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Browns HC Todd Monken claps back at Mike Tomlin's diss
Cleveland Browns head coach Todd Monken. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Browns HC Todd Monken claps back at Mike Tomlin's diss

There's no love lost between divisional rivals. The Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns don't like each other, and that might extend beyond their fan bases.

That's why former Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin didn't waste an opportunity to take a shot at the Browns after their tough season opener.

Tomlin channeled his inner JuJu Smith-Schuster and brought back his infamous "Browns is the Browns" diss when asked about his AFC North foes.

Considering that, new coach Todd Monken made sure to send a diplomatic dart Tomlin's way, seeming to let him know he's not even in the league anymore.

Todd Monken doesn't care about Mike Tomlin's comments 

“Everybody's afforded their opinions. That's what you do when you go from coaching to television. We have to own that. We didn't play very well. I don't see it that way, Browns being Browns. Every week is different. Every team is different. We just didn't play well,” Monken said (h/t Ari Meirov). “That's one week. That's not Browns being Browns. That's Browns playing poorly on one week.”

To be fair, Tomlin would probably be at the top of several teams' wishlists if he decided to return from his sabbatical.

That said, it's also worth remembering that Smith-Schuster said that right before losing to the Browns in the playoffs, and the Steelers haven't won a playoff game since 2017.

Then again, the Browns didn't do themselves any favors in Week 1, and they'll have to do plenty of heavy lifting to flip the narrative against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

For now, they'll just have to take those punches and prepare to silence the critics. 

Ernesto Cova

Ernesto is a bilingual (English-Spanish) sports writer with over eight years of experience covering major leagues such as the NBA, NFL, and MLB. Ernesto’s work focuses on providing insightful, up-to-date coverage of sports, blending his expertise in sports psychology with a passion for analyzing player performance, team dynamics, and trade developments across various sports leagues

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