Playing with dominance can make a young team dangerous. This helps the roster bounce back against bigger opponents, survive hostile mobs, and win games that seem lost. But that edge must come with discipline, or he starts spending more than he earns. After Sunday’s explosion in Pittsburgh, the former Browns quarterback believes Cleveland has crossed that line.
LeCharles Bentley didn’t hold back after a 27-6 loss to the Steelers.
“Just an undisciplined football team. It was an excuse early on … it needed an ‘out’ … at this point, a clown show. It’s just sloppy and frivolous now. It’s time for Monke to tighten it up a bit,” Bentley said.
Just an undisciplined football team. It was early excused … needed an “outside” … at this point, the clown show. Now it’s just sloppy and frivolous. Time for Monke to pull it up a bit.
— LeCharles Bentley (@64AMDG) November 1, 2026
The numbers back up his point about discipline. The Browns were flagged 9 times for 85 yards on Sunday. They entered Week 5 as the league’s most penalized team, flagged 14 times in the opener against Pittsburgh and 12 times against the Carolina Panthers.
The issues go beyond punishments. Over the past 3 weeks, Carson Schwesinger, Luke Wypler, and Daniel Thomas have all been penalized for illegal hits, and on Sunday, the Browns lost 2, went 0-for-3 in the red zone and failed on both 4th down attempts.
Bentley’s line about needing an edge early is fair. Todd Monken adopted a scrappy persona, and that attitude helped a young team bounce back from a 34-10 loss at Jacksonville and score 4 or fewer points in 5 of its next 6 games.
But the week before this game showed the negative side. Jared Verse Cam Heyward says he’s not worried about Pittsburgh’s offensive line or anyone else on the Steelers. Heyward finished with 1.5 sacks, TJ Watt added 2 and Deshaun Watson was sacked 8 times. Ayat did not write a sack.
Monken has touched on the mess before. He called penalties after the Carolina win, said the team wasn’t clean enough after the loss to the New York Jets, and called the press conference after the Tennessee win “not perfect at all.” Bentley’s point is that saying it is no longer enough.
The good news is that the adjustment is under the Browns’ control. Young teams can learn discipline, and this roster has already shown it can rise to the challenge. With a trip to New Orleans next Sunday and the No. 1 seed in the AFC North now in Pittsburgh’s hands, that answer should come quickly.
NEXT:
Fans react to the Browns’ blowout loss to the Steelers