The Cleveland Browns kicked off their 2026 season with a brutal 34-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Todd Monken’s coaching debut, but that wasn’t even the worst of it. The real gut punch landed when former Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, in his NBC debut, dropped five notorious words that instantly went viral, hitting the Browns where it hurts most.
This Week 1 Loss Was Rough, But Tomlin Made It Personal
This wasn’t just a tough game, it was a blowout right from the jump, with Cleveland coming in as a two-score underdog. The Jaguars absolutely torched the Browns defense, with quarterback Trevor Lawrence completing 18 of 23 passes for a whopping 245 yards and four touchdowns. Meanwhile, Deshaun Watson struggled big time, throwing for just 205 yards, one touchdown, and one interception, all while getting sacked five times. The Browns’ offense couldn’t get anything going, mustering only 272 total yards and failing to score a single point until the second half. This loss pushed their abysmal Week 1 record since 1999 to 3-24-1, and it marked the largest deficit Watson has faced in his 20 starts with the team, a brutal 31 points.
“The Browns Is The Browns” Hits Different After That Performance
After watching that Week 1 disaster unfold, Mike Tomlin didn’t hold back. On “Football Night in America,” he invoked a quote from his former player, JuJu Smith-Schuster, saying plainly, “In the words of my friend JuJu Smith-Schuster, the Browns is the Browns.” That line, originally from 2021, came from Smith-Schuster describing how nothing seemed to change with the Cleveland organization, regardless of new coaches or players. He called them “nameless gray faces” who have “a couple good players,” but ultimately, “the Browns is the Browns.” Tomlin’s got every right to rub it in, too. He absolutely dominated Cleveland during his coaching career, boasting an incredible 28-9-1 regular season record against them. And let’s be real, there’s some hard truth to Smith-Schuster’s blunt assessment, with Cleveland only logging four winning seasons and a single playoff win since 1999.
Coach Monken Is Not Having It, Not One Bit
New Browns coach Todd Monken heard Tomlin’s jab loud and clear, and he’s not prepared to let that history define his squad. Monken immediately pushed back, making it clear he completely disagreed with Tomlin’s take. “Everybody’s afforded their opinions. That’s what you do when you go from coaching to television,” Monken stated, not pulling any punches. “We have to own that. We have to own that. We didn’t play very well. I don’t see it that way, ‘Browns being Browns.’ I don’t see it that way. Every week is different, every team is different. We just didn’t play well. That’s one week. That’s not ‘Browns being Browns,’ that’s Browns being poorly on one week.” Monken’s words mean the Browns need to turn this around, and fast. The only way to silence those critics is to show up next week and prove Tomlin’s old quote doesn’t apply to *his* team.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by CBS Sports.
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