ARE YOU A BELIEVER? OR A DISBELIEVER? OR SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN?

By STEVE KING

Do you believe the Browns’ top men?

That is, did you believe what they said in that recent press conference, the one to introduce their new quarterback, Deshaun Watson?

The Browns’ presentation was slick — pretty slick, anyway. Everybody seemed to be on the same page on everything except the time when this idea to start considering Watson was hatched. Owner Jimmy Haslam said it was not until after this past season, when General Manager Andrew Berry said it was five months ago. So, someone is telling a mistruth.

That’s a big thing to be confused about, so I guess my question — and really, it’s the only obvious question — is that if the Browns didn’t get their stories straight on such a basic fact, then how much more of what they said wasn’t exactly right, either? How many other possible — or probable — mistruths are there?

We have no way of telling now. But time will be the ultimate truth detector.

While I don’t believe everything they said, I also don’t disbelieve everything they said, either. The truth is somewhere in the middle.

Is that good enough, though? I don’t think so.

As an owner, GM or head coach, such as Kevin Stefanski, you can agree to disagree on various players and strategies. That’s healthy. You can bend the truth a little bit when it’s presented to e public — it goes on all the time — and no one gets too worked up about it, not even those in the media. It’s just how it goes. It’s the business, as they say.

But the type of thing the Browns have done in trading for someone such as Watson goes far beyond the football field. It cuts into people’s souls. So, then, you have to be exact on every detail of it.

That’s just not the case here, in my opinion. There are parts of what was said in that presser the other day that just don’t feel right.

And that’s troubling.