Head Coach Todd Monken (9.25.26)
For starters, can you just talk about what Nick Chubb meant to this football team and how great it was for you to have a chance to coach him?
“Yes. I was only around Nick for a year, obviously after here when I went back to Georgia, you hear the stories of, you know, Nick Chubb. I mean, when you think about his first two years at Georgia, averaging like seven and eight yards-a-carry, let alone his high school career that he had. But I was only around Nick the one year, so I don’t know him personally very well. But it doesn’t take long to know what Nick’s about. It was interesting, we just had him speak to the team, which is interesting because he really doesn’t say much. He really just speaks with his work and his play, and he’s got to be one of the most respected players in the locker room who I’ve been around, just by the way he works, the way he carries himself.”
Can you share with us just a little tiny bit of the message that he gave to the team?
“Yeah, I mean like, like most players, he talked about his preparation during the week when he was a player and spoke about, be where your feet are, that it can change in a heartbeat. And that was really his message, is enjoy being where your feet are, enjoy the journey, and, you know, the weekly prep will take of the Sundays.”
Tyson (Campbell) and Grant (Delpit) are listed as questionable, and they have 48 hours for their game status to change.
“Yeah, we’ll see. They went through practice today and we’ll see where they’re at. They’re going to do a little work here post practice, but we’re hopeful they’ll be able to go.”
Is Grant’s injury from the game or something that happened in practice?
“I’m not going to really get into where he got the injury.”
Todd, with Mason (Graham), I think you mentioned Monday that you thought he played better in week two than week one. Where do you see growth in the impact he’s had for you through two games and two sacks?
“Well, we all played better, we coached better. I mean there were so many things that we could do better, and you know, I think Mason understood that and we all understood that, and I expected him to play better. There wasn’t any one thing in particular. We just did things better, you know, schematically we did things, operationally on both sides, and we certainly did a better job of winning our one-on-ones. Mason was also part of that.”
It’s the next man up league, but with Devin Lloyd not being on that Panthers defense, being ruled out, just how much does that alter what they do defensively?
“Well, first of all, he’s a tremendous player. I got a lot of respect for him, but I have a lot of respect for their staff, and that’s the NFL, you have to have the next man up and be ready to play. And I did not know that. So, you’re telling me that now. So, I did not know that. But we prepared for the Carolina Panthers, and he’s a part of that. And we’ll continue to prepare over the next 40 hours, 48 hours, put our best foot forward.”
With a young team, you have to prepare more after week one and how they’re going to respond to that loss but then going to week two and getting the win. What’s the message this week to make sure the guys aren’t too high?
“Well, it’s, it’s a week-to-week league. We all know that. And we’re playing against the best in the world every single weekend. We’re coaching against the best in the world; we’re playing against the best in the world. And the bottom line is, as I told the team and I told you guys, ‘okay, so what, now what, right?’ Can you really refocus in terms of the development piece? All of us, strategically, coaching and then playing, that’s our job, is to create the best version of our players, develop them, and in turn the further they develop, the further we’ll develop as a team. And we’ve had a great week of practice, but we always have. And what we do is take care of our bodies today, get rest, fuel and hydrate. We’ll come back and walk tomorrow, and we’ll be ready to go on Sunday, and we’ll see. I mean that’s what it is. We go out there and I love the way we fight; I love the way we compete, and I look forward to the challenge, because that’s a really good football team, and I think we are too. We’ll put our best foot forward again.”
What have you seen from Deshaun Watson in his preparation this week? How’s he looking in practice this week?
“He’s had his best week, you know, he really has. And I think that’s been building, I think that’s been building from becoming the starter after the first week being disappointed and the second half that he played last week. And I think, I mean you’d have to speak to him, but I think his confidence should be at an all-time high, you know, and the excitement of an opportunity, a third opportunity to continue to just grow and develop as a player. Because again, he’s just scratching the surface, the last couple days, couple weeks.”
In ‘19 when the season ended, Nick Chubb went into the four o’clock game leading the league in rushing, and then he got beaten by Derrick Henry. How cool is that, to have coach both of those guys?
“Boy, that’s a lot of fun. You know, I mean, I’ve been blessed to be around a lot of great football players and great coaches, and that’s fun to be around because you grow, you know, you grow. And those guys are different, you know, Derrick and Nick are different. And because Derrick doesn’t say much, he just speaks with his work and his play, and that’s where the respect comes from, is you don’t have to say a lot. Like anything in life, it’s really what we do, not what we say, right? It’s our actions that speak louder than words. We’ve been told that since we were little, right? Everybody told us that. And those guys are the epitome of that.”
When you talk about the week-to-week thing, do you think it takes some guys, young guys, a while to understand that about the NFL? Referring to last night’s game, you pointed to a bunch of examples. Does it take guys a little bit to appreciate that?
“I think every player’s got to, whether they’re young or old, have to deal with the scrutiny that we’re under, and the player’s ability to compartmentalize what’s out there. You know, it’s so much different than when I first started, you know, with social media and their phones, and whether you’re having the success you want or you’re not, right, they’re both right in your face. So, I think it’s the ability to get back in the building and get back to work. And, you know what I’m going to say here is, you’re going to own it, you’re going to fight like hell to fix it. And that’s what we do, right? And stay humble, or you’re going to get humbled. And that’s just the way it is. I mean, stay humbled, keep fighting for what you want. Don’t worry about the record, it’ll take care of itself. There are games within the game, each play, each series, that we’ve got to try to win to get the desired outcome. So, we try as best we can, and the players themselves understand that. But you are playing against the best in the world, and it’s hard, it’s hard week to week going against the best players and the best coaches.”
Is your hope that with Nick Chubb at the game Sunday, could that be an inspiration to the team in general, and to the running game specifically, to get that cranked up, knowing how Nick always did his job?
“I think so. I think it was an inspiration day. I think just having him out there in front of the guys. But our players know the task at hand, you know, irrespective of Nick, we’ve got to be able to run the ball better.”
Did you know your guys are such Journey fans?
“Did not know that. I did not know that was going to be a request, and I didn’t know they were going to start singing it. So, pretty cool. You know, I like our guys, the connection they have, and I like, they like being around each other. And I thought it was a pretty cool moment. I did not know that was going to happen. So, it got us kind of going to start practice.”
###
***Visit the Browns Media Center for materials provided by the Browns communications department, including media schedules, press releases, quotes, photos, media guides, rosters, depth charts and more.***