Thank you. Great post. I’m sorry for your loss.

If this can’t be a rallying post for us, what will be?

Nice post. I have a 16-month-old daughter, and try as my 3 brothers-in-law may to adorn my daughter with Bears/White Sox/Cubs/Bulls garb, they know that when it comes to football at least, if not all the above mentioned sports, their collective fanhood for their respective teams pales in comparison to my absolute adoration of the Browns. Each Sunday, they come with me to the local sports bar even if the Bears are playing earlier or later and have become Browns fans by proxy because they feel what I feel by extension. And, of course, my daughter, even at this age, feels my excitement and eternal optimism. We’ll get there, and I agree that it’ll be that much sweeter because of the difficult times when we stuck by our squad. Woof! Woof!

I grew up in the 50s and 60s in Pittsburgh. We were pathetic. The more the team lost, the more I loved them. That’s the truest fan on the planet. I hear a lot of Cleveland fans these days saying “I am done with the team until they show me something.” Those people are shallow. Anyone can root for a winner. Anyone can root when the times are good. Only the best fans root when the times are worst. And you’re right, when the trophy comes to town, there will be an explosion that will be heard across the lake. I will be happy for Dwag Nuts and those like him.

Great post. Thank you.

awww, that was really sweet! i’m so sorry about your grandpa. everyone on this blog should read this. great post.

Great post. Everyone has to rec this.

Respect.

Thank you

Best thing I have read in quite some time.

Great post. I think we all are frustrated beyond belief with the current state of the Browns. Your story and your relationship with your Grandfather is what being a fan and a Browns fan is all about. Sure puts life into perspective.

I truly appreciate all of your kind words and positive responses. It means a lot.

I enjoy the Browns every time I watch them on some level because I know I’m not just rooting for myself anymore. I’m rooting for more memories to match the ones I had with Pap…

I’m a transplant here in Cleveland. I grew up in a part of the country that has no pro football in the state. So I don’t have those deep roots. But I feel the same. The first sentence above really says it. There is always something special I take away from each game and some reason to high-five my son. My son and I made one of those lifetime memories last year on a warm Monday night in October.
I hope we will remember this post as we debate and discuss our team on this board. We should try and remember that we are all hoping and striving for the same thing and that we share many of the same good memories. Thanks for the post.

great post, thanks for sharing it with us

I’m not even a transplant to Cleveland but I know how you feel and love the sentiments in the original post. Cheers to Pap.

i have no fond memories with the browns, I’ve only been a fan since they came back, and I’ve only been able to watch most of their games for a couple years. ive never even been to ohio. still love the brownies and they still break my heart almost every year.

Here’s to pap. Great post. I’d rec it 100 times myself if I could..

On the night of the AFC Championship Game that featured The Drive, I missed the 4th quarter because Pap was so nervous he couldn’t watch and had me walking around the neighborhood in the snow with him, which i gladly did.

Wow. That’s funny. Me and a friend did the SAME thing, although after they lost. I couldn’t stay in the house and had to just get out and ended up trudging around through the snow I was so upset. Same with the fumble.

I don’t know, you have to take some of what is said about ’I’m done with this team,’ etc. etc. with a grain of salt. Most fans who say this are just venting, and time and time again they show back up on the boards, and are seated right in front of the TV bitching again just like the week before, and the week before that.

Hell, I admit it, every week they lose I have a fit and stomp around yelling about ’I’m not watching another game this year,’ ’I’m done!’ My buddies and family just laugh because they know that it’s BS and I’ll be back. It’s sort of understood that this is my M.O.
Most of the time I can’t even sit in the same room..I end up standing in the kitchen cursing and sort of peeking around the corner to see what’s going on. I know, it’s weird…but I’ve always been that way since I was little in regards to the Browns.

Anyways, for me, as a lot of other fans might feel too…there has also been some disconnect remaining from the team leaving and returning. This new team has struggled to establish an identity, much like the new stadium has struggled to do the same compared to the old. It’s our stadium, and our team, yet strangely feels somewhat different…more impersonal, steralized, corporate…we don’t really have guys and coaches we love on the team like we did back in the 80’s. That’s not just because we haven’t been winning, mind you…it’s the players. I hate to say it, but really, there haven’t been too many players since ‘99 that we really can get behind and like, and identify with the city…a few, maybe, but it’s not quite the same…YET. This is not through lack of trying…remember all the people desperately trying to get behind Couch, Frye, etc. and being let down. We as fans really try to connect the two franchises (to the point of putting the ‘dawg’ logo on the field lol), and still…somethings missing…and again…not just the wins.

Anyways, I’m rambling. Maybe childhood memories are just that…and we’ll never be able to return to that period in time, and feel the same way we did about those particular teams, that stadium, and that era. Who knows? If we can get a core group of young players who are good guys, good teammates, tough, scrappy, and identify and love their fans and city…maybe we can have something close to that again…Either way, I’ll still be watching from the kitchen…;)

Oh, forgot, excellent post, btw. Thanks for reminding of us of the big picture and why we’re here in the first place.