Former Cleveland Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz broke his silence Tuesday on the "Ryan Ripken Show," explaining why he resigned after the team hired Todd Monken as head coach in January.
Schwartz, who led the Browns defense to the top of NFL rankings over three seasons, walked away from a $5 million annual salary with two years left on his contract.
Schwartz: Promotion Was Deserved
"They wanted to go with an offensive guy. They chose Todd.
I'm fine with that," Schwartz said. "But they can't expect me to stay on board for that."
The 2023 AP Assistant Coach of the Year believed his performance warranted a promotion and viewed returning to his assistant role as unsustainable.
"Anybody that's in any business, you get passed over for a promotion, when you've done a really, really good job in your job, and you think you were in line for that promotion, it's time to go," Schwartz said.
Locker Room Concerns
Schwartz expressed concern about commanding the locker room after management selected an outside candidate.
"I didn't feel like I could do my job after getting passed over for that coaching job," he said.
He added that an arranged structure could cause players to hold conflicting loyalties. "A forced marriage isn't gonna work in the NFL," Schwartz said.
Schwartz, who previously coached the Detroit Lions from 2009 to 2013 with a 29-51 record, emphasized his decision stemmed from 33 years of experience rather than anger.
"I wasn't upset about it. I was disappointed about it.
But it's just my experience told me that wasn't going to be a situation that was going to work," he said.
Cleveland management blocked Schwartz from taking alternative coordinator positions this offseason, so he will sit out the 2026 season.
The Browns are unlikely to trigger his 2027 option, making him eligible to return next year.
Monken, who replaced Kevin Stefanski, said during his introductory press conference: "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."
Monken hired first-time defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg, who plans to maintain an attack-minded 4-3 scheme.
Schwartz began his NFL career with the Browns in 1993.
