Browns Fans Don't Think Team Is Making Playoffs: Reader Sound-Off

CLEVELAND — Despite winning three of their last four games, and staying within (distant) striking distance of the playoffs, Browns fans aren't sold on their team making the post-season. And they don't want Mike McCarthy as the next head coach of the team, apparently.

On Monday morning, after the Browns 26-20 win over the Carolina Panthers, Cleveland's playoff hopes still flickered with life. Patch wrote an article titled "The Cleveland Browns Can Make The Playoffs...We're Serious" and we knew it was a far-fetched, razor thin possibility, but a chance is a chance. It's better than being 0-16 again.

While many Browns fans were happy to enjoy a team that could finish above .500 for the first time in years, others thought the prospect of the playoffs was a mirage. One Lakewood reader wrote, in response to the team having a chance at the playoffs, "Not really. Wanna bet?"

Beckley, from Cuyahoga Falls, lamented the team's early struggles. "Think of what their record would be if they could have wrapped up the close ones?" The Browns tied the Pittsburgh Steelers in the home opener, lost to the New Orleans Saints by 3 points, lost to the Oakland Raiders by 3 points, and lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers by 3 points...all before the halfway point of the season.

Readers seemed mostly resigned to another playoff-less year, but were happy to have a team that wasn't a national laughing stock.

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It wasn't all bad though. As Christine in Mentor said, "How long have we waited for a record like this 5-7-1, Unbelievable, way to go Browns!" Another reader responded with this lovely GIF.

The other big question posed to Browns fans in recent weeks was who should be the next head coach of the Browns. Interim head coach Gregg Williams has piloted the team to a winning record during his tenure, a rare feat in Cleveland, even on a small sample size. More pressingly, former Packers head coach Mike McCarthy was fired from his team and hit the coaching free agent market. He was immediately connected to Cleveland as a possible landing spot.

Fans seemed...less than excited at the prospect.

One reader said, simply, "No." It was a well-liked comment that seems to have captured the sentiment of many Browns fans.

In Strongsville, they asked for Williams to be given a chance to run the team. Several readers noted that Williams seems to have a "fire" in his stomach, which motivates a young team.

For what it's worth, Patch's Wisconsin Editor Scott Anderson also said Browns fans shouldn't want McCarthy. His offensive schemes are burnt out and he was unable to maximize Aaron Rogers, he said.

Don't agree with what your fellow Patch readers thought? Tell us in the comments below or let us hear it on social media! You could be included in our next Reader Sound-Off!

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