Not much has gone right for the Browns over the last few years, but the team has been very competitive on defense under Jim Schwartz. The former Lions head coach turned Cleveland into the league’s second-best defense in 2023, per DVOA, his first year with the Browns. The unit took a dip in ‘24, but bounced back in a significant way in ‘25, finishing eighth in the metric, which measures team success on a play-by-play basis.
Cleveland’s defense thrived despite being paired with the league’s worst offense and special teams units by the same measure.
The Browns opted to hire Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken as their next head coach, hoping that he can help jumpstart a stagnant offense that has rotated through quarterbacks over the last few years after the Deshaun Watson deal turned into the worst contract in NFL history due to his poor play and string of injuries. Cleveland reportedly hoped to retain Schwartz as DC, but he had sights on the head coaching job and was reportedly “visibly upset” after being passed over. Now, he has officially resigned from the franchise.
Jim Schwartz has resigned as defensive coordinator pic.twitter.com/aHjXb5zuDj
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) February 6, 2026
Schwartz remains under contract with the Browns, and will have to be granted his release in order to pursue other jobs, per NFL Media.
Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer named the Raiders—who are set to hire Seahawks OC Klint Kubiak as head coach after the Super Bowl—as a team to watch as a Schwartz landing spot as DC, should he hit the open market. Breer also named Texans defensive passing game coordinator Cory Undlin as a name to watch for Cleveland’s DC opening.
What Todd Monken said about retaining Jim Schwartz
A number of Browns signaled that they were upset that Schwartz wasn’t given the head coaching opportunity after the coaching search came to an end. Myles Garrett—fresh off breaking the NFL’s single-season sack record and en route to his second Defensive Player of the Year award—posted a meme that seemed to share his feelings on the situation.
When asked about the reactions of players like Garrett and Denzel Ward, and his own discussions with Schwartz, Monken declined to address staffing decisions but said that Cleveland's defensive stars were a major reason that he took the job.
“First off, my anticipation is we’re not going to change the system. Very difficult to go against. We’re built for this system we’re in. I’m not going to get into staffing, because that’s not at this time to get into that, but they can be rest assured that we’re going to keep the same system. We’re still going to let them attack, we’re still going to let them play free. I can’t see another way.
“They’re a big reason I took this job, the defensive players. I didn’t take this job because of Jim Schwartz. I have a lot of respect for Jim Schwartz, as I would hope he has for me. But I took it because of the players that are here, the ownership, Andrew Berry, and to be able to build this roster from the ground up on the offensive side.”
Monken continued with a line that gained a lot of traction in the days after his first press conference.
“When I was preparing for the Cleveland Browns, I wasn’t trying to chip Jim Schwartz, I was chipping Myles Garrett.”
Garrett was one of two Browns defenders to earn national recognition after an impressive season under Schwartz; former UCLA walk-on and second-round pick Carson Schwesinger took home Defensive Rookie of the Year after a masterful first season. Ward is a five-time Pro Bowler, including three consecutive selections under Schwartz as DC.
Based on the reports that Cleveland attempted to retain Schwartz after Monken’s statements, it sounds like he was very open to bringing him back, though Schwartz’s mind appears to have been made up.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Browns DC Jim Schwartz Makes Official Decision on Future After Being Passed Up for HC Job.
