With Jim Schwartz officially resigning as defensive coordinator of the Cleveland Browns, Todd Monken and company will immediately hit the market at an unideal time.
The NFL’s 2026 hiring cycle is winding down, and Cleveland’s options for Schwartz’s replacement are scarce.
Here’s what we know: Monken intends to keep the Browns’ current defensive system intact, and the most prominent defensive coaches under Schwartz have been in a holding pattern and were still with the team as of Friday’s bombshell report.
The most logical pivots could be coaches already on Cleveland’s staff, led by Ephraim Banda (safties), Brandon Lynch (cornerbacks), Jason Tarver (linebackers) and Jacques Cesaire (defensive line). Banda notably interviewed with both the Jets and Cowboys for their DC vacancies last month, so it would be a surprise if he doesn’t at least get a look.
NFL insider Ian Rapoport, who was among those who broke the Schwartz news on Friday morning, mentioned a pair of Matt Burke disciples who Browns fans should be getting to know.
With hopes of keeping the system together for their talented group, the #Browns may look to a couple of assistants on the staff of Jim Schwartz disciple Matt Burke — Dino Vasso and Cory Undlin. https://t.co/pt9i2zoweU
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 6, 2026
Cleveland’s top defensive coordinator candidates could come from a very familiar tree
Burke, the star defensive coordinator of the Houston Texans, has firm ties to Schwartz, and Rapoport believes Cleveland’s next defensive coordinator could currently be on the Texans’ staff.
Schwartz hired Burke as his linebackers coach while serving as head coach of the Detroit Lions from 2009-13, and the two linked up again with the Philadelphia Eagles, during Schwartz’s tenure there as DC.
Dino Vasso, 38, was on that same staff in Philly, including as an assistant defensive coordinator in 2020. He’s currently coaching Derek Stingley Jr., Kamari Lassiter, and Houston’s elite group of defensive backs, assuming that role under head coach DeMeco Ryans in 2024.
Cory Undlin, meanwhile, should be a familiar name for Browns fans as he spent four seasons in Cleveland from 2005-08, serving various low-level roles from special teams to defensive backs. He too worked with Schwartz, Burke, and Vasso in Philadelphia and has been Houston’s defensive passing game coordinator since 2023.
If Monken really wants to keep the Schwartz system in tact, but prefers a new voice to keep the players honest, poaching either Vasso or the 54-year-old Undlin from Houston’s proven operation would make a ton of sense.
The Browns might’ve already missed out on the top DC options, but that doesn’t mean they won’t find the right one in the days ahead.