THESE BROWNS HARKENING BACK TO A GREAT ERA

By STEVE KING

I don’t know about you – I can’t speak for you nor would I ever try – but this is, by far, the best I have felt about the Browns, both in the moment and for the future, since the last half of the 1980s.

That’s a big statement – I realize that, and it was intended to be so – but I mean every single word of it. And in that I am supposedly the de-facto historian of the Browns, according to one longtime media member, I think the statement carries some weight.

The Browns of the last half of the 1980s were a young, very talented team that got good quickly and then became great. The club, which was led by a franchise quarterback in Bernie Kosar (the period was named for him, the Bernie Kosar era), went 8-8 in 1985, his rookie season, and won its first AFC Central championship in five years. And that was just the beginning, as the Browns, gaining experience, maturity and momentum over the next four seasons, made four more playoff appearances through 1989 and captured three more division titles, advancing to three conference title games.

Though they never qualified for the franchise’s first Super Bowl, the Browns were considered one of the best teams in football. They had good if not great players at many positions, were strong on offense, defense and special teams, had a good head coach in Marty Schottenheimer, a good group of assistants, including some guy named Bill Cowher– perhaps you’ve heard from him – and a savvy general manager in Ernie Accorsi.

Indeed, there were no glaring weaknesses anywhere from the top to the bottom of the organization.

When they took the field, the Browns were expected to win, sometimes easily. When they lost, it was an upset, at times a huge upset.

Those Browns were confident and sure. They respected everyone but feared no one. Those Browns even won in Pittsburgh four straight times.

They scored a lot of points and were fun to watch. Their games were regional events in which everything else in Northeast Ohio came to a standstill so the populace could watch.

Get ready, for this is the beginning of what is going to be the time of your Browns football-watching lives for many of you younger fans.