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New Thread, Old Subject, New Year, Same Old Ship

The Browns Board
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  • I think as a Browns Fan, it wouldnt be right rooting for another team just cause the Browns blow. Why waste the last 15 years waiting for a winner?

    I have nightmares thinking about the time I do decide to root for another team, or just watch another sport in general to take a break.........then the Browns go 11-5 and make the playoffs.

    Its like gas prices or heroine, the Browns have the fans hooked and coming back every year because of hope.

  • Personally, I enjoy being the fan of a team that is a perennial loser. Hear me out here. I'm not saying that I like watching the Browns lose (I hate it), or that I hope they never do well (I'd die of happiness if they won the Superbowl next year [hint: they won't.]) But I think the difficulty and frustration that goes along with being the fan of a bad team is what being a fan is all about. I grew up in and now live again in a town much closer to Pittsburgh than Cleveland. A lot of people ask me, "How can you be a Browns fan?! They suck!" To me, that's what a real fan is. If you're only a fan of a team because and when they win, then what's really the point? You could just sit back and change teams every year to whoever has been the most recently successful.

    I'm going to be honest with you here: There's a part of me that kind of dreads the day that the Browns are recognized as being a strong team, but it's (ONLY) because of the "fans". For YEARS Pittsburghers would not shut up about the damn Steelers and the Pens, because both teams were good. Everyone wore Steelers and Pens jerseys. They went on and on and on about how great those two franchises were. But there were very few people who mentioned the Pirates, and almost no one who wore Pirates gear. There were some, but very few. Now a LOT of people will say they were numbered among those few at the time, but I saw the empty Pirates stands on game days, and all those people weren't there; I walked down the streets of Pittsburgh, and there weren't that many jolly rogers. So, someone is lying.

    Now, a lot of those people probably did consider themselves Pirates fans in the past, but they "took a break" from actively following while the team was bad. Now that the team has enjoyed a little bit of success, though, all those folks are happy to be back in the stands and in the Pirates colors. You know what, though? It sucks for the people who stayed "in it" the whole time. It's harder to feel rewarded for your years of dedication to actively following a terrible team when your team is finally winning, but there's a douche beside you who "didn't really watch [baseball/football/whatever]" until the team started looking good. I spend a lot of time in the Akron and Cleveland areas (a decent distance from home for me), and when I do, and a Browns discussion breaks out in a bar, there's always a guy or two who waves his hand and says "I stopped paying attention". Yet, that guy will be the first guy to say "I've been a Browns fan for years!" when the Browns finally start winning some.

    Personally, I think you have to go one way or the other. I like to see the Cavs and the Tribe do well, but I honestly don't pay them a lot of attention. So, when they do have good seasons, I don't suddenly buy all kinds of gear and tickets. I let them and their real fans enjoy their success.

    And there's one more thing I should make clear before I finish this. I'm not saying that "being an active fan" means blindly supporting every move the team makes. In fact, I think it's quite the opposite. I think the biggest fans should be the team's biggest critics when the team is being run/coached poorly and players are performing clearly, because the fan's primary interest should be the success of the team. The difference between being a fan and not really being a fan, I feel, is whether or not you're willing to still spend time following those terrible teams rather than taking those years off and showing up again when the team does turn things around.

  • Now I read about John McDaniels - another person from Cleveland (aside...why does this matter to so many people, never mind anybody at all??). Another Belichick disciple. The guy who drafted Tebow in Denver. He lasted, what, two years?

    He also drafted two probowlers in the very next draft, potentially three. He took a swing for a QB and missed, "even though he did win a playoff game with him". Doesnt make him a horrible coach or evaluator.

    1st Ezekiel Ansah, DE, BYU 3rd Darius Slay, CB, Mississippi State4th Landry Jones, QB, Oklahoma5th Earl Wolff, S, N.C. State6th Lucas Reed, TE, New Mexico

  • my interest in Browns football is like the grass thats gone brown - dormant.....

    still there-but waiting like in the 70's ....

  • F FairHooker11

    my interest in Browns football is like the grass thats gone brown - dormant.....

    still there-but waiting like in the 70's ....

    @fairhooker11 said:

    my interest in Browns football is like the grass thats gone brown - dormant.....

    still there-but waiting like in the 70's ....

    gotta water it in the shade. same as washing and waxing a car in the sunlight.... no good.

    but if we stay dormant now while all of the good nfl coaching prospects get hired by others.......might as well plant a garden instead of grass. at least it has a chance of growing.

  • "Fast forward to the end of the season and, ironically, I have a 180-degree fear. No longer worrying about hiring a 'nobody' like Chud, I fear the organization will hire a meglamaniac like Mike Shannahan to run the show. Big name. Big hype. A has-been like Holmgren."

    I don't think you have to worry about the Browns hiring a megolomaniac. They already got a couple running this team with Banner and Lombardi.

    I do not think McDaniels would be that type of guy. I think he is now more prone to listening to others and taking advice....which he would need if he got this job.

    I still think it is his when the shooting (i.e when the Pats are our of the playoffs) is done.

    tml1138T C 2 Replies

  • Spectral: one thing is for sure, at this point in time you don't have to worry about fairweather fans as a Browns fan. A positive. Ha.

    I do take some sort of twisted pride in being a fan of a losing team. Knowing that few other teams, including the Steelers, would never have the fan following if they sucked this long. If someone ever asks me "How can I be a Browns fan" I know immediately they are not worth the time and would never understand because obviously they are a frontrunner.

    Dealing with Steelers fans today...you don't know which ones are FRAKs and which are true fans. (The only measuring stick I have is do they live in Western PA or not.) Actually, for me it's always been questionable to some degree because I grew up with them already having four SB wins. Those that I know stayed dedicated to Pittsburgh during the 80's and 90's I guess would earn my approval of being a true fan. Bottom line however, they still suck for it.

  • The GipperT The Gipper

    "Fast forward to the end of the season and, ironically, I have a 180-degree fear. No longer worrying about hiring a 'nobody' like Chud, I fear the organization will hire a meglamaniac like Mike Shannahan to run the show. Big name. Big hype. A has-been like Holmgren."

    I don't think you have to worry about the Browns hiring a megolomaniac. They already got a couple running this team with Banner and Lombardi.

    I do not think McDaniels would be that type of guy. I think he is now more prone to listening to others and taking advice....which he would need if he got this job.

    I still think it is his when the shooting (i.e when the Pats are our of the playoffs) is done.

    @the-gipper said:

    "Fast forward to the end of the season and, ironically, I have a 180-degree fear. No longer worrying about hiring a 'nobody' like Chud, I fear the organization will hire a meglamaniac like Mike Shannahan to run the show. Big name. Big hype. A has-been like Holmgren."

    I don't think you have to worry about the Browns hiring a megolomaniac. They already got a couple running this team with Banner and Lombardi.

    I do not think McDaniels would be that type of guy. I think he is now more prone to listening to others and taking advice....which he would need if he got this job.

    I still think it is his when the shooting (i.e when the Pats are our of the playoffs) is done.

    I have to agree. I get the feeling that if McDaniels wants the job it's as good as his.

  • The GipperT The Gipper

    "Fast forward to the end of the season and, ironically, I have a 180-degree fear. No longer worrying about hiring a 'nobody' like Chud, I fear the organization will hire a meglamaniac like Mike Shannahan to run the show. Big name. Big hype. A has-been like Holmgren."

    I don't think you have to worry about the Browns hiring a megolomaniac. They already got a couple running this team with Banner and Lombardi.

    I do not think McDaniels would be that type of guy. I think he is now more prone to listening to others and taking advice....which he would need if he got this job.

    I still think it is his when the shooting (i.e when the Pats are our of the playoffs) is done.

    @the-gipper said:

    "Fast forward to the end of the season and, ironically, I have a 180-degree fear. No longer worrying about hiring a 'nobody' like Chud, I fear the organization will hire a meglamaniac like Mike Shannahan to run the show. Big name. Big hype. A has-been like Holmgren."

    I don't think you have to worry about the Browns hiring a megolomaniac. They already got a couple running this team with Banner and Lombardi.

    I do not think McDaniels would be that type of guy. I think he is now more prone to listening to others and taking advice....which he would need if he got this job.

    I still think it is his when the shooting (i.e when the Pats are our of the playoffs) is done.

    I hope you're right, Gipper.

    Remember the last time the Browns waited, waited and waited for the Pats to end their playoff run and got their man?

    I don't trust Lombardi.

    I hope I'm wrong.

    "God is great. Beer is good. People are crazy."
  • C Chicopee John

    @the-gipper said:

    "Fast forward to the end of the season and, ironically, I have a 180-degree fear. No longer worrying about hiring a 'nobody' like Chud, I fear the organization will hire a meglamaniac like Mike Shannahan to run the show. Big name. Big hype. A has-been like Holmgren."

    I don't think you have to worry about the Browns hiring a megolomaniac. They already got a couple running this team with Banner and Lombardi.

    I do not think McDaniels would be that type of guy. I think he is now more prone to listening to others and taking advice....which he would need if he got this job.

    I still think it is his when the shooting (i.e when the Pats are our of the playoffs) is done.

    I hope you're right, Gipper.

    Remember the last time the Browns waited, waited and waited for the Pats to end their playoff run and got their man?

    I don't trust Lombardi.

    I hope I'm wrong.

    @chicopee-john said:

    I hope you're right, Gipper.

    Remember the last time the Browns waited, waited and waited for the Pats to end their playoff run and got their man?

    I don't trust Lombardi.

    I hope I'm wrong.

    I guess I just do think that McDaniel could turn into a mini-Belichick....by that I mean that he had poor results in his first gig....and would succeed in his second gig. But it is all imcumbent on McD getting the right man at QB. That, of course, is a major factor.

    Without the really good QB...with the Vinny Testaverde/Drew Bledsoe/Matt Cassell caliber of QB I think McD could do OK...but with the right QB I think he could excel.

    And in doing so....HE would gain the upper hand over Lombardi in terms of having a say over the team's roster.

  • I said a few weeks ago that the only thing that has even the remotest chance of making me not be a browns fan anymore was the constant rebuilding. I thought we were over this with boss jimmy at the helm. It never crossed my mind that they would even consider firing CHud and doing this all over again. I think I might be with OP on this one, but with me....not being a browns fan means i"m not gonna give much crap about football in general. I'll watch here and there but it'll be like college...something I follow somewhat but not really giving much of a shit. Browns are the only professional organization i give a fuck about. But if they are unwilling to do even try to do this right than how can I watch? The players were right this is a joke. NFL players understand you can't revamp things in a year, or two years...hell maybe not even 3 or 4. The Steelers put their time in with Cowher and now they can get by with an average HC in Tomlin because of the foundation that Cowher built that they roll from one year to the next. I can go coach the steelers to an 8-8 season at this point.

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