The Cleveland Browns have reached the wailing and gnashing of teeth portion of their season. Granted, many teams get to this point. But with the Browns, it happens pretty much every year.
This particular wailing emanates from Cleveland sports talk radio host Ken Carman, of 92.3 The Fan, who has seen enough after the Brownies’ latest blowout loss, and is demanding the team start rookie QB Shedeur Sanders.
“You’ve got four blowouts in an NFL season. Four. It’s not even Halloween. … That’s insanity!” Carman exclaimed Monday after Cleveland’s most recent debacle, a 32-13 dismantling at the hands of the Patriots in Foxborough.
“It marked Cleveland’s third loss by three scores this season and their fourth by at least 14 points,” the New York Post reports.
“I’m not even mad at the locker room,” Carman continued. “I think there’s still some culture … I can’t believe I’m saying it, I think there [are] some guys that definitely care inside the locker room. It just can’t happen. Either the offense is inept, or you’ve put yourself in a bad situation. Either way, you’ve got to be just moving on from all of it. There ain’t nothing I’m gonna be able to do this season. I don’t know what’s gonna happen this offseason.
“You know what? I might as well have a chance to have a little bit of fun. If [Sanders’] back isn’t locked up and he doesn’t need a backiotomy, just put him out there for the love of Christ. Just put him out there and let’s see. Give me a good effort for a week, and let’s see what he can do. The Jets won a game, so they’re ready to mail it in the rest of the year. So, go right on ahead and put him out there. There’s no better time. I don’t care. I can’t see what that was yesterday any longer.”
Unfortunately for Carman and the many Browns fans who agree with him, he likely will see what Cleveland put out there on Sunday for at least a bit longer.
When asked by reporters on Monday whether he has designs on starting Sanders after fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel struggled against the Patriots, Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said, “My focus is where we are right now. That’s not my focus.”
The Browns’ next opponent, the Jets, defeated the Bengals on Sunday, scoring 39 points. To put in perspective just how remarkable that offensive output is for Browns fans, not only is that more points than the Browns have scored in any single game all year, but 39 points also represents nearly a third of the total number of points the Browns have scored through all eight games this season (126).
The Browns are also entering their bye week, another factor that would make starting Sanders against the Jets ideal, since he would have an extra week to prepare.
The upcoming clash between the Jets and Browns is meaningful, though, not for reasons either fan base would find comforting. Both teams have a combined three wins on the season, and the loser of the game will gain a significant advantage in pursuit of the first overall pick.
A race to the bottom in pursuit of the first overall pick is not where most Browns fans hoped to find themselves entering Week 10 of the season. But it’s not exactly unfamiliar territory for them either.
