Todd Monken told reporters last week that he's still getting used to everything associated with being a first-time NFL head coach, including how to handle the media.
He’s going to want his comments on longtime Cleveland Browns rival Minkah Fitzpatrick back after Sunday’s disappointing road loss to the New York Jets.
Browns rookie KC Concepcion was literally knocked out of the game in the first quarter after a high, helmet-to-helmet shot by Fitzpatrick, the former longtime Pittsburgh Steelers safety who now plays for the Jets.
Fans were immediately livid with what they felt was a dirty hit, as it was delivered to the side of Concepcion’s head, leaving the wide receiver motionless on the turf.
Thankfully KC Concepcion was able to get up and walk to the locker room with trainers. Brutal hit pic.twitter.com/Pl27dWTXdN https://t.co/Gvo51eZrg0
— Jeff Mueller, PT, DPT (@jmthrivept) October 11, 2026
Fitzpatrick, of course, was the defender who delivered the hit to the knee of Nick Chubb that effectively ended his Browns career back in 2023.
Monken could have brushed off Fitzpatrick completely and left that subject alone postgame. He could have called the play out for what it was — an unfortunate hit that was delivered too high.
Instead, he was probably a little too honest. That’s not going to sit well with fans after the Browns blew a fourth-quarter lead in Sunday’s loss.
"That’s just a bang-bang play,” Monken said. “Minkah’s been in this league a long time. I mean, he’s not a dirty player. I’ve never seen that. It’s a bang-bang play, and unfortunately it happened to our guy. That’s part of the league.”
Everything Todd Monken said about Minkah Fitzpatrick missed the mark
There was zero benefit to Monken defending Fitzpatrick after the game. Absolutely none.
For the record, he’s not entirely wrong. Fitzpatrick appeared to be lining up Concepcion’s shoulder, but Concepcion twisted in the air and dropped his helmet slightly to brace for contact. The collision ended up being forceful helmet-to-helmet contact as a result.
It was still illegal contact, which is the real point here.
Fitzpatrick wasn’t ejected from the game, but he’ll almost certainly get fined for the hit this coming week. No matter the intent, that’s the type of play the NFL has been trying to remove from the game, and Fitzpatrick targeted Concepcion way too high. He toed the line, as he tends to do, and Concepcion ended up paying the price.
Monken seems to have a hard time reading the room. His messaging around the quarterback competition that dominated the Browns’ entire offseason frustrated fans, and Sunday night certainly won’t help that cause.
Browns fans love Chubb. They despise Fitzpatrick. Monken has to know that background as he steps to the podium. Again, there were a lot of ways to answer that question, and he chose the most dismissive one. It wasn't a good look.
The sky isn’t falling here. Cleveland is still 3-2 after Sunday’s loss and remains in the thick of things in the AFC North. But the Browns also have a rookie head coach, and that fact has been painfully obvious at times over the first quarter of the season.
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