Cleveland Browns fans entered the current coaching search with a lot of hope and excitement. However, now that the search has been going for weeks, and the team still hasn’t made a decision after two rounds of interviews, fans have no idea what’s going to happen. Worse than the confusion is the fear that Cleveland is about to do something that will make the franchise the laughingstock of the NFL again.
On Monday, the Browns had an extensive interview with Los Angeles Rams pass game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase, and fans were hoping the team would end the day with Scheelhaase as the team’s next head coach. Instead, the team concluded the interview, flew back to Cleveland, and a report emerged that current defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz was gaining momentum.
On Tuesday morning, NFL insider Adam Schefter shared that Todd Monken is still square in the mix as well, echoing a Monday report for Cleveland reporter Mary Kay Cabot. So while fans assumed Scheelhaase was the favorite, with Schwartz as the fall-back option, it seems like Cleveland is still working to decide between Scheelhaase, Schwartz, and Monken.
While Nate Scheelhaase and Jim Schwartz have been primary focuses of the Browns head coaching search, Todd Monken is a name still square in the mix as well. The team has closely tracked him this entire search. He previously served as the team’s OC in 2019, knows Cleveland well… https://t.co/siD0hhmOi1
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 27, 2026
Browns reportedly deciding between Nate Scheelhaase, Jim Schwartz, and Todd Monken to be next head coach
Todd Monken, a longtime NFL coach on the offensive side of the ball, spent time with Cleveland back in 2019 as the offensive coordinator. After three years as the offensive coordinator at Georgia, he spent the last three seasons as OC for the Baltimore Ravens. That’s why there’s a belief that he could be headed to the New York Giants with John Harbaugh.
That seems to be dependent on whether he gets the Browns job or not. Cleveland has reportedly explored a Monken and Schwartz duo, but the franchise has made it clear it wants to keep the current defensive coordinator around no matter who’s the head coach. Will that be Todd Monken? Nate Scheelhaase? Will Jim Schwartz himself get the head coaching job? No one seems to know at this point, not even the Browns.