Todd Monken isn’t budging on the Browns’ offensive line, even with the unit piling up the kind of numbers that make change feel unavoidable.
Cleveland’s front has been under the microscope all season, and for good reason. Through nine games, the Browns rank near the bottom of the league in yards before first contact in the run game, and the pass protection has been even uglier. Tytus Howard and rookie Spencer Fano own the two highest pressure rates allowed by any tackles in the NFL, and Cleveland has given up a league-high 38 sacks.
The penalties have piled up, too. Howard leads the NFL with seven false starts, while guards Zion Johnson and rookie Austin Barber are among six players tied for second in holding penalties with four each.
Still, Monken made it clear Wednesday that he’s not planning to shake up the group.
“I don’t see it that way. I mean, our starters are the starters.
We addressed it again today: who the biggest culprits are. And they’re our guys.
And they’re like, like we said before, I mean, they’re like our kids. We’re not going to just change out our kids.
I mean, we’re not going to change out our players. They’re our best players.
We got to get our best players. And we have a very diligent team.
We have a lot of guys that love playing football, but the stats are what they are. I mean, we’ve got to look in the mirror and say, ‘at some point, this is it.’
I mean, that we just can’t continue down this road.”
Pressed again on whether he had reached the point where changes were needed, Monken stayed on the same track.
“I haven’t reached that point. We can’t change out our starters.
I mean, I’m not changing out our starters. I mean, they’re either going to, they’re either going to buy into those types of things and the mental stamina that it takes to hold their water on defense or for us to have discipline offensively.
But we’re not going to be the team we can be, because there are starters for a reason, right? If the other guys we thought gave us a better chance to win, they’d be in there.
"So, it’s all of us. How do we coach it better? How do we get our guys to dial in in the most critical moments, when it matters most?”
That stance comes after a busy offseason for the Browns up front. They already invested heavily in the line by trading for Howard, signing Johnson and Elgton Jenkins in free agency, and using two draft picks on the group, including one in the top 10. Even so, Monken isn’t signaling any roster moves before the second half of the season.
That doesn’t mean every spot has been locked in from the start, though. Teven Jenkins was projected at one point to be the starting right tackle before a back injury opened the door for Barber, who has held onto the job. Fano also wasn’t viewed as a sure thing, and Monken had previously said Dawand Jones could have opened the season at left tackle.
There’s also the question of fit. Fano played right tackle at Utah, while Barber handled left tackle at Florida, so a switch could theoretically put each player in a more natural spot. That kind of shuffle could also create a path for Jenkins at right guard, which appeared to be the plan at one point.
Monken also said during the offseason that he would rather have Elgton Jenkins at guard than center, leaving one more possible adjustment on the table if the Browns ever decide to rework the unit.
For now, though, the message is simple: the starters are staying put. And with Deshaun Watson back in the mix and his elongated dropbacks part of the equation - even if Shedeur Sanders didn’t fare much better at avoiding sacks against the Saints - Cleveland is choosing to ride with the group it has.
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