This past week, the Browns played in a preseason game against the Falcons. Sadly, they were beaten for the second week in a row. Browns fans are quickly realizing that this season might not be that different from the ones in the past. Coming from last season with a 3-13 record, it looks like we might have to endure another losing season. Fun statistic: in 2011, the Browns had played their 200th regular season game since returning to the NFL as a franchise prior to the 1999 season (cue Art Modell hatred), and had only won a total of 67 wins… That is 33.5 percent of games won. The Browns had only won less than 34 percent of games in 12 years. Currently, the total is chalked up to about 90 wins. So Browns fans are used to rooting for a losing team.
So why do us Browns fans continue to stay loyal to a team that we know will only break our hearts week after week? Why do we continue to give our money to a franchise that promises so much but rarely delivers? Any Browns fan that you meet will probably tell you that they are from the Cleveland area, so our love for the Cleveland Browns centers around hometown pride. Ask any Clevelander why they still root for the the Browns and they’ll tell you that it’s because they love this city and this team. Fans have stuck around and will stick around to root for the good ol’ Brownies despite their inability to win at least five games a season.
Every year, fans sell out “The Factory of Sadness” and dedicate their lives to this team. They tailgate starting at sometimes 7 a.m. on game days and attend every single game, even when the temperature is below freezing. The Dawg Pound will still go crazy after every play even if the team is down and has barely any chance of coming back. I believe that Cleveland fans are the most dedicated in the NFL and by far surpass any other fan base. Despite all of the crushing stats, we come back year after year to our beloved football team and give them our support 110 percent. We tune in to every game because we want to and we still have faith in our team. We hate the Steelers wholeheartedly and will bark till we lose our voices because “we bark together.” The Browns constantly keep us on our toes, with 25 starting quarterbacks since 1999 and head coaches that can apparently only stay around for a maximum of three years, and give us hope that “maybe next year” we can expect a few more wins. Maybe next year we’ll finally win the Super Bowl, since we are one of only four teams that have never even made an appearance.
I will forever be chanting “Here we go, Brownies” till the day that I die because this is the team that I love. I can only hope that there will be a Browns championship in my lifetime. I bleed orange and brown and will continue to dedicate my life from September to January on my favorite team. Brown’s fans stick together and we will endure every painful loss until we finally win the championship that we deserve.
