Browns offseason look back: 5 decisions that concern me

As a generally optimistic person, fan, and media member, I can almost always figure out a way to understand why a team made a move that they did. For me, it is a much more enjoyable way to go about sports, instead of spending a ton of energy on how things could go wrong.

That being said, the Cleveland Browns have also spent most of my adult lifetime making decisions that blew up in their face, often predictably bad. Many of us Browns fans haven’t had to imagine ways things would fail; we just had to wait for them to fail.

On Monday, I shared the five moves from Cleveland’s recent offseason that I loved. Even those moves required some level of optimistic thinking. Today, we flip the coin to the other side and look at the things that are concerning. Full disclosure: I hope the Browns prove me wrong in every single one of these concerns. I want nothing but great things for the team and, more importantly, the fanbase.

That being said, I have to be honest about decisions that at least had me pause my giddy optimism:

Hiring Todd Monken

I have no clue if Monken will be a good head coach, but I do know that no one else in the NFL has hired him for the position and rarely has he even made it to the final stage with any other team. That alone causes pause. Cleveland has long done things no other team has done, and it has never (rarely?) worked out. Monken is just the next choice that fits that bill.

To be frank, none of the other options were certain home runs either. As shared on Monday, an offensive-minded coach was a positive thing, but I would have much preferred a younger guy who could grow with the group. My entire goal is that the Browns win a Super Bowl, so I’m more willing to take upside, risky swings.

Handling of Jim Schwartz

Since the hiring of Monken and Schwartz’s departure, it seems like the team clearly wanted to hire an offensive-minded guy as head coach. If so, the Browns should not have strung Schwartz along, should not have made him a finalist for the job, and should have been far more upfront with him.

It might work out in the end, with new DC Mike Rutenberg bringing a more varied, flexible system for Cleveland’s defense, but even that will be hard to tell given the departure of Myles Garrett via trade.

Mid-level solutions to most of the OLine

Drafting Spencer Fano fell on the “loved” list, but the rest of the offensive line revamp at least gives reason for pause. It is very rare that a quality offensive lineman is available in the NFL. That the Houston Texans were willing to trade away Tytus Howard, and the Los Angeles Chargers and Green Bay Packers were willing to let Zion Johnson and Elgton Jenkins walk away in free agency gives me reason for pause.

That doesn’t mean a new setting and system won’t fix things for these players, but there was a reason Howard, Johnson, and Jenkins were available, and now Cleveland’s offense is depending on all three of them to fix a huge issue. I have some concerns about that being possible.

Jared Verse being the key to the Myles Garrett trade

Verse is really good. Verse is really vocal. Verse is really young and has already hit on some big accolades. The only concern on the field with Verse is whether he can be the 1A pass rusher in a 4-3 system. We will find out this season.

The concern is that GM Andrew Berry required a player of a certain level, with a certain contract, to deal away Garrett. From a value perspective, it is possible that the Browns could have gotten more for Garrett if they were open to a draft-pick-only deal. Would the Philadelphia Eagles have traded a first in 2027, two firsts in 2028, and more for Garrett? Would another team make a similar offer if a Verse-level player wasn’t required?

My concern doesn’t mean the deal wasn’t a good one, but it puts a lot of pressure on Verse to be something he hasn’t proven he can be and could have led to a smaller overall package in return for Garrett.

Not being more aggressive trying to sign Tyler Linderbaum

Is a three-year deal worth $81 million a huge overpay for a center? Yes. Did the Las Vegas Raiders think it was worth it because of the young quarterback they would be drafting first overall later in the offseason? Also, yes.

Signing Linderbaum, given everything else Cleveland did this offseason, would have helped solidify the offensive line, brought over someone Monken knows well, given Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson the best chance to succeed, and provided high-level stability if the Browns draft a quarterback high in the 2027 NFL draft.

Most of the reporting was that Cleveland was interested in Linderbaum but was not aggressive with their offers, compared to the Raiders. The Browns have over $16 million in cap space right now (can add significantly more by restructuring Denzel Ward’s deal) and gave the 31-year-old Jenkins a two-year contract worth $24 million. Spending that kind of money on the 26-year-old Linderbaum would have made a ton of sense for where Cleveland’s roster is and will be moving forward.

What moves or lack of moves this offseason jump out as concerning and/or bad for the Browns?

Share yours and your thoughts on mine in the comment section below