My Annual Cleveland Browns Prediction.....

It's that time of year again. Labor Day Weekend. It marks the end of what passed for summer this year. In the sports world, Baseball will be heading for the playoffs in about a month. The Friday night lights of high school have already begun. Now it will be time for our local heroes, the Cleveland Browns to begin as well.

Every year I use this blog to make a prediction on the Browns season. It has always been wrong. I have been overly optimistic. Maybe I'm just an optimistic person. How can a group of people whose job it is to make personnel decisions on the Browns be so wrong every year. What kind of job is that? You get up in the morning and read, watch, and talk football all day. You should get good at that just by accident.

John Dorsey wore a sweatshirt all summer.

But no. Last season the Browns were historically bad. Zero wins. Z-E-R-O. Actually it's hard to be that bad. Changes had to be made, and they were. They decided to keep the coach, but get a new staff that supplied the players. John Dorsey is an experienced General Manager. Now that's a guy that can talk football, buddy boy. He brought in some of his cronies so everybody is on the same page. But how do you attack the problem? Yes, the Browns had lots of draft picks. We usually do. But those picks don't always pan out. We needed good, veteran players that might someway be dissatisfied with their present situation.

First he brought in QB Tyrod Taylor from Buffalo. Taylor may be a mediocre quarterback, but he rarely makes mistakes. Plus last season he led the Bills to the playoffs. But his contract was slightly excessive, and the Bills thought it was time to move on. So the Browns got him as a transition QB. Until the first draft pick, Baker Mayfield, is ready. Next the Browns went after receiver Jarvis Landry. He hold the NFL record

This years Browns had to earn their stripes.

for most catches in the first four years of his career. So he wanted to get paid. Miami didn't want to pay, so the Browns took advantage. The Browns also added other veteran players that should help. They also added highly regarded Offensive Coordinator Todd Haley. Dissatisfied in Pittsburgh.

The NFL Draft brought in a number of promising players. most notably QB Baker Mayfield. I've written about him before. Nobody really knows when he will get his shot. But he looks like a winner. My biggest concern is the offensive line. The retirement of All-Pro Joe Thomas left a hole that has not been filled. If there's a problem in the offensive line, it can lead to bigger problems.

But I have to admit something seems different so far with this team. They look pretty good. The defense has been outstanding. The offense, while spotty, seems on the right track. Could it be this is the season the Browns finally play like a normal NFL team?

Back in the day, the Browns were fun.

I - THINK - SO. I predict the Browns will go 7-9 this season. I really want to say 8-8, but my previously over optimistic predictions stop me.

I hope this marks the beginning of the Browns return to competitiveness. They have been so bad for so long,  a generation of Clevelanders don't remember what it's like to have a good football team. It used to be fun. Now that Lebron has left town to go make tv shows, something needs to fill the gap. Maybe it's the Browns.