Shedeur Sanders will have his second head coach and offensive coordinator in as many years in the NFL. The Cleveland Browns brought back their former offensive coordinator, Todd Monken, this time to serve as the 19th non-interim head coach in franchise history.
Given his offensive background and recent work with Lamar Jackson, there are reasons to be optimistic. Even if Jackson and Sanders are very different players, Monken has turned solid pocket passers into gunslingers for years now.
More than that, it seems like the former Baltimore Ravens OC has been a Shedeur fan for long. In fact, he's been quite close to coaching him twice in the past, so this partnership was a long time in the making.
The Browns’ best offseason storyline might've been years in the making
Back in 2021, before he committed to Jackson State, Sanders was a highly coveted recruit. Among the many top-tier programs interested in his services, Sanders considered a scholarship offer from the Georgia Bulldogs. A 54-year-old by the name of Todd Monken just happened to be their offensive coordinator.
Fast forward to the 2025 NFL Draft, and Monken's path almost crossed with Shedeur's once again. The Ravens reportedly wanted to take him in the fifth round, and he politely declined because he knew he wasn't going to play much — if at all — behind Lamar Jackson. Again, Monken was the Ravens' offensive coordinator at the time.
Perhaps this is just a coincidence, but it certainly doesn't look like one. Even if Monken didn't have that much of an input in Baltimore, it's hard to believe he wasn't one of the main people responsible for recruiting him out of high school.
Also, the Browns reportedly asked all head coaching candidates how they would develop Sanders, so they may have loved what he had to say about that. He has a long track record of success at developing quarterbacks, so the potential is there.
Sanders had one of the worst statistical seasons by any quarterback in the league as a rookie. He passed the eye test at times, but the numbers were pretty brutal. Still, it's never wise to give up on a young quarterback after a year, especially under the circumstances Sanders found himself in from Week 12 on.
The Browns may not have a franchise quarterback right now. That said, operating as if they had would probably be the quickest path to success.
This draft class is pretty underwhelming, so the Browns will probably be better off just trying to work with what they have. If it works out, they will have their guy. If not, they will probably be picking in the top 10 again, and in a much deeper quarterback class, in 2027.