Things got loud for the Cleveland Browns after their embarrassing Week 1 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, as the entire NFL world piled on them with criticism. The Browns couldn’t say much, but after beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 2, it was Cleveland’s turn to do the talking.
That's exactly what Browns head coach Todd Monken did during his postgame press conference. After praising his team for playing better and getting a win on Sunday, Monken ended his presser with a savage mic drop.
He acknowledged that Cleveland didn’t play to its standard last week, then added, “Browns are gonna Browns. F*** that!” He then admitted that the team took the Week 1 criticism to heart, before walking away from the podium.
Todd Monken drops mic by torching Browns haters after Week 2 win
Monken is referencing the words of former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, who now works as an analyst for NBC. In Week 1, when the Football Night in America crew reviewed the highlights of Cleveland’s Week 1 loss, Tomlin said, “In the words of my friend JuJu Smith-Schuster, the Browns is the Browns."
Monken was asked about that comment on Monday, and he played it cool, saying that everyone is allowed to have their own opinion, and while he didn’t see it that way, the Browns have to own the criticism since they didn’t play well.
"Well, again, everybody’s afforded their opinions, right? That’s what you do when you go from coaching to television. We have to own that, meaning we have to own that we didn’t play very well. I don’t see it that way, Browns being Browns. I don’t see it that way. Every week is different; every team is different. We just didn’t play well. That’s one week. That’s not Browns being Browns. That’s Browns playing poorly on one week. So again, everybody’s afforded their opinion, and the only way to change people’s opinion is to play better. That’s a fact."Todd Monken
Clearly, the comment bothered Monken more than he initially let on, and that’s why he passionately responded after his first win as an NFL head coach. Before he could respond on the microphone, his team needed to respond on the field, and that’s exactly what they did.
Tomlin has already responded back, laughing the situation of by saying, “I’m glad I can still motivate, although I’m not coaching anymore,” and even threw win a “you’re welcome.”
The Browns won 23-19 over the Buccaneers, navigating a slow offensive start and a fourth-quarter rain delay that lasted more than two hours. What the young Browns team showed in that game, and what Monken emphasized at the podium is that they are going to fight.
Cleveland isn’t accepting any outside narratives, or buying into the belief that they are doomed by their recent history. Monken continues to make it clear that won’t be the team’s identity under his lead. If it takes some spicy language at the podium to really drive home that point, the first-year head coach is clearly down to play his part.
Of course, just as the loss to the Jaguars was just one week, so is Sunday’s win. Monken knows that Cleveland needs to keep winning, or his words will surely be used against him. However, if the head coach does indeed lead the Browns to a successful era, this mic-drop moment will be immortalized.
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