The Cleveland Browns were among the most successful teams in the 1980s, making three conference championship games in the second half of the decade.
Cleveland continued to be successful after that stretch, making the playoffs again in 1994.
After the next season, former owner Art Modell moved the franchise to Baltimore, and the NFL later returned to the city once a new stadium was built.
Since the team’s rebirth in 1999, the Browns have made only three postseason appearances, including last year’s surprise berth in the AFC playoffs.
That’s why this season’s results have been so disappointing for the Browns’ fanbase.
Cleveland entered with high hopes of a deep playoff run, and the team looks like it will fail to deliver on that promise with its 2-7 record through nine games.
That’s why Sports Illustrated’s Matt Verderame believes the team’s fans should be among the most frustrated in the league this season.
On “Overtime With Jonathan Peterlin,” the analyst was asked which fanbase among the New York Jets, Dallas Cowboys, and the Browns should be the most upset with the season’s results among three NFL teams, and he named the Browns as an unfortunate runner-up of the hypothetical competition.
“With all three teams, it’s not gone according to plan,” Verderame said, adding all three franchises could stake claim to being among the “most disappointed in the NFL.”
Verderame explained that New York’s stake to being the most disappointed is the team’s inability to capitalize on quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ dwindling time in the NFL.
Cleveland – like the Jets – has been unable to make the most of its opportunity with its veteran roster this season.
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