Todd Monken had a lot of game balls to hand out in the locker room after his Cleveland Browns finished off division rival Pittsburgh, 27-24, for their third win in 12 days.
One of those game balls signified something much bigger than just a winning play or performance.
Mike Hall Jr., a rotational defensive tackle and occasional edge rusher for the Browns, received a game ball from his head coach after leaving everyone — especially Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit in the Thursday Night Football broadcast booth — stunned.
Cleveland lost both Hall and starter Mason Graham to injuries in the first half, with Graham quickly ruled out with a knee and Hall listed as questionable to return with an ankle. But it sure looked like Hall’s night was over. He couldn’t put weight on his ankle after teammate Jared Verse was blocked right into his leg. Hall was carted into the locker room from the sideline.
But when Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers were in Cleveland territory and looking for points, down 21-10 late in the third quarter, Rodgers was blown up before he could throw the football — and it was Hall celebrating a monster sack. On one leg.
If one moment could epitomize what Monken and the Browns are trying to build, it was Hall returning to the field with Cleveland short on bodies up front and delivering one of the plays of the season so far.
To steal a line from Monken, that was so cool.
“Mike — how awesome was that?” Monken said postgame. “To come back. Gets hurt. Probably going to be out. You’re going to be down to two defensive tackles. And Mike comes back. That’s just how our guys are wired. They want to play for each other. We’ve got a tremendous connection. Winning helps that connection. It just does."
Mike Hall Jr.'s improbable return gave Todd Monken the perfect example of the culture he's creating in Cleveland
Every NFL team's season that's worth anything has that one defining moment, and it’s rarely a game-winning touchdown pass (or kick). It’s typically a big hit, or some kind of special play that galvanizes a team and gets the fan base believing.
Hall’s sack on Rodgers could be that moment for the Browns.
It’s not like Hall had a monster game. He ended up playing 30 defensive snaps overall, per Pro Football Focus, as the next man up following Graham’s injury. Adin Huntington — who also stepped up with a sack Thursday — was the Browns’ only other active defensive tackle.
Hall’s pro career has been somewhat of a rollercoaster, starting in 2024 when he was suspended for five games by the NFL following a domestic violence arrest. He later suffered a severe leg injury — a torn MCL and dislocated knee — in the final game of his rookie season that derailed a sizeable portion of 2025.
He entered training camp this summer in now-or-never mode. The Browns invested a second-round pick on the former Ohio State standout, and he showed the new coaching staff that he was willing to play any position along the defensive line to contribute this year.
The play he made on Thursday night against the Steelers could end up being his signature moment. Rodgers led a pair of late touchdown drives to tie the game. Had the Steelers — who were already in Chris Boswell’s field goal range — gotten a field goal attempt instead of the punt that was forced following Hall’s sack, the end of the game could have played out differently.
“The injury sucked, but you gotta keep fighting,” Hall said. “That’s what the game of football is about. You gotta keep fighting and keep going out there.”
That’s Monken — spot the ball, let’s play some football.
No one in the building or watching at home expected Hall to return to Thursday’s game. His one contribution to the box score might get buried in all the postgame stats and analysis.
But the sight of big No. 51 hopping on one leg to a roaring home crowd? That's the kind of image that lasts a full season and beyond.
Add us as a preferred source on Google