In all walks of life, really, individuals in leadership positions tend to lean on people they know or have worked with in the past when it comes to filling out their ranks. On one hand, it's easier to put trust in someone you've seen work and have a good idea of what kind of a teammate they are, regardless of setting. On the other hand, when nepotism and cronyism are rampant, they lead to groupthink that can fracture or sink even the most successful organizations.
To criticize one coach for something that happens league-wide would be disingenuous if not unfair. For one, Todd Monken didn't go with entirely outside hires when he assembled his first staff. John Carr, the Browns' new chief of staff, was minding his own business coaching high school football in Mississippi when Monken was hired. The two had crossed paths during Monken's three-year stint (2013–15) as head coach at Southern Miss, and reunited in Cleveland more than a decade later.
The majority of his offensive counterparts worked with him at his last stop with the Ravens, and those who didn't come directly from Baltimore spent time with him in a variety of places including with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Heck, even Todd Monken's son, Travis, is on staff as an offensive analyst. This isn't exclusive to Cleveland, mind you. If you look around NFL coaching staffs with older head coaches, you're likely to find a shared last name floating around somewhere.
That's not what this article is about, though. It is about the fact that Todd Monken didn't make it a hard requirement to have worked with him in the past to earn a role on his staff. Monken was able to check his ego in realizing the Browns had a defensive system that really worked in 2025. When Jim Schwartz decided to take his ball and go home after being picked over for the head coach job, Monken mobilized and found candidates who were familiar with a similar system.
The Browns wound up hiring Mike Rutenberg as their new defensive coordinator. He never worked with Monken at any level before getting the position. Ditto for special teams coordinator Byron Storer — a former special teams standout for the Buccaneers (2007-09). Storer, in particular, went into how unique this opportunity was for him at his introductory media availability.
“Honest to God, I have never met Todd. Before I got here, I never met Todd Monken in my life, never met Andrew Berry in my life,” he said. “I kind of convinced myself, like, maybe it’s more about who you know versus what you know. So that was kind of in my mind... I was able to get an interview with two guys that I had never met in my life.
The interview process that I had here was, I believe, second to none. I don’t think I’ll ever go through another interview process like I did here. I spent half a day with Coach Monken. I spent a couple of hours with Andrew Berry and his staff. They went through the entire process... They called a lot of people, too. I got multiple text messages like, ‘hey, the Cleveland Browns reached out to me about you.’ I mean, it’s pretty impressive that they’re going out there and looking for coaches and doing their due diligence versus just hiring in their buddies.”
Browns coordinator admits he had never even met Todd Monken
What Storer refers to here is a very real part of the business. In the NFL, coaches almost always lean on familiar connections. For Todd Monken to be willing to branch out and identify what he sees as ascending talent in the coaching business is a tremendous compliment and a welcome sight for Browns fans.
Even the anecdote about the due diligence taken by Andrew Berry and Co. is likely to warrant a smile from the Dawg Pound. Far too often, it feels like the Browns are flying by the seat of their pants and making decisions without any rhyme or reason. As Bill Belichick once said, in jest about the woeful ownership group running the New York Jets: "The owner, being the owner. Just ready, fire, aim." The perception of the Browns is not far off.
It only takes one luminary to be the catalyst for seismic changes, though. While it's plenty early to anoint Todd Monken as anything other than what he's been hired for, this is an encouraging sign. You don't know what you don't know, and to learn more you need to broaden your circle. Todd Monken is doing just that, and it remains to be seen whether it will pay off for him.