Being A Cleveland Sports Fan...

Cleveland is a city of hope yet constant let down. The city struggles with sports teams succeeding, and seemingly manages to always take one step forward and two steps back. One team, in particular, has become the butt-end of every joke; The Browns.

Being a Cleveland Browns fan is like being a kid who believes in Santa. For weeks you wait, and wait... and come the 4th quarter, you see your parents putting the gifts under the tree. Your hope is shattered and you find yourself in a state of confusion asking yourself "How could I be so stupid?". Every game its like that... You think, this game they will win! This time they will prove themselves but most games, its another story. They have become the joke of the NFL, from always losing to never sticking to one coach. Some players even wound up leaving and bashing the city with hateful words. It seems as though Cleveland will always be a football city, but a comfortable numb one.

I can't entirely blame the quarterback every game, because if the offense isn't blocking, how can you expect him to feel comfortable throwing the ball or taking his time? I can't really blame any of the players. A sports team is only as strong as the coach that backs them... And lets face the facts, Cleveland always manages to get stuck with bad coaches. I am not exactly fond of the owner's decisions either.

I guess the point of this hub is to give the fans credit. No one ever says that Cleveland is the biggest sports fan city or even football fan city, when in my eyes, when it comes to the Browns, we are. Every year we watch, we hope, we even pray that this year will be better, yet since 1999, we've been let down, time and time again. If its not the team, its the calls. If its not the calls, its the coach... and if its not the coach, its the owner.Yet here we are... We still watch, we still cheer, we still buy the jerseys, the tickets and the crazy fan gear. You can't tell me their is a bigger fan base out there. I have seen people brought to tears, break their TV's and even get kicked out of the stadium... But they still remain fans year after year.

It's hard, and really at times... Stressful to be a Browns fan. No one gives the fans the credit they deserve. We could have given up on the Browns back in 2001, but we never did. We wanted our team back, and even though we have been under a constant rebuilding of the team since 1999, nearly 12 years later; Still, we cheer. We still flock to the stadium every year paying outrageous amounts of money for food and memorabilia to support a team that may never be a contender in the NFL. Now to me, that's a fan.

I really do hope the owner starts to show he cares before the fans stop caring.