’s how I’m wired. But it is voluntary. Myles will be ready. I’m not worried about Myles.”
First impressions
Linebacker Carson Schwesinger and cornerback Tyson Campbell were the only players made available to media. So, naturally, their line of questioning centered on first impressions of new defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg.
“Rudy brings a lot of energy, a lot of passion,” Campbell said. “That’s what you want out of a D-coordinator. A guy that brings a lot of energy and passion to the group. [It’s] all about team camaraderie. Eleven guys playing as one on the field. That’s the first impression I’ve received off Coach Rudy.”
Schwesinger, who became Schwartz’s immediate “green dot” linebacker – who relayed play-calls and got everyone in position – and developed swiftly into the NFL defensive rookie-of-the-year, said the overall response to Rutenberg has been “great.”
“Obviously, everyone loved Schwartz and we all loved playing for him. But the mindset’s still the same. We’re going in planning to be the best defense we can be,” he said.
It’s too early for the players to know what schematic changes from Schwartz’s system Rutenberg might be contemplating.
“I think every coach comes in with what they want their pillars to be and the mindset,” Schwesinger said. “I think as a defense we’re trying to build on what we did last year. Schematically, we’re still with the ‘attack’ front, and we’re gonna go get after people. Everyone has their own wrinkles that they’ll add in, so I’m excited to learn those.”