5) Waterfront
Both cities are pretty identical when it comes to appearances. They are both on the lakes and they are both blue collar cities that fell on hard times during the 70s and 80s when factors started shutting down. In 1983, the unemployment rate was 13% in Cleveland. The city was in the crapper. However, according to Wikipedia (And they are always right)..
The metropolitan area began a gradual economic recovery under Mayors George Voinovich and Michael R. White. Redevelopment within the city limits has been strongest in the downtown area near the Gateway complex—consisting of Progressive Field and Quicken Loans Arena, and near North Coast Harbor—including the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland Browns Stadium, and the Great Lakes Science Center. Cleveland has been hailed by the media as the "Comeback City," while economic development of the inner-city neighborhoods and improvement of the school systems are municipal priorities.
Just drive through Cleveland on the 90 West and you'll know what I'm talking about. As for Buffalo? Ehhhh. Look, I know they are finally starting to turn things around with the ultra hockey heaven package, but for the last 20 years, we saw Cleveland move into the 21st century while we were stuck in neutral. I remember making that drive through Cleveland as a teenager and wondering, why can't Buffalo be like this? Hopefully, they are getting to that point…but we can still be envious/angry at Cleveland for being smarter than us.
4) No respect for being miserable
Cleveland vs. Buffalo. Two drinking towns with a sports problem. The mistake by the lake. Wait, that should be our nickname! Maybe I'm in the minority, but we don't get enough credit for having bad sports teams in comparison to Cleveland. When LeBron James left the Cavs, they got their own TV special and everyone felt sorry for the city. When Ralph Wilson decided to move a regular season game to Toronto, did we get any "awwww, poor baby" from ESPN or anyone? Of course not! We got crap! You know that series the NFL Network puts out about the NFL top 10 list? One episode consisted of the most snake bitten franchises. You'd think the Bills would be in the top 5, right? WRONG! How the hell were we 10th?! Would we need OJ to not just kill people, but kill dogs, bunnies and cats? Now, where was Cleveland ranked? 1st. Seriously, we get no respect for being such a shitty sports town. At least the Browns have NFL Titles.
3) Dick Jauron
Do I really need to go on about the Browns' defensive coordinator? Here's what Tom Reed for the Cleveland Plain Dealer (What a stupid name for a paper) said…
l would call him, certainly last season, the coaching MVP on the team. They really have a lot of confidence in him. They don't dial up the blitz that often, they don't take a lot of chances. They give up a lot of yards. Last year, they finished fifth in scoring defense, despite being I think 30th in the league in rushing defense. They basically would give you field goals."
UGH. I wanted to gargle Drano after hearing the guy say coaching MVP. That sounds like typical Jauron in terms of coaching methods. Tons of yards given up and just luck your way into giving up field goals. I'm sure the players love him because their practices are at a pee wee level intensity. As I've said in the past, if Jauron is connected to a team we are playing -past or present- he's making the list. This will be the first time the Bills have gone against him since they fired him midway during the 2009 season. They are 2-1 against him when he's a defensive coordinator, all dating back to his days in Jacksonville.
2) Moving the team
There was a lot of controversy in the wake of the death of Art Model on how the Cleveland Browns and their fans should react to him passing. Some thought it was time for the Browns family to move on while others thought he was still a complete douchebag. I'm not sure where I'm at. I mean, Cleveland did get their team back, albeit, the Ravens have become a kick ass franchise while the New Browns have stunk. However, the way it all went down in 1995 was insane and just left a bad taste in everyone's mouth when it came to sports."Football is a business" was born when the move went down.The owners lifted the curtain on what they want out of owning an NFL team, as it wasn't about the fans anymore, but about the bottom line. It also has become a reminder that any team can move at anytime. The Browns never had attendance issues and had a great following and yet, in a span of 24-hours, it was leaked and then announced they were leaving. If it can happen there it can happen anywhere. Honestly, I wonder if that team had stayed in Cleveland, would some Bills fans still be worried about the team moving?
1) The Ronnie Harmon drop
There are only 2-3 games I can recall crying after it was decided. This was one of them. 1989 was the year I started watching the Bills. If you've followed the history, you'll know that 1989 was known as the year of the Bickering Bills. The team had high expectations after a 12-4 season, but inconsistent play and drama in the locker room led the Bills to finish 9-7. Yeah, I know, playoffs and a 9-7 record would be a parade in these parts these days. The divisional game pitted the Browns against the Bills in Cleveland. I don't recall what the feeling was going into this game, but it seemed like no one gave us a chance because the Bills had so much drama around their team and had lost 3 out of 4 games. The game would go down as probably the most entertaining back and forth game in Bills playoff history. Both offenses combined for over 800 yards and 64 points. Jim Kelly set a playoff record with 405 yards passing and Thurman Thomas had 13 catches for 150 yards. For some, this was a prelude to the no-huddle offense because they ran it almost exclusively in this game.
However, it will best be remembered for Ronnie Harmon's drop. If you watch the clip in real speed, you may be inclined to say that Kelly didn't do Harmon any favors and put a little too much air under the ball. However, when you see it in slow motion, you'll call it a drop…Period. On the next play, Kelly threw a INT to Clay Matthews which sealed the win. It was a devastating drop that is probably in the top 5 for most disappointing plays in Bills history. After that game, I despised Cleveland with the hate of 50 King Jofferys. They were the enemy. I learned what revenge was the following year when the Bills crushed Cleveland 42-0.
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