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The Cleveland Browns are undergoing yet another transition, as a new coaching staff (including a first-time head coach) enters the villa. Poaching Todd Monken from the Baltimore Ravens to run the Browns, Cleveland is praying that he is finally their long-term head coach, although the jury is still out on whether that will come to fruition.

The Cleveland roster underwent a major upheaval with the Myles Garrett trade, as Jared Verse will now be asked to fill the gigantic shoes vacated by a franchise legend. Needing to re-establish their defense-first identity and pair it with an average offense, the 2026 season will be an uphill battle, both for the Browns and any members of this team you roster in dynasty football.

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Cleveland Browns

2026 Coaching Staff: HC Todd Monken, OC Travis Switzer, DC Mike Rutenberg

Previous Staff: HC Kevin Stefanski, OC Tommy Rees, DC Jim Schwartz

Kevin Stefanski was an excellent fit for the middle-of-the-road Browns, as he was a no-frills culture guy who seemed to have the buy-in from most of the roster. Having been the head coach for Cleveland from 2020-2025, Stefanski steadied the ship for a team that repeatedly was a step or two away from going off the deep end.

While it might not feel as though he did much to improve things, Stefanski was exactly what this franchise needed. So moving on from him (and seeing the Atlanta Falcons scoop him up this offseason) and replacing him with a first-time head coach in Monken feels like a step backward, especially for the development of this young roster.

Monken’s staff doesn’t exactly elicit excitement, as it includes two first-time NFL coordinators as well. Typically, you would hope a first-year head coach would surround himself with coordinators who have been here before, but Monken will be tasked with running the team and helping his young coordinators adapt at the same time.

Major Fantasy Implications

Cleveland Browns	Fantasy Football Outlook
Offensive Philosophy	Run-heavy approach with negative game script a likely theme in 2026
Biggest Winner	Quinshon Judkins
Sneaky Winner	Denzel Boston
Biggest Question	2026 QB1
Dynasty Watch	Rookie WR pecking order

Coach Background

Monken is a well-known name at both the collegiate and professional levels, having made stops at Georgia (OC), Southern Miss (HC), Grand Valley State (graduate assistant), and others, while climbing the ranks in the NFL with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Ravens, and a previous stint with the Browns.

All of that is to say that Monken has been around the block quite a bit, and with being as well-traveled as he is, it is surprising this is his first head-coaching gig in the NFL. Having most recently been on John Harbaugh’s staff in Baltimore, the run-focused approach put Monken under a bit of a spotlight at times, for good and bad reasons.

Monken’s reliance on the run game and attaching that to a shorter passing structure presented plenty of opportunities each game for success and frustration. After tailoring his scheme to the personnel of the Ravens, some elements can translate immediately and be implemented with the Browns, but it will be tough sledding to recreate the Cleveland offense on the fly. 

New Offensive Scheme

The relationship between Harbaugh and Todd Monken stretches back to 2023, when the former Georgia Bulldogs offensive coordinator came back to the NFL to call the Baltimore offense. Monken played a big role in modernizing the Ravens offense, including helping Lamar Jackson win his second MVP award in 2023.

Monken’s scheme was a great fit for the Ravens personnel, and the addition of Derrick Henry really emphasized that point. By heavily relying on the run game to set up the pass, Monken was able to develop Jackson and the Baltimore offense at the same time, helping this unit become one of the league’s best.

A core tenet of Monken’s offensive scheme is: a quarterback must have the ability to blend both in-pocket passing and athleticism outside the pocket. While Jackson is more known for his abilities on the run, he became more of a polished passer, something that whoever between Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders becomes the starter will also need to embody.

Passing Game Impact

It is essentially a two-horse race for the QB1 spot, as both Sanders and Watson look to be in the narrowed-down running. While this certainly won’t come as a surprise, neither option is the right fit for the Cleveland offense, as both have major flaws holding this offense back.

For Sanders, he is the younger prospect of the two and should be the one that is pushed into the top spot, as the Browns are in no condition to need a plug-and-play option to lead them into the postseason. Sanders showed flashes at times last year, as his accuracy and completion percentages are his best qualities, but he doesn’t do anything really exciting for an offense that needs an injection of talent at the quarterback position.

For Watson, not having played anything close to a full season since 2020, coupled with his ongoing off-field issues, makes him the worst option of the two to pick from, even though he is more talented. Having missed all of last season, Watson is still working his way back into game shape, and with the Browns looking like they are leaning toward making Watson their starter, they will have to live with all of the lumps that his game brings in his first time on the football field since Week 7 of the 2024 NFL season.

For the game plan, Monken’s over-reliance on downfield work versus working in layups for his quarterback needs to improve, as the Cleveland offense doesn’t have the type of talent at quarterback to have a downfield-focused passing attack. With rookies KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston mixing in with Jerry Jeudy, Cedric Tillman, and Harold Fannin Jr., this offense will live in the short or intermediate pockets of defensive coverage, short of the sticks.

Running Game Impact

It is no secret that Quinshon Judkins is far and away the best player on the Cleveland offense, as his RB26 finish was on the heels of a 230-carry rookie campaign. Having fallen two yards short of a 1,000-yard all-purpose season last year, Judkins is ready to reclaim his bellcow role on the ground.

Judkins is a bruiser and lives in between the tackles, having racked up 5 games of 20-plus carries in 14 games last year. While his rookie season was cut short due to a fractured fibula and dislocated ankle, those injuries don’t look like they will slow him down this season, as he is already participating in the offseason program.

While you should expect a run-heavy focus for the Browns offense in 2026, the most interesting part of the Monken-led offense will be the usage of running backs in the passing game, something that was heavily incorporated in Baltimore via Keaton Mitchell and Justice Hill. Hill was the most targeted back of the bunch last year, earning a 10.4 percent team target share, 14th-highest for all running backs (for reference, Christian McCaffrey led the way with a 21.3 percent team target share last year).

Judkins caught 26 passes for 171 scoreless yards last season, averaging just under 2 receptions per game and accounting for 7.3 percent of Cleveland’s total targets in 2025. Dylan Sampson, also drafted in last year’s class, saw more work in the passing game and likely will reclaim that role in 2026, offering value as a handcuff with upside in PPR formats.

Fantasy Storylines To Follow

Quinshon Judkins

Even without a role increase in the passing game, Judkins is the king of the backfield in Cleveland. A changing coaching staff shouldn’t be a worry, as Monken relied heavily on Henry while in Baltimore, so expect Judkins to be utilized in a very similar way.

• In his rookie season, Judkins earned 66.1 percent of all carries by running backs and led all Cleveland running backs with 12.1 fantasy points per game (FP/G) and 13.8 expected fantasy points per game (XFP/G)
• Jerome Ford signed with Washington this offseason, and he leaves 251 offensive snaps, 163 routes run, and 7.4 percent of the team rushing attempts behind, with much of this work likely being swallowed up by Judkins.

Harold Fannin Jr.

Finishing as the TE6 last year, Fannin Jr. was an overshadowed member of last year’s remarkable tight end rookie class. But with more mouths to feed after drafting both Concepcion and Boston, it remains to be seen how Fannin’s role will change.

A few reasons why you shouldn’t be worried:

• Fannin’s target percentage (19.4%) ranked fifth-highest last year among all TEs, as he tied fellow rookie Tyler Warren (Trey McBride took top honors with 25.4%)
• In Baltimore last year, both Mark Andrews (15.9%) and Isaiah Likely (10.4%) saw double-digit target percentages, and with fifth-round rookie Joe Royer behind Fannin on the depth chart, the second-year pro could easily eclipse a 20% target percentage.
• Fannin led all NFL tight ends (that played in 15+ games and ran 200+ routes) last year with 0.26 targets per route run (TPRR), showing that he was utilized even with David Njoku stealing snaps.

Denzel Boston

While Concepcion will earn the headlines as the ‘Rookie to Watch’ from the 2026 class for Cleveland, Boston should be the guy you have your eyes on. A possession receiver that frequently flirted with being ranked as the WR4 in my pre-draft rankings, Boston is a solid talent that landed in a tough spot. While questions at quarterback should concern you, Boston looks primed for a second-half production spike in this offense.

Biggest 2026 Takeaways

• Jeudy will command the WR1 workload (at least out of the gate), with Concepcion filling the slot/gadget role with a larger workload coming, putting Boston in a great spot as the other boundary weapon.
• The top three wideouts lined up out wide (as the X or Z) last year (Jeudy, Tillman, Isaiah Bond) ran 809 routes, so there is plenty of work for Boston to earn as a rookie.

However you slice this onion, it is likely going to be an uphill battle in Cleveland for their 2026 season. With question marks all over their offense, Monken and his staff have their work cut out for them, as position battles at quarterback and wide receiver make it tough to predict how this offense will move the ball.

• Look for Boston to become a trusted target of whoever is at quarterback; filling the role as the team’s best possession receiver, Boston really doesn’t have much competition for that role, so he should immediately find himself earning a healthy target share.
• Look for Judkins to be a weekly RB2, frequently finding himself either as an RB1 or on the fringe; his workload alone should put him in position for 18+ touches every week.
• Judkins and Fannin Jr. are the only players you should confidently roster from this roster, as these two players showed last year they can still make a difference in your lineups; even when a QB1 is named, the inconsistencies at receiver make this offense incredibly tough to trust.
• Even while facing negative game script for most of the season, expect the Browns to continue to run the ball, as they showed last year; with the current roster construction and its limitations, running a pass-focused attack isn’t in the cards, unless one of the WRs really stands out (and it’s unlikely).

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