The Cleveland Browns went undefeated!
Hue Jackson's squad exited the preseason 4-0 after their 25-0 beat down of the Chicago Bears Thursday night. The Browns celebrated -- "hooting and hollering" in the locker room as beat writer Mary Kay Cabot put it -- becoming the first Cleveland squad to pull off the hollow feat since 1986.
"A year ago we were 0-4, so these guys came back with a different mentality,'' said Jackson said. "We understand it's just the preseason, but you've got to start someplace. They accomplished something that hadn't been done in 31 years, which is to be 4-0 and that's a credit to them.''
Save the comparisons to the 2008 Detroit Lions who went 4-0 in the preseason then 0-16 when it counted. This Browns team is leaps and bounds better than that depressing squad.
Jackson is correct that the Browns needed to start someplace. In his first year, they nearly went winless, eking out one win in the regular season. Couple that with the preseason, and Cleveland went 1-19 in 2016.
Being 4-0 in the preseason doesn't tell us much about the Browns chances of taking a step forward in 2017, but their improved defense and a rookie quarterback with physical talents provide a modicum of enthusiasm that Jackson's team won't be completely unwatchable anymore.
The Browns weren't the only team to secure the 4-0 preseason record. The Baltimore Ravens, Denver Broncos, and Seattle Seahawks also didn't lose.
Scoff if you'd like. Winning is still better than losing. That game of Scrabble you play with your husband/wife on Friday nights has less meaning than preseason football games, but you still want to win, no?
