Alright so let's just sort through this rant and some feelings. To sum it up, I'm cowering in a corner. Maybe behind some furniture or a dresser or something. The Cleveland Browns represent this foreign entity, doing things I'm wholly not used to it doing. I'm waiting for the inevitable moment when things start "behaving normally" and what that means to me is of course some weird mixture of this result: We shit the bed on this season. 8-3, 5th in the AFC. We're in the drivers seat of our own destiny. IMO this upcoming game against Tennessee is our biggest game of the year yet, especially after they just whupped on the Colts. Are we for real? IMO a win over that team and moving to 9-3 as we close out the year with games against the Ravens, Giants, Jets and Steelers... Effectively two games at home, two games in New York. To me finishing 11-5 at that point feels attainable, realistic and frankly dare I suggest "expectable". I don't even want to think about putting any kind of expectations on the Browns right now but a win next week vs the Titans and I think we honestly can. I hope they're putting them on themselves. Next week is huge. We lose next week, 8-4, probably still in a really good spot so a lot of people will stop and say "oh don't worry about next week" well the prospect of going 10-6 or worse, IMO... like my nightmare right now: We are the Jets one win this year... that team is fucking awful but after we just played vs Jacksonville... I feel like we can't expect anything from this team. So glass ... wherever it is for me right now, we lose to Baltimore and Pittsburgh again, especially without Miles. We can beat both New York teams. That's where I feel we close the year and why the Titans game is so important. So why do I feel like we lost this game, and last week no picnic either (look at how Vegas played vs the Falcons... the league's worst pass defense.), we're an 8-3 team but if we're looking at pretenders vs "real" contenders, I don't feel like the Cleveland Browns are in the latter category, but we beat the Titans next week, that argument is fair and valid. That's a prove it game, and we need to punch em' in the mouth because they're gonna do it to us. Jacksonville is a bad team, and we laboured to beat them. We laboured greatly. No easy wins in the NFL alright true. Final stretch for the season, and we are in a great spot. Baker has had some baffling moments but IMO he's played well enough that we do not need to worry about looking for a new QB at this time. This stretch of games is as important for his future with the Cleveland Browns as they are for us knowing the truth of where we stand this first season with Stefanski. Dust settles, I'm very happy with this team and the job they've done. They've exceeded my expectations. We are, at worst, at .500 team which isn't far off what I suggested we were before the year began. We should finish 10-6 and in the thick of a fringe playoff spot where maybe we get a sniff of post-season football for the first time in 1`8 years.
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I think the record feels off because we don't have a signature win and we're not winning because of lights out quarterback play.
A win over Tennessee would change everything. If we can go 2-1 against Pittsburgh, Tennessee and Baltimore, there isn't much denying the Browns as a legitimate factor. It's hard to feel good about nearly-losses to the likes of Cinci and Jacksonville while getting buttfucked by Pittsburgh and Baltimore. We have beaten good teams, like Indy, but it just isn't the same.
As for Baker, we'd feel different if we were 8-3 and he was in "as good as Mahomes" kind of territory. We arguably don't even really know what we've got in him.
Tennessee is a big game. If we beat them, and Mayfield kicks ass, expect everything to change heading in to Ravens week.
My answer? The Browns fanbase is confused by winning and is reacting like we're losing because that's all we know how to do.
My evidence? Simple:
Do you think Patriots fans would be complaining if they were 8-3 and winning like this? Nope.
They (and the national media too) would be saying "wow, look at Bill doing such a wonderful job coaching! Wowee! And look at that young genius Josh McDaniels changing his offense to fit his personnel! He's so dreamy! I wish he was my coach! He should get a head coaching job, he's so SMARRRTTT!!!!"
But Kevin Freaking Genius Stefanski goes 8-3 without an offseason, during COVID, with multiple insane injuries and obstacles, and Browns fans are all "OMG, LOL, WTF Baker, FML, win...derp...better?"
It's really something to watch, man.
Not banging on the two of you in particular (well, maybe a little, ;) but more what I'm seeing on Twitter and on The Athletic every week.
It's a defense mechanism, is my non-snarky answer. Folks are emotionally damaged from years of hope and then getting kicked in the nuts (so I guess we are, er, nut damaged then?) I get it. I do.
But this is SO DAMN FUN to watch that I simply can't imagine being mad at Baker being, uh, REALLY good and Chubb being AWESOME and the line being DOMINANT.
Every team in contention has issues. We are now in contention. It's weird, I know. But it's true.
Embrace it. Enjoy the ride. Live the highs, live the lows. LIVE IN IT.
I think we're a beat dog who can't believe we found this amazing new human who treats us well. We just went through it with our medicated Henry, a rescue who was caged and (it seems) beaten.
We're 8-3. We beat the Colts. We're struggling to separate because our defense mostly sucks... and really sucks when we lose key players, especially Myles.
We have a QB ranked 5th in the NFL over the last 6 weeks. Period. He made a shit ton of wow throws last Sunday, high difficulty, small windows. He has elite arm talent. His arrow is up... but fans are actively trying to dismiss a mountain of stats that reflect growth over last season AND growth as this season has progressed. Our own fans are literally saying, "Yeah, the stats say he's improving quickly and he has a top 5 to 10 arm but, uhm, I'm still sad."
The whiffs in the end zone are FAR from systemic. Before the last two weeks, he's been basically the leagues best in the RZ, even last season. Not a thing for him, just a blip.
And for all that, including winning through WAVES of injuries, fans are wary. It'll pass. I know it will. We'll get more comfortable with winning.
Right, Shep. Beaten Dawgs, indeed.
It'll take us some time to enjoy the light and air again. I get it.
But we really should tune into the fun here and I hope fans can get there.
Yes, it's annoying when Baker misses guys. But that shouldn't overshadow ALL THE OTHER THROWS.
And it does to a large degree because Baker's misses on Sunday were REALLY bad and ill-timed. So it's fair to say "huh?"
But, really, that should be it: "huh"? Not "he sucks!" and not "we need a new QB!"
So much story left to be written. I'm just luxuriating in each chapter.
Just like with The Mandalorian, which, btw, we should have a thread for because, wow.
Just some context...the Titans beat the Jags by 3. They LOST to the Bengals. They split with the Colts. Their signature win is over a Raven team that has lost 3 of their last 4.
Another thing getting under my skin is 15 teams have at least six wins or more - and we're about to play three of them. 13 teams have 4 wins or less.
8-3 typically doesn't feel like making the playoffs is so up in the air, right? Maybe it's revisionist history, but I don't remember this record being so nail-biting in years previous.
It sure doesn't help that fucking Pittsburgh are now 11-0. Again, 8-3 is typically leading the division type of shit. Of the 8 divisions, 5 teams are leading their division at 8-3 or worse. Perhaps that's why we're on the edge of our seats.
History...the Browns missed the playoffs in 2007 with a 10-6 record.
Makes sense, though. For a lot of people, this is the first real go-round with a contending Browns team and it's a weird year all the way around. Covid, no preseason, new systems, shit tons of injuries, massive testament to the whole organization but especially Stef.
Agree with the PD article: 10 probably gets us in and only requires beating the two NY teams. But it's nervous stuff that way, could get beat out, likely would make us the 7th seed if we get in. 11 wins is a lock for the 5 or 6.
Which means winning one of the tougher games. Ravens have lost 4 of 5 and have a very real Covid problem, could be the easiest game this side of the Giants or Jets. That might be the one we snag.
But then we go into the Steelers game at 11-4... and they might be resting players. Could lose this Sunday and still pretty realistically end up 12-4.
Ya'll know who didn't lose? Colt McCoy. Against the Seahawks.
Fucking king.