An Open Letter to The Cleveland Browns

[BobPOUND!]

What a Season!  I will be absolutely honest with you. I had given up. You had drawn me back in with Johnny Football, but that didn't last very long, and then the hometown kid last year with Kizer and that lasted even less time. It was nice to have my Sundays back, I won't lie. But coming into this year something felt different. But after so many years of "this time its going to be different", I didn't hold my breath.

But something surprising happened. You actually picked the QB I felt was the right fit for the Browns.. But then you went crazy and picked a CB named Ward that I actually had to look up to see who he was(not much of a college fan) and then went back into my depression..  Then you started to make some actual good moves in free agency, so I perked up again. Then came the pre-season and Hard Knocks and I was once again hooked. I told everyone who would listen, THIS IS IT! I will not give them another chance after this season.

Game 1 came and went and it was like kissing my sister(if I had one). Such a completely unsatisfying game. In typical Browns fashion they broke the loosing streak, but still hadn't won a game in 17 outings. There was something very familiar starting to take shape coming out of that Pittsburgh game. But I hung my hat on the tie. We tied the Steelers on week 1, that had to mean something.. Right? Then the New Orleans game. Another heart breaker, but again the nagging feeling that it was more of the same. 

Then Jets at home on Thursday night TV. I will preface this next part by saying I love and respect Tyrod Taylor as our backup Quarterback. And I truly hope he sticks around next year, because he is needed. I often wonder if he had the same chance as Baker in the post Hue era, he might have done much better, but I digress.  The beginning of that game was seeing my worst fears come to life. The same shitty play calling, the same predictable bend don't break defense. Run, Run , pass, Punt.  Yes it was looking very familiar. Then something happened that many assumed was going to happen when we picked Tyrod, he got hurt.. 

I was at a local bar with a bunch of people I didn't know all there to root for the Browns. Before the injury it was getting pathetic in there. I was angry and getting angrier, and everyone was in a foul mood. Then Tyrod goes down and then in comes Baker Mayfield. You could feel everything change. He threw that slant pass right off the bat with no hesitation and no fear. And the rest is history. I watched to the sweet end of that game and went to work the next morning still feeling drunk... A new era was upon us!!

But not so fast. I went back to the same bar for the Oakland game(my wife is a Raider's fan) and it was again packed. We played well, but still so many things felt the same. Penalties, bad special teams, predictable play calling. You could see that Baker was much less comfortable this week than in the Jets game. You could probably correctly argue that they were forced to let Baker be Baker against the Jets because they stupidly didn't give him playing time with the 1's all season.. That changed against Oakland, Hue and Haley went to work on Baker and the result was at times tentative, and seemingly out of his comfort zone. Standing in the pocket and taking hits and getting sacked twice. But he persevered and actually won that game for us, were it not for the bullshit call that we all know to painfully about this weekend. It was the call that cost us the fucking playoffs.

Then the Ravens game. Honestly don't know how we won that game, but we did. Again with 2 weeks of Hue and Haley teaching him and game planning for him, made Baker look even worse. But they found a way to win an ugly game. PROGRESS!! Or so I hoped..

Then the Chargers. Well none of us expected them to win that one anyways, and sure as shit we did not! Looked like he had not progressed at all, again if anything he digressed. 

Bucks game, he did better but again bad play calling, penalties, bad special teams, etc, etc, etc. .The same shit we've seen for 2 seasons. another loss.

Steeler, I won't even go into this one.. I watched the game at a local bar, and told the guys that Hue was gone on Monday. Even as much as I loved Baker at the helm, i told the gathered that I was done if Hue was still our coach on Monday.. And then Bloody Monday came and the skies cleared and then a twofer.. Haley was gone as well.. Never have I been so excited about an OC for our team and been so utterly and completely disappointed by someone as I was Haley.. 

Since the firing of Hue, you guys have shown this old Browns fan what it was like to once again love watching Cleveland Browns football. It isn't enough to be exciting, which you were in the first part of the season with 4 Overtime games. But you have to win. You guys are fun to watch, and exciting play calling and incredible execution and in the end you find ways to seal the game. I actually didn't get nervous against the Bengals when they started to score, because I had faith in you. I knew you were going to hold the lead and win. 

My friends all are happy for me. They know how long I've been a suffering Browns fan. But I stuck it out. And it is going to be all the sweeter when you make it to the Playoffs next year. And I truly do not think it is out of bounds to think you could make it to the game next year. Either way, I think we are on our way to another run like we had with Bernie Kosar and the 80's Browns.. A decade of owning the AFC North.. I can't wait to see what you do next.

BobPound!