Browns Make $70 Million Move After Disappointing Jets Loss

Ken Blaze - IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Browns Make $70 Million Move After Disappointing Jets Loss

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Yagya Bhargava | Last updated Oct 15, 2026 4:07 PM ET

Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam wanted a reset after a 5-12 finish, so in January he brought in Todd Monken to lead the franchise into the 2026 NFL season. Through five weeks, the Browns are 3-2 and the early signs have been encouraging. His first major decision came at quarterback.

After an offseason-long competition, the former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator went with Deshaun Watson over Shedeur Sanders, even though the quarterback had missed all of 2025 with a torn Achilles and was booed during the preseason.

Monken believed Watson gave Cleveland its best chance to move the ball and score, and so far he has completed 64.2 percent of his passes for 1,010 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions. However, the Browns’ latest outing ended in a 17-12 loss to the New York Jets last Sunday, a game in which Watson was sacked eight times as the offensive line struggled to protect him.

Cleveland Browns helmets during rookie minicamp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.Ken Blaze - IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Fixing that remains an immediate concern for the team, but away from the field, the organization is making a long-term investment of its own.

Now, the Haslam and Johnson families are bankrolling a $70 million renovation of the Browns’ training facility at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus, which will upgrade multiple spaces inside the building. Those include the locker room, cafeteria, team auditorium and position meeting rooms.

“This investment doesn’t happen without their support, they’re 100 percent funding this project,” Haslam Sports Group SVP of Operations Phil Dangerfield said. “They’ve demonstrated since they bought the team their willingness to invest, and this is just another demonstration of that. All these improvements are focused on enhancing the player experience and meeting their needs.”

The work will be done in two phases, beginning with a much larger locker room that is set to be delivered in July 2027, ahead of training camp.

The second phase will add a two-story structure for the cafe, position meeting rooms and auditorium, and the full project is expected to be finished by June 2028, nearly a year after the first phase arrives.

The Browns will host the Baltimore Ravens, Monken’s former team, on Sunday, Oct. 18, at 1 p.m. ET at Huntington Bank Field.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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