During Kevin Stefanski’s head coaching tenure, the Cleveland Browns routinely ranked below league average in offensive pre-snap motion. The Browns improved in that area under offensive coordinator Tommy Rees last season, and fans should see things evolve even further in Year 1 of the Todd Monken era.
According to NFL data analyst Ray Carpenter, the Baltimore Ravens, with Monken as OC, had a motion rate of about 68 percent in 2025, which ended up ranking 11th in the NFL. The Browns were below 60 percent and ranked in the bottom third.
Under Monken, the Browns should have a noticeable shift in pre-snap motion, as well as less shotgun and more under-center play action. As Browns rookie Denzel Boston told NFL insider Ian Rapoport — grasping the complexities of Monken’s playbook has been his biggest adjustment from college to the pros.
“I think the biggest learning curve is the playbook. The playbook’s very sophisticated. You’ve got a whole bunch of motions and movements. So I think once you’re able to get that down you can actually play free and you can go out there and have fun. But that’s the biggest learning curve when it comes to this next step.”
The Browns’ offense could be unrecognizable under Todd Monken
Pre-snap motion was a popular (and often contentious) conversation during the Stefanski era. Browns fans expected the team to take strides in that area after Ken Dorsey was hired as OC ahead of the 2024 season. Dorsey came from the Brian Daboll tree with the Buffalo Bills, who have often ranked among the NFL’s leaders in motion rate. The Bills still led the league in that category during the 2025 season.
Cleveland surprisingly went the other direction under Dorsey. In November of 2024, the Browns ranked 30th in football with a 13-percent motion rate, per Cleveland.com writer Irie Harris. They took a significant leap under Rees in 2025, but they have more ground to cover to reach modern NFL norms.
According to Pro Football Focus, the league’s shift/motion rate was 63.9 percent last season, up from 61.5 percent in 2024. The league has seen an increase in that department every year dating back to 2014, when the league average was 37.6 percent.
Monken comes off as an old-school coach in a lot of ways. He’s shown a clear understanding of how to mold his scheme to fit both modern tendencies and the strengths of his personnel. He’s got some fun chess pieces in Cleveland in Boston, KC Concepcion, Jerry Jeudy, Harold Fannin, Quinshon Judkins, and Dylan Sampson. All signs point toward the Browns finally entering the modern era of NFL offense in 2026.
After years of frustrating underachievements on offense, Browns fans are here for it.
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