Todd Monken didn’t take the safest path to get here, and that choice is starting to look like the right one for a Browns team sitting on top of the AFC North.
Opening the season with Deshaun Watson at quarterback came with plenty of baggage. Watson’s Cleveland run has already been defined by injuries, uneven play, and the kind of frustration that has followed him both on and off the field.
Monken could have sidestepped all of that and handed the job to second-year quarterback Shedeur Sanders, whose popularity in Cleveland and beyond would have brought an obvious boost with it. That move would have played well with ownership, too.
But there’s no strong reason to think the Browns would be leading the division if Monken had gone that route.
Watson has not been overpowering defenses. Still, after the Week 1 collapse, he has been steady enough when Cleveland has needed him most. The Browns have now won three straight, and all three victories came by way of fourth-quarter comebacks.
That run has made the team feel a lot better than it did in September, but Monken was quick to keep the picture in focus on Wednesday.
“We still have a marathon in the rest of the season to go, but up until this point, I think our guys have just done exactly what they’ve done since I’ve gotten here. And that’s just practice and work and believe, stay connected.
So, we’ll just continue to push the envelope. They should have confidence in themselves as individual players, in their ability to make plays, and they’ve done that.”
The next step is simple enough to say and harder to do: beat the New York Jets this week, then turn around for a major home matchup with the Baltimore Ravens on October 18.
That’s the stretch where Cleveland can start turning a good start into something more. For now, the message from Monken is the same one that got them here - keep practicing, keep working, keep believing.
All right, let’s get the day rolling with the latest edition of the Daily Dawg Chow.
Trade chatter is already circling around Cleveland, with one item noting that two pass rushers could be available if the Browns decide to make a move. Another piece points out that the Browns have a chance to prove they belong at the top of the AFC North, especially after a history of struggling to handle success. There’s also a look at the Week 5 matchup with the New York Jets, who are described as a team the Browns can’t afford to take lightly.
Around the Browns, Denzel Boston is being discussed as a big-play target for Watson. Monken also sounded upbeat about Dillon Gabriel’s return to practice, while making clear he is in no rush to activate him from IR.
Asked about carrying four quarterbacks, he said, “I don’t have to feel anything at this point (about keeping four quarterbacks). We still have three weeks.”
Meanwhile, Cleveland’s defense is getting attention for finding its footing again after Week 1, and Watson responded to critics acknowledging he can still play by saying, ‘Appreciate it’.
Elsewhere in the NFL, Baltimore made a move for Eagles Pro Bowl center Cam Jurgens, and the Jaguars are facing a strange scheduling setup that will have them playing 26 of their next 30 regular-season games away from Jacksonville.
In Other News...
Browns Postgame Tragedy Leaves One Grim Downtown Cleveland Mystery
A postgame disappearance in downtown Cleveland has turned into a grim recovery effort after Phoenix Phillips, a 24-year-old Maryland resident and Pittsburgh Steelers fan, vanished after attending a football game. Police began a missing persons investigation after Phillips' abandoned cell phone was found near West 10th Street, a clue that narrowed the search but did little to explain how the night unraveled.
Emergency teams searching the area on Tuesday found a body in the Cuyahoga River, and authorities confirmed it was Phillips. The case has left the downtown area with a somber shadow after what began as a football outing, and the focus now shifts to piecing together Phillips' final movements in the hours after the game. [Read more 🡒]
Browns Suddenly Have A Pass Rush Concern They Cant Ignore
Derek Barnetts arrival gave Cleveland a needed boost off the edge after Alex Wright went down, and through four games the veteran has quickly become one of the Browns most disruptive defenders. He has led the team in quarterback pressures and has even climbed into the top tier league-wide in pressure rate, which is exactly the kind of production Cleveland hoped to find when it brought him in.
Now the Browns are dealing with a different kind of edge-rush question. Barnett missed a recent practice because of an ankle injury, and with an upcoming game on the schedule, Cleveland has to get ready as if it might be without one of its most productive pass-rush pieces. For a defense that already needed help there, that is a problem it cant simply shrug off. [Read more 🡒]
Browns Suddenly Have A Quarterback Decision Watson Can't Ignore
Dillon Gabriels return to the Browns quarterback mix puts a little more pressure on a room that has already had to sort through injuries and uncertainty. Activated from injured reserve, Gabriel now gives Cleveland a 21-day window to decide whether he belongs on the active roster, and that timeline alone makes his status worth watching as the team keeps piecing together its depth behind center.
Deshaun Watson has already acknowledged Gabriels involvement around the team during his own injury absence, and he sounded confident in the quarterbacks Cleveland has on hand. The real question now is whether Gabriel pushes for the backup job or settles in as an emergency third option, a decision the Browns have to make while trying to keep the position stable and avoid another headache later on. [Read more 🡒]