BROWNS OWNER FEELS PRESSURE TO WIN
Cleveland buoyed by Cavs’, Indians’ success
You might think that, as the owner of a team that finished 2016 with the worst record in the NFL, the last place Jimmy Haslam would dare show his face in public would be at Quicken Loans Arena as another local team plays for a championship. Hardly. Haslam, whose Cleveland Browns have been a laughingstock for most of the last half century, would not miss Game 3 of the NBA Finals for anything short of a natural disaster. He was eager to join the throng of rabid fans at The Q on Wednesday night, looking to cheer on LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers as if it were his own team.
No shame. No embarrassment. But, yes, some serious inspiration.
“It’s exciting,” Haslam told USA TODAY Sports on Wednesday afternoon, speaking as he watched the Browns practice at the team’s headquarters in Berea, Ohio. “We’re Cleveland sports fans, too.”
Haslam has Cavs fever. And Indians fever. He attended all three NBA Finals games in Cleveland last year and went to three of the Indians’ World Series games at Progressive Field. His wife, Dee, attended all four of the World Series home games against the eventual champion Chicago Cubs.
“This is a great sports town,” Haslam said. “A million people turned out for the (Cavs) victory parade last year. That’s phenomenal. There’s just been a great buzz.”
Now if only some of the success that the other local teams have enjoyed can rub off on the Browns — if not increase the scrutiny on Haslam and his brain trust to finally produce a winner.
“We’re already feeling plenty of pressure,” said Haslam, who purchased the Browns in 2012.
The Browns, 1-15 last year, are rolling with a streak of nine consecutive losing seasons — all but one laden with double-figure defeats. Since the franchise was revived in 1999 after Art Modell’s move to Baltimore, the Browns have had just two winning seasons and one playoff berth (2002).
With the team in the midst of yet another rebuild, the perspective for the coming season will require patience. Haslam reiterated Wednesday that he’s committed to sticking with executive vice president of football operations Sashi Brown and coach Hue Jackson for the long haul — significant given the stability of Cleveland’s divisional opponents in the AFC North and the fact that the Browns are coming off the worst season in franchise history.
“The plan is in place,” Haslam contends.
Cleveland’s recent draft, which began with the selection of Texas A&M defensive end Myles Garrett at No. 1 overall and included two other first-round picks, was widely hailed as arguably the best in the league this year. Time will determine if that view holds up, but at the moment, it is a positive vibe to build with.
And Brown is still sitting on a stockpile of future draft picks and salary cap space. Continuing a flow that was accentuated with the trade of the No. 2 pick overall last year (which the Philadelphia Eagles used to select quarterback Carson Wentz), Cleveland has two first- and three second-round picks for the 2018 draft.
Still, amassing victories and championships represent the ultimate measure of success.
“Last year was extremely painful,” Haslam said. “We weathered that. We’ll be better this year. I think you will see improvement.”
It’s striking, though, that Haslam maintains that he’s felt some of the same love from Cleveland fans that the Cavs and Indians are receiving despite his franchise’s struggles.
“The support has probably been better than it should be,” Haslam said. “They’ve stuck with us.”
In return, the Browns lowered prices on the cost of 40% of the season tickets at FirstEnergy Stadium this season — a gesture that makes plenty of sense when the other teams in town are competing for championships. Haslam knows all about what made the Cavs’ first NBA title last year so special. It seemed more personal as James, an Akron native, made good on his mission to return home and win a championship for the long-suffering fans.
“People want the Browns to win,” Haslam said. “We need to stop talking about it and start doing it.”