An open letter from a sad Browns fan

Good morning everyone,

How are you doing today? Not good? Yeah, me either. Life's tough for us Browns fans right now.

I wanted to take a second and write to y'all that this is not the end. Well, at least I don't think.

The offseason's start has gotten off to one hell of a rocky ride. Let's review real quick. Best to just dig into the pain, I think. Here's a brief timeline of our torture recently:

December 28, 2014: Browns finish the season 7-9 (best finish in 7 years).

January 8, 2015: OC Kyle Shanahan parts ways with the Browns after one season amid alleged "friction" with the front office.

January 9, 2015: Reports that Browns' front office texted coaches during games surface.

January 23, 2015: ESPN report chronicles Johnny Manziel's lack of commitment/preparation.

January 25, 2015: Word spreads that Josh Gordon has failed another drug test.

January 29, 2015: Josh Gordon writes a letter putting the world on blast.

February 2, 2015: Johnny Manziel enters treatment facility.

February 3, 2015: Gordon officially suspended at least one year.

February 4, 2015: GM Ray Farmer is the mastermind behind Textgate, facing suspension/loss of draft picks.

February 4, 2015: Might as well add fuel to the fire, Jason La Canfora pens article destroying the Browns front office, specifically owner Jimmy Haslam.

So, as I was saying...things are off to, um, a shaky start. And I'm here to give you the straight-up-honest-to-goodness truth.

It can get worse.

It has to be said. While Cleveland may look like the laughingstock of the league right now, I'm here to say, prepare for it to get worse before it gets better.

I'm not trying to be pessimistic or dramatic, but rather, realistic. We do not know at this point what the sanctions against Ray Farmer will be, but all indications point to it being a loss of a relatively-high draft pick, plus Farmer himself being suspended a few games. Additionally, if reports are true that the Browns are considering a trade-up for Marcus Mariota, things could get even more wild in Berea. And, as everyone knows all too well, Jimmy Haslam is the ultimate wild-card.

I don't know if this is the worst offseason to date, but it certainly is up there for consideration. I'm hopeful things will get better, but at this point, it's hard to see if/when they actually will.

My point is, hang in there. I, like many of you, hate this team right now. Hate might not be the right term. Loathe, maybe? Regardless of the verb you choose to describe your feelings towards the Browns right now, I'm guessing it's something similar. Look at today's Chow and you'll see numerous posts of people ready to walk away. But the truth is, we won't. We'll be dragged back in at some point, and we'll be right there throwing empty beer cans at the TV screen every Sunday this fall.

So, while things may be all doom-and-gloom right now in Berea, I'll leave you with some dates to keep in mind that may help numb the pain. Or not, but at least I can say I tried.

February 17-23, 2015: NFL Combine in Indianapolis.

February 18, 2015: Cleveland Indians pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training.

February 22, 2015: NASCAR Daytona 500.

March 10, 2015: NFL league year and free agency begin at 4:00 PM.

March 15, 2015: NCAA basketball Selection Sunday.

March 17, 2015: March Madness begins.

April 6, 2015: Indians 2015 opening day.

April 10, 2015: Indians home opener.

April 18, 2015: NBA Playoffs begin.

April 30 - May 2, 2015: 2015 NFL Draft in Chicago.

September 13, 2015: Cleveland Browns 2015 opener.

That should hold us over for a bit, no? If not, I know I'll see y'all around the comments, because just like me, you can't quit this team.