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The Cleveland Browns officially have arrived.
The team that will be everyone’s trendy pick to win the AFC North (and cure polio) in 2008 will get lots of national exposure, with three games on ESPN’s Monday Night Football.
The Browns host the Giants on Monday, October 13, visit the Bills on Monday, November 17, and travel to Philly on Monday, December 15.
The Browns also host the Steelers on a Sunday night in September, and the Broncos on a Thursday night in November.
The end result is even more pressure on the organization to produce after an unexpected 10-6 mark in 2007. And that makes it even more important for the Browns to get off to a good start.
They’ve got four games and then a bye, with the Cowboys and the Browns’ three AFC North rivals starting things off. Anything worse than 2-2 would set the wrong tone for a team that the league apparently believes to be on the cusp of big things.
April 15th, 2008 at 3:54 pm
Ask the Bengals what a gift all that national primtetime exposure is. At least when you get blown out at 1pm you’re a 2-minute highlight to most people. That Monday night nonsense lets everyone take a big steamy gawk at you as you fail.
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Rating: 3.65 / 5 with 3 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 3:57 pm
Before they cure polio, maybe they should cure sta….Aww Man.
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Rating: 4 / 5 with 4 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 3:59 pm
I could write a 3-page paper on why the Browns will be lucky to win 9 games this year — but I don’t have the time, and I would want my own ad revenue from it anyways :). So just let me say - last season was a fluke. If you were forced to watch their games like I was by lving in the city, you would have seen that every team they played against shot themselves in the foot.
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Rating: 1 / 5 with 4 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 4:04 pm
I hope with five prime-time games, Kellen Winslow provides us with more gems like this: http://youtube.com/watch?v=3X60mrYO1UU
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Rating: Not yet rated
April 15th, 2008 at 4:06 pm
How does a team that didn’t make the playoffs get 5 primetime games?
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Rating: 4.2 / 5 with 5 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 4:08 pm
The Browns are the trendy pick to win the North… by people who know nothing about football.
The Steelers will continue to be their Lords and Masters. Roethlisberger will continue to be the true owner of the Browns, not Lerner. In the end, nothing will change — including Browns fans’ underwear.
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Rating: 2.65 / 5 with 6 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 4:19 pm
They could be one of those teams that takes a step back after taking two steps forward the previous year. They won’t be as bad as the 2007 Jets, especially because that division will be pretty bad.
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Rating: 1 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 4:20 pm
Forget polio… What can they do to get rid of Polian? I get the feeling national audiences are going to hear “Boy, does this team miss Leigh Bodden?” a LOT this year. That offense could be lethal, but I’m not sold on their defense doing anything to discourage shootouts.
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Rating: 2.2 / 5 with 5 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
Is it too late to make a joke about Staph Infections?
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Rating: 3 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 4:26 pm
Because history has proven that truly great teams are built through free agency and getting better on paper. Shame on the NFL for not giving us Raiders vs. Browns on MNF.
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Rating: 2.35 / 5 with 3 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
OK. How does the world champions get 4 primetime games & at least 4 other (maybe more, I didn’t go through all of the schedules)teams (Browns, Cowboys, Colt & Patriots) get 5?! And did anyone take a look at the Patriots schedule? They are being set up nicely to do well, then again they are in the horrible AFC East. How does the AFC Chumps (I mean Champs) get a cake schedule like that. The NFL really needs to stop the madness…..
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Rating: 2.35 / 5 with 3 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 4:31 pm
Ahhhh…jealousy. Ain’t it cool?
Go Browns!
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Rating: 2.5 / 5 with 8 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
I am still laughing at Jimmy for his post,”Weren’t the Ravens picked by everyone last year to win the AFC Norris Division?” I didn’t realize the NFL changed the division name from North to Norris. Someone needs to check their fanhood.
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Rating: 2 / 5 with 4 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
Yuck, 5 prime-time games! Even their name sucks. Instead of the Browns they should be called either the Hershey Stains, The Skid Marks or The Sharts.
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Rating: 3.65 / 5 with 3 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 5:21 pm
I am going to punt so well in primetime it’s going to be ridiculous! Downing every ball at the one yardline I will single-handedly show that we are the class of the AFC North…
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Rating: 4 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 5:45 pm
Isn’t 5 games a little excessive? There is a good chance that the Browns hit the sh-tter this year.
-Derek Anderson could come back down to Earth
-Jamal Lewis is old
-Leigh Bodden is gone
-Their defense still isn’t very good
I would say they are a team on the rise but 5 games? Is Favre signing with them or something?
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Rating: 4.5 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 5:52 pm
I’ll admit, I’m biased being a Browns fan, but I can see why the Browns are getting prime time games.
Their games are exciting to watch for mass markets because they’re full of deep bombs, touchdowns, interceptions, long runs, and QB scrambles. And that is a result of both the Browns’ occassionally explosive offense, as well as their terrible defense (and their gun-slinging QB). So even when the Browns lose on a 30 yard rothlisberger scramble, it makes good tv for non-fans. If anything, its a curse for Browns fans to have to listen to the national pinheads ripping us apart for flaws we’re already perfectly aware of.
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Rating: 4 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 5:58 pm
Yeah calling Jimmy’s fanhood into question is a bold move…perhaps, since the AFC North is so badass he thought a nickname like AFC Norris was more fitting? Just a thought, I am slightly biased…
As for the Browns, the stage is set for them to take a big Cleveland Steamer on the NFL’s chest…
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Rating: Not yet rated
April 15th, 2008 at 5:58 pm
Bereaveland Browns have accomplished almost nothing lately (44 years since last championship), so noone’s jealous of them.
They are a 8-8 even if a lot of things break their way, but cuz they’re from Bereaveland we know that won’t happen, so 6-10 it is.
Has there ever been a non-playoff team so overhyped?
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Rating: 2.5 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 6:00 pm
If the Browns can start the season off okay (.500 after a month or two) they’ll be all right. They made a lot of improvement on both lines, which is pretty much the key to being consistently competitive. 8 or 9 wins are a reasonable expectations. 10 or 11 means they have progressed and can stay healthy, which is no guarantee.
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Rating: 2 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 6:18 pm
Every year, a schedule will look hard or soft and due to parity it changes. The year before Browns first year back the Rams and Colts were horrible….look what happened that year….Kurt Warner etc. I won’t say anything to the naysayers cause it’s all talk and opinions…even mine. We’ll see next December/January.
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Rating: Not yet rated
April 15th, 2008 at 6:24 pm
Oh quit the emo whining and crying, the Steelers got 5 primetime games as well. Some of you guys really need to calm down if you’re getting this animated over the release of the NFL schedule.
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April 15th, 2008 at 6:32 pm
LOL, the Sharts!
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April 15th, 2008 at 6:53 pm
That NFC Norris remark is a “Chris Bermanism”. It’s bad enough to hear that crap during the season. Please don’t subject that to us now. For that matter, we don’t need any “woop, woop, woop” or “he could go all the way” either. No more Bermanisms.
As for the Browns, most of those games are second tier prime time games on either ESPN or NFLN and not the showcase NBC games. At least Cleveland scores and plays interesting games.
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Rating: 5 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
April 15th, 2008 at 8:14 pm
Their defense will determine if they will win more games. For those complaining, who’d you rather see…a potentially mediocre offensive team or potentially mediocre defensive team? offense is what is sexy. Plus, stop with how tough the AFC North is…all of those teams are on the decline while the Bungals are clueless. therefore, the Browns have just as good a shot as anybody. It also depends heavily upon how Andersen reacts to the league having a book on him this fall.
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