Aiming for an undefeated season isn't realistic. Teams will lose games here and there, it's just the nature of the games. Then again, there are ways and ways to lose, and too often, the Cleveland Browns found infuriating and head-scratching ways to do so.
From late-game blunders to mental miscues, all the way to a lack of effort, this team has been through everything. And, for most of the Kevin Stefanski era, it felt like no one was ever held to account.
That's not going to be the case with Todd Monken at the helm. The new head coach has been with the team for less than two weeks, but he's already made it loud and clear that he envisions a team that plays hard and competes on every down. In an interview with Nathan Segura, he summed it all up in one word: Effort.
"It's real simple. You want the effort and the execution to pop off the tape. That's it. It's really that simple. Execution trumps everything, but not without the effort needed that's required to win big. It's not just game day, right? It's being intentional every single day and confronting everything that gets in the way of winning football," Monken told Segura.
Todd Monken's Browns are all about effort
It might sound obvious or simple, but sometimes, solutions are obvious and simple. Any team can lose a game. What they cannot afford is for the other team to want it more, to be hungrier and work harder. That's unacceptable, and it's something that has hurt this team way too many times in recent years.
Todd Monken will get a clean slate, for better or worse. And, barring a couple of obvious exceptions, the rest of the roster will too. Almost every player will have to earn their stripes, and that's perfect for a young roster like this.
Monken will have to do much more than rebuild an offense and make a playoff push. He'll be in Cleveland to build a winning culture, and that has to start from day one. Winning habits lead to excellence, and while failure will be tolerated and even welcome to a degree, a lack of effort will not.
It takes much more than just talent to build a successful sports organization. And if Monken is true to his word and is half the football maniac he seems to be, he's going to bring a much-needed sense of accountability to this organization, and that means more than anything else he might bring to the table.