An open letter to the Cleveland Browns, the fans & media

Over the last couple weeks as the Browns started losing and Brian Hoyer has shown obvious signs of fatigue, a controversy has been brewing. But the issue isn't about who our starting QB should be. The issue at hand is what needs to be done to bring a winning football team back to Cleveland. 

Championship teams become champions because they don't give up on their starting quarterback just because he has fallen into a little rut. Championship teams don't become champions by changing coaches every year or every other year because they didn't take the team to the playoffs. Championship teams don't become champions by continually making the same mistakes over and over and not learning from them.  The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and expecting different results. And that, my friends, is the problem!  

I have been a Cleveland Browns fan my entire life. That's 38 years of enduring events like "the drive" and "the fumble ". I have, just like everyone, have witnessed over 20 starting Quarterbacks in the last 15 years. Yet, there is still no championship. Why? Because the QB is not the problem! The problem starts with the front office. The poor management of player personnel. It starts with cultivating a winning atmosphere. To be a champion you must behave like a champion. Ask yourself-how did Green Bay win 13 championships? How do the New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens remain in playoff contention year after year after year?  They do it by believing in their QB and head coach. 

What do Ben Roethlesberger, Joe Flacco, Tom Brady & Aaron Rogers have in common? They all have Super Bowl rings and they did by spending their ENTIRE careers with the same team. The defense and offensive lines, the playbook, their style...all built around them. They have been starters for so long that most of the time people can't even name their backups. They have been under center for so long that there is rarely any question that they will get the start from week to week. Their backups get to sit back and learn from some of the best in the league. 

They all have an offensive line that leave everything they have out on the field...each and every game. And the defense is rarely questionable. They have had the same head coach for more than 2 years at a time. In the last 15 years the Patriots have had 1 head coach....yet Cleveland has had how many??? I can't even remember, but I believe it's been more than 5. My point is the fans & the media quickly blame the head coach & the QB when the team can't win, when really they need to look at the other positions and the management who makes player decisions. 

Here is my suggestion for the offseason. Re-sign Hoyer & Cameron. Hoyer needs about 2 more seasons to really get in his groove. Cameron is our franchise tight end....give him a chance. Keep Gordon in check and watch how he can explode. Keep Hawkins, Gilbert, Mack, Kruger, Thomas, Leonhard. Build around these guys. Don't give up on them. Learn from your past mistakes. 

And the front office needs to stop the carousel. Look at where you have succeeded and build upon it. Do you really know why outsiders make so many jokes about Cleveland? Because of the dumbass decisions that are made when it comes to our players. You always let the good ones leave while investing to much time & money on the bad ones. 

Just stop it already!!! My Christmas wish this year is that Ray Farmer realizes that this team we have this year is the core on which we need to build. To the media & fans...stop running players & coaches out of town when they have a few off games. Even Big Ben plays like shit sometimes! 

Signed, 

A diehard, orange & brown bleeding Browns fan.