THE CITY OF CHAMPIONS 70 YEARS AGO
By STEVE KING
I think about 1948 a lot these days.
That’s in large part because it was exactly 70 years ago, and also that it was the greatest year in Cleveland sports – ever.
It was about this time of year 6½ decades ago, on June 24, 1954, that running
The Browns won the All-America Football Conference championship for the third straight year.
The Indians won the World Series championship for the first time since 1920, which was their first World Series appearance.
And the Barons won the American Hockey League championship.
Championship. Championship. Championship.
Champions. Champions. Champions.
“Cleveland was called the City of Champions that year,” Dino Lucarelli beamed as he and I talked at length about 1948 once.
Lucarelli should know. He was a 14-year-old boy back then. He went on to work in public/media relations for all three franchises, and is believed to be the only person to have done so.
Nobody is better versed in Cleveland sports history than Lucarelli, who is 83 and living in the Cleveland suburb of Independence. He is a wealth of knowledge and the among the kindest people you’ll ever meet.
The Barons are long gone. The Cavaliers, who have taken their spot among Cleveland’s Big 3, have gone to four consecutive NBA Finals, with one championship two years ago, but don’t expect another title – or Finals appearance – for some time. The reason now plays in Los Angeles.
But it was a great run.
The Indians might win the World Series this year – but only if they hit more consistently and get their bullpen – er, Andrew Miller – straightened around.
And the Browns? They are as far removed from 1948 as they can be as they get set to start training camp in a little over two weeks.
In 1948, they had a 15-0 record, becoming the first team in pro football history to finish a season – postseason and all — completely perfect and with a league championship to boot. They were in the midst of a streak that lasted from midway through 1947 until midway through 1949 in which they had a 29-gane unbeaten streak, going 27-0-2.
The current Browns, of course, are coming off only the second 0-16 record in NFL history. Their mark over the last two years is 1-31. Over the last three seasons, it’s 4-44.
Perhaps the best the Browns can hope for is that 2018 will be when they take some legitimate steps toward getting themselves turned around.
Now, that’s a nice thought to consider – not as good as 1948, but everybody would take it in a heartbeat nonetheless, don’t you think?
One such step is tackling the problem at offensive line
The Browns lost an offensive tackle candidate the other day when Donald Stephenson retired after never taking a snap with the team.
He signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with Cleveland in March as an unrestricted free agent from the Denver Broncos.
Stephenson had spent the last two seasons with them after playing four years with the team that drafted him in 2012, the Kansas City Chiefs. The man who drafted him there, John Dorsey, is now, of course, the general manager of the Browns. So it seemed like a good fit in that Stephenson needed a fresh start – the Broncos had relegated him to a reserve role in 2017 — and the Browns desperately needed help at tackle, especially on the left side after the retirement during the offseason of future Pro Football Hall of Famer Joe Thomas.
But it didn’t work out.
Losing a decent veteran candidate at a position of need – tackle is, by far, the team’s biggest question mark heading into training camp later this month – is never a good thing, but football is a sport where if a player’s heart isn’t in it anymore, then he has to step down lest he get hurt by players whose hearts are definitely in it – who are trying with everything they’ve got to win a roster spot. So it’s good that Stephenson made his decision now instead of later because it gives the Browns a couple weeks to alter their plans before camp starts.
I’m very concerned about both tackle spots, really. The Browns always knew this day was coming when Thomas would retire and they would have his big shoes to fill. It was never going to be easy – replacing a Hall of Famer never is – but now it becomes a little harder with Stephenson out of the picture.
I don’t know how all of this is going to shake out in training camp, and for that matter, I don’t think the Browns know, either. But they’ve got to find a way to make it work, again particularly on the left side where that starter will be facing the opposition’s best pass rusher every week.
And if they don’t, then quarterbacks Tyrod Taylor and Baker Mayfield could well end up taking a beating.
That’s not good – it’s not good at all – and it worries me, as I’m sure it does the Browns.
