OT...Cleveland '95...A Football Life

[orangecuse]

On the NFL network last night was just numbing to watch as a lifelong Browns fan. The array of talented personnel Belichick had assembled was quite impressive. No doubt the city of Cleveland and its fans would've had their coveted Super Bowl championship...or two...had Modell not have sold his soul.

 

[KaiserUEO]

On the NFL network last night was just numbing to watch as a lifelong Browns fan. The array of talented personnel Belichick had assembled was quite impressive. No doubt the city of Cleveland and its fans would've had their coveted Super Bowl championship...or two...had Modell not have sold his soul.

Modell?? i havnt seen the documentary yet, got it queued up for the weekend, but isnt it the citys fault??

they basically forced him to move by making him continue to play at Municipal and once he moved, the city woke up and built a new stadium.

there should be a statue of modell and the politicians should be forced to swim forever in Lake Erie.

 

[dollarbill44]

Modell?? i havnt seen the documentary yet, got it queued up for the weekend, but isnt it the citys fault??

they basically forced him to move by making him continue to play at Municipal and once he moved, the city woke up and built a new stadium.

there should be a statue of modell and the politicians should be forced to swim forever in Lake Erie.

If you only believe Modell. Sure, the city could have (in hindsight should have) done more, but Modell had no money. How an owner in the NFL can be on the verge of bankruptcy over and over again is beyond me. The straw that broke the camel's back was the Indians getting a new stadium. But what gets lost in all of this is how much $$$ Dick Jacobs put into their new stadium. Art Modell didn't have any money to put into a new stadium and the city couldn't shell out the dough to build one all on their own. Modell needed to be bailed out over and over again in Cleveland - and even in Baltimore. He even admitted that he had to move the team to Baltimore because of money. Maryland built him a sweet stadium, gave him a sweet lease deal, waived his taxes and even gave him a $20 million mansion to move the team.

If you want to put all the blame on Cleveland, it's not because of facts. There were several people to blame for it, but Modell has to be at the top of the list.

 

[dollarbill44]

On the NFL network last night was just numbing to watch as a lifelong Browns fan. The array of talented personnel Belichick had assembled was quite impressive. No doubt the city of Cleveland and its fans would've had their coveted Super Bowl championship...or two...had Modell not have sold his soul.

I'm not sure that regime would have won a SB in Cleveland with Modell as owner. He didn't have any money to put together a winning team. He took out a loan to sign Andre Rison, for crying out loud.

 

[orangecuse]

Modell?? i havnt seen the documentary yet, got it queued up for the weekend, but isnt it the citys fault??

they basically forced him to move by making him continue to play at Municipal and once he moved, the city woke up and built a new stadium.

there should be a statue of modell and the politicians should be forced to swim forever in Lake Erie.

In short, Modell was flat out dishonest. The city basically asked for his patience while some other projects were dealt with, Jacobs Field, Gund Arena, etc. When the city was ready to move with the new stadium as part of the broader Gateway Project, Modell, like a spoiled little child didn't want to listen and he just bailed. As DB44 mentioned, Maryland and the city of Baltimore gave him a too big to fail-esque bailout. Said he had to leave financially because of not wanting to sell and keeping it -in the family, etc. He was a lousy business man and still had to sell some of the team then to Bisciotti, whom now owns it all. So much for that...total bullsh!t.

Obviously much as been written...there's a quick read in Mike Lupica's "Mad as Hell" as he dedicated an entire section to the Cleveland move to Baltimore and the shame that it was. The NFL Network's documentary is worth watching for sports/football fans in general.

 

[orangecuse]

I'm not sure that regime would have won a SB in Cleveland with Modell as owner. He didn't have any money to put together a winning team. He took out a loan to sign Andre Rison, for crying out loud.

Yeah, no way to be certain, however, that is not the sentiment shared by various people on Belichick's staff, including Newsome, Saban and others of significant credibility. The Browns the year before ('94) went 11-5 and beat Parcell's Patriots in the playoffs (Browns haven't won a playoff game since). Belichick said significant progress had been made and that he himself believed they had -turned the corner- and that good days lied ahead again for the storied franchise. Ozzie truly believe it, quote, "No doubt we would've won a Super Bowl."

I Loved how you could hear Belichick's total distaste for Modell and what he did to his players, staff and fans. "Left us on an island," "The owner was nowhere to be found...he was in Baltimore."

And, Andre -Bad Moon a Rison- should've never been signed, especially not for that amount. Just another very poor business decision by Modell...

 

[DeGrozz]

On the NFL network last night was just numbing to watch as a lifelong Browns fan. The array of talented personnel Belichick had assembled was quite impressive. No doubt the city of Cleveland and its fans would've had their coveted Super Bowl championship...or two...had Modell not have sold his soul.

 

[dollarbill44]

Yeah, no way to be certain, however, that is not the sentiment shared by various people on Belichick's staff, including Newsome, Saban and others of significant credibility. The Browns the year before ('94) went 11-5 and beat Parcell's Patriots in the playoffs (Browns haven't won a playoff game since). Belichick said significant progress had been made and that he himself believed they had -turned the corner- and that good days lied ahead again for the storied franchise. Ozzie truly believe it, quote, "No doubt we would've won a Super Bowl."

I Loved how you could hear Belichick's total distaste for Modell and what he did to his players, staff and fans. "Left us on an island," "The owner was nowhere to be found...he was in Baltimore."

And, Andre -Bad Moon a Rison- should've never been signed, especially not for that amount. Just another very poor business decision by Modell...

Believe me, I'm well-aware of all of the nitty-gritty. '95 was such a bitter-sweet year with the Indians finally making the playoffs and the Browns coming off a good year and starting out strong. One thing to keep in mind was that if the Browns stayed, they don't finish 5-11 and they don't have the same picks in the draft going forward and they still have a poor Art Modell.
Who knows, maybe they would have won it all. Seeing all of those guys on that staff is pretty amazing. It's little consolation to think of the "what-ifs", especially with how bad the franchise has been since coming back.

I sure hope Haslem is the answer.

 

[orangecuse]

Believe me, I'm well-aware of all of the nitty-gritty. '95 was such a bitter-sweet year with the Indians finally making the playoffs and the Browns coming off a good year and starting out strong. One thing to keep in mind was that if the Browns stayed, they don't finish 5-11 and they don't have the same picks in the draft going forward and they still have a poor Art Modell.
Who knows, maybe they would have won it all. Seeing all of those guys on that staff is pretty amazing. It's little consolation to think of the "what-ifs", especially with how bad the franchise has been since coming back.

I sure hope Haslem is the answer.

As Browns fans isn't that all we have...what if's. Red Right 88, The Drive, The Fumble. :bang:

I hope Haslem's the answer too! One thing for certain, Holmgren's days are certainly numered...I'm not a big fan of Shurmur either. The Browns and SU have so much in common on several fronts when it comes to football. If Marrone doesn't pan out (strongly hope he does) just like the Browns, they need to hire someone next with actual head coaching experience and solid tract record.

 

[dollarbill44]

As Browns fans isn't that all we have...what if's. Red Right 88, The Drive, The Fumble. :bang:

I hope Haslem's the answer too! One thing for certain, Holgrem's days are certainly numered...I'm not a big fan of Shurmur either. The Browns and SU have so much in common on several fronts when it comes to football. If Marrone doesn't pan out (strongly hope he does) just like the Browns, they need to hire someone next with actual head coaching experience and solid tract record.

Cowher maybe? I hope he keeps Heckert-I think he has done a solid job with his drafts, something the Browns haven't done well since the early 80s. I think they have a nucleus of players right now that will be competitive next season and highly competitive in 2 years. If only they could get a decent WR.:bang: The drops on this team are out of control. I never would have guessed that I would long for the days of Braylon Edwards.

 

[orangecuse]

Yeah, interesting what winning can overshadow in personality and from a PR standpoint. That primarily was what that was all about. As today, he was no media darling then either, just didn't have the success/tract record then. As we all know, winning has great potency...

 

[orangecuse]

Cowher maybe? I hope he keeps Heckert-I think he has done a solid job with his drafts, something the Browns haven't done well since the early 80s. I think they have a nucleus of players right now that will be competitive next season and highly competitive in 2 years. If only they could get a decent WR.:bang: The drops on this team are out of control. I never would have guessed that I would long for the days of Braylon Edwards.

Mostly agree with Heckert, although Hardesty was just a terrible waste of pick, especially that high. Cowher would be awesome! It's quite astonishing how the Browns number one picks since being back have been (in hindsight) so atrocious...one after the other. Hopefully, Trent changes the trend...as with Haden. Yeah, the drops have cost the Browns a few games at least...I do think Little, with his size, strength and speed, could be a stud in this league if he could just be more consistent. He seems to catch the difficult ones, but not so much the routine.

 

[dollarbill44]

Mostly agree with Heckert, although Hardesty was just a terrible waste of pick, especially that high. Cowher would be awesome! It's quite astonishing how the Browns number one picks since being back have been (in hindsight) so atrocious...one after the other. Hopefully, Trent changes the trend...as with Haden. Yeah, the drops have cost the Browns a few games at least...I do think Little, with his size, strength and speed, could be a stud in this league if he could just be more consistent. He seems to catch the difficult ones, but not so much the routine.

Agree on Hardesty. But most of the players he drafted are playing fairly big roles this season. They've been hamstrung with injuries and suspensions thus far - Haden and Taylor, especially. The D has played admirably despite these 2 out. Going into the season, I felt they would take their lumps early and finish strong, once Weeden, TRich and Gordon are used to the NFL and Haden and Taylor are back. From there, I think they just need one more solid draft and maybe pick up a free agent or two and they will be good to go.

 

[Opus]

Nothing really to add to this thread (haven't seen the program yet) but just wanted to add Go Brownies! Been a fan since I was a kid. Remember the days of Greg 'Do it' Pruitt! Oh and yes I still have to control myself when I see John Elway on the TV screen.

 

[dollarbill44]

Nothing really to add to this thread (haven't seen the program yet) but just wanted to add Go Brownies! Been a fan since I was a kid. Remember the days of Greg 'Do it' Pruitt! Oh and yes I still have to control myself when I see John Elway on the TV screen.

Nice, welcome to the club. Maybe we should get a SyracuseFan Browns Backers club started. Anyone who remembers Greg Pruitt is good with me. I remember getting a #34 jersey for my birthday in 1978. It was a really nice jersey too, thick material (no mesh), 3/4 sleeves. It must have been their cold-weather jersey or something.

 

[SU2NASA]

Nothing really to add to this thread (haven't seen the program yet) but just wanted to add Go Brownies! Been a fan since I was a kid. Remember the days of Greg 'Do it' Pruitt! Oh and yes I still have to control myself when I see John Elway on the TV screen.

Remember the last time a team from the city of Cleveland actually won something?

me neither.

 

[orangenauburn]

non Brown fan here -

I feel Cowher and Trent Dilfer would be great assets in their front office

 

[Opus]

Nice, welcome to the club. Maybe we should get a SyracuseFan Browns Backers club started. Anyone who remembers Greg Pruitt is good with me. I remember getting a #34 jersey for my birthday in 1978. It was a really nice jersey too, thick material (no mesh), 3/4 sleeves. It must have been their cold-weather jersey or something.

Thanks! Nice shirt! Funny you mention thick material. (Remembering Pruitt w/the tear away jersey in college) Never got Greg's jersey but I did get my favorite defensive player of all time #57 Clay Matthews.

 

[orangecuse]

Nice, welcome to the club. Maybe we should get a SyracuseFan Browns Backers club started. Anyone who remembers Greg Pruitt is good with me. I remember getting a #34 jersey for my birthday in 1978. It was a really nice jersey too, thick material (no mesh), 3/4 sleeves. It must have been their cold-weather jersey or something.

Ah, the good 'ol days of pro football. When you could purchase a jersey of a team's star player, a la Greg Pruitt's, Mike's too, knowing that they weren't going to another team, certainly not via free agency.

Are you old enough to remember Phipps to Pitts?

 

[Opus]

Remember the last time a team from the city of Cleveland actually won something?

me neither.

Well now that you ask, hey Cleveland State! Oh wait...

Actually Browns are the only team from Cleveland I follow. (I was born raised here in Syracuse. Browns used to be on TV all the time here in the 70's)

 

[Stern]

Nice, welcome to the club. Maybe we should get a SyracuseFan Browns Backers club started.

There already is one. It's pretty big too.

 

[Stern]

Cowher will never go to Cleveland and damage his legacy in Pittsburgh. Like Joe Torree going to manage the Red Sox. Just isn't going to ever happen.

I am not certain but I believe Cowher has already said he wont coach in Cleveland when it has been brought up in the past for this very reason.

 

[orangecuse]

Thanks! Nice shirt! Funny you mention thick material. (Remembering Pruitt w/the tear away jersey in college) Never got Greg's jersey but I did get my favorite defensive player of all time #57 Clay Matthews.

Those Pruitt tear aways were awesome...he seemed to go through a bunch every game. Loved Clay Matthews too. What a linebacking crew they had with Matthews, Chip Banks and the Johnson's, Mike & Eddie, not to mention one, if not the best secondaries in the NFL, Dixon, Minnefield, Don Rodgers. The Rodgers tradegy was a stunner, I still remember it like it was yesterday...happened a week or so after the Len Bias tradegy...both OD'ing on Coke.

 

[orangecuse]

Cowher will never go to Cleveland and damage his legacy in Pittsburgh. Like Joe Torree going to manage the Red Sox. Just isn't going to ever happen.

I am not certain but I believe Cowher has already said he wont coach in Cleveland when it has been brought up in the past for this very reason.

Well, you can never say never...with the new ownership, anything is possible...especially if you throw enough coin his way...

 

[orangecuse]

Remember the last time a team from the city of Cleveland actually won something?

me neither.

The Tribe won the Pennant in '95 & '97.