Yes, it’s exasperating when the Browns don’t close out a game like they should, which was the case against the New York Jets a week ago.

I get that. We all get that.

At the same time, though, there are reasons why this stuff happens – not to the extreme that it was against the Jets, certainly, but in a general sense. It’s that NFL teams are more alike than different. There is not as big of a gap as you might think between the top clubs and the bottom ones. There just isn’t. Parity exists everywhere.

As such, then, these games – almost all of them, really – aren’t decided until the fourth quarter, and most of them not until late in that quarter. It’s who makes the most plays down the stretch that decides the winners from the losers. It’s not so much that some teams have all this talent while others are lacking it. It’s that the teams that end up winning know how to close games out. It’s something that has to be learned.

If you have responsibilities that will force you to miss part of a Browns game, let it be the first part. Make sure you’re there for the end, because you will see the most important part of the game.

Longtime Browns fans point to the excitement of the 1980 season in which 14 of the 17 games, including the playoff against the then Oakland Raiders, were not decided until the final two minutes. All teams now, including this Browns club, has a lot of the Kardiac Kids’ personality in them.

That should make Brian Sipe and Sam Rutigliano smile.

Steve King