If Cleveland Browns HC Todd Monken was expecting a honeymoon phase in his first time leading an NFL team, Week 1’s performance all but shut the door on that. The Browns performance versus the Jacksonville Jaguars was so bad that it was hard to tell if the problem was scheme/coaching or talent on the roster. The answer is probably both, but fans are putting much of the blame on Monken and QB Deshaun Watson.
On Monday, Monken noted that he plans to stick with Watson as the starting quarterback. While
Watson’s stat line was not horrible, the film told a different story… except the story Monken saw was one of optimism, while fans and media saw it as mostly pessimistic.
When asked whether Cleveland’s roster backed Watson, Monken said: “They don’t have a choice; this isn’t a debate.” While that may not be a bad answer, overall, it flies in the face of what the Browns head coach said about the quarterback position in April when he noted that “players decide who plays, I don’t decide who plays” and “who does the team believe in” as seen below:
A lousy performance in Week 1 and continuing to stand behind Watson at quarterback will only magnify the scrutiny on Monken’s offense and his starting quarterback’s play. For now, five months later, Monken has changed his tune a bit about how much the rest of the team matters when it comes to who the starting quarterback is.
What do you think about Monken changing his tune, or do you disagree with that idea based on his comments shown above?
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