Cleveland, OH
Cleveland Browns should honor Myles Garrett trade request, and let him take fans with him
I have always been a contract guy, meaning if you sign a contract you honor it. But even with two years left on his $125 million extension, Myles Garrett should be able to leave Cleveland and take anyone with him who wants to go, including the fans, because, frankly, does anyone still want to be with the Browns?
Cleveland is a loser organization, and I say that having grown up many moons ago as a diehard Browns fan. Red Right 88 nearly did me in. The Drive actually did. I died that day. Then came “Die Hard II, The Fumble,” when toothy John Elway ripped my heart out and stomped it for good measure.
It actually was a relief when the Browns left for Baltimore. Did it hurt? Of course, but their exit was more of a dull ache than stabbing pain. And at least the orange and brown would not be able to set me up with hope only to dash it on the lakefront breakwall.
Art Modell is considered a monster for moving the team, and he slimeballed the departure for sure, but back then the Browns were at least respectable. Sometimes even admirable.
Now? Two words. Deshaun Watson. Two more. Jimmy Haslam. If those names don’t make you wince, you’re probably a Steelers fan. Speaking of Pittsburgh, I remember thinking Haslam was just what the Browns needed when he bought the team in 2012. He had been a minority owner of the Steelers, and many of us figured if the Rooney family accepted him, he had to be OK. Little did we know the Rooneys blessed his departure for good reason.
Haslam is a billionaire, which at the time he bought the team was a bonus more than what seems now to be a prerequisite of NFL ownership. He had money to spend, or burn. Turns out burn was more like it. The Browns are 54-110 (.329) under Haslam’s ownership.
Jimmy owned Pilot Travel Centers, but last year sold his remaining 20% stake in the company, six years after the Feds began snooping into his business to investigate whether he ripped off gasoline customers. Interestingly enough, Haslam also gets accused of ripping off the Browns paying customers by putting an inferior product on the field. A case also could be made that the Browns committed fraud by having the audacity to charge for Johnny Manziel jerseys.
But I digress. The point is the Cleveland Clowns, Charlie Browns or whatever name you want to call a team that defines haplessness, are not worthy of Garrett’s continued employment. And the big fella from Texas knows it.
Garrett, the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, requested a trade Monday, explaining that “While I’ve loved calling this city my home, my desire to win and compete on the biggest stages won’t allow me to be complacent. The goal was never to go from Cleveland to Canton, it has always been to compete for and win a Super Bowl.”
Myles Garrett ranks hgh among best Browns defenders
A perfect way to say you want out. And any Browns fan who blames him for asking to be traded hasn’t been paying attention to the ineptitude surrounding Haslam’s team. Cleveland – the franchise, not the city – does not deserve to keep Garrett, whose 102.5 sacks are the fifth most by any player in his first eight seasons. His 14 sacks this season ranked second in the NFL and made him the first player since sacks became an official statistic in 1982 to record 100 career sacks before turning 29. It is no stretch to suggest Garrett is the best defensive player in Browns history.
Garrett said in December he did not want to go through another rebuild, which is where Cleveland is after going 3-14. Watson’s return at quarterback is uncertain, which is just as well, given the accused serial massage-ynist has been a $230 million guaranteed bust. With or without Watson, the Browns need a new QB, and Garrett is not willing to wait around for the second coming of Patrick Mahomes, or in the Browns’ case, given their bone-headed draft decisions, Pat Sajak.
Fifteen years ago I wrote a column urging Browns fans to jump ship because the Browns no longer deserved your allegiance. Go root for a winner for a change. That was before Haslam bought the team. Now? I wouldn’t blame Cleveland fans if they begged Garrett to take them with him wherever he goes.
But wait, the Browns’ front office vows Garrett isn’t going anywhere. They refuse to trade him. We’ll see how long that lasts, but for now it feels unfair, signed contract or not, to not let No. 95 go free. He deserves better. The Browns don’t.
As for that other Haslam-owned team – the Crew
The Crew are not winning friends or influencing people to climb aboard the Black and Gold train.
The team just sold their best player, forward Cucho Hernandez to Real Betis of Spain’s La Liga in return for a transfer fee of about $16 million. That’s a lot of money, but as our Michael Arace writes, it will be nearly impossible to replace the 25-year-old with a player of similar talent.
Hey, it’s a business. I get it, but this business is doing its best to make loyal fans feel like second-class cheerleaders.
First, Crew majority owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam moved the team’s regular-season game against Messi Miami from Columbus to Cleveland, where on April 19 a city that lives for the Browns, loves the Guardians and occasionally looks up to notice the Cavs, will welcome … MLS. Certainly, a multitude of Crew fans from Columbus will make the trek. But why should they have to? (Answer: greed. Huntington Bank Field holds more than three times as many spectators as Lower.com Field).
And now Crew fans don’t even get to see Messi against Cucho. Or Cucho against anyone, except when streaming La Liga matches. Talk about a double whammy. Again, business is business. But it just feels like Crew fans are the ones to suffer, which is bad for business.
Listening in
“It hurt my heart as a Mavs fan.” – Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, lamenting the trade that sent Luka Doncic from Dallas to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Off-topic
Some people watch the NFL RedZone, preferring to view scoring highlights to sitting through an entire game. I get it, because I’m the same way with episodes of Seinfeld. I used to watch the entire show, but lately have switched to watching hilarious snippets on Instagram. Am I contributing to the short-attention-spanning of society? Guilty as charged.
roller@dispatch.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – For the second day, Northeast Ohio school districts are receiving bomb threats.
On Friday morning, two schools in the Elyria City School District, the high school and Ely Elementary, received bomb threats.
Both schools are evacuating students, and emergency responders are on the way, according to a social media post.
All other district schools are in a lockout status as a precaution.
The district asks that family members not come to the schools or call school offices at this time so emergency communication lines remain available.
Elyria Police said that the department is working with the district to ensure the safety and security of students and school personnel following the threats.
“We are aware that neighboring school districts experienced similar swatting-related incidents yesterday, and our investigative personnel are working diligently with our law enforcement partners to identify the source of these threats,” police said.
Five Northeast Ohio school districts received bomb threats on Thursday, including:
- Alliance City School District
- Amherst Exempted Village Schools
- Cleveland Metropolitan School District
- Lorain City School District
- Shaker Heights School District
Below are the details from each district and the protocols in place to protect students and staff.
ALLIANCE CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT
The Alliance Police Department confirmed there was an ’anonymous’ robo-voice style call that came into the high school saying there were ’20 pipe bombs’ outside of the school” before 12:30 p.m.
Officers rushed to the high school and Rockhill Elementary School campuses “due to an alarm in which we were not getting a response from the school,” according to APD.
APD shared that the schools evacuated the students temporarily as officers conducted a sweep of the area.
“Nothing was found, thankfully,” APD Lt. Christopher McCord stated. “The school staff, and especially the students, did a great job of staying calm and making everyone’s jobs easier, smoother, and safer.”
“We will be looking into the source of the threats to hold those responsible accountable, if possible,” McCord added.
AMHERST EXEMPTED VILLAGE SCHOOLS
The Amherst Exempted Village School confirmed at 10:25 a.m. that Marion L. Steele High School and Walter G. Nord Middle School received a bomb threat.
AEVS said all district facilities were placed on a level 1 lockdown before the two schools were evacuated to a safe location under the supervision of administration and staff, according to district protocol.
The Amherst police and fire departments teamed up with the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office to perform perimeter and building sweeps to determine if the threat was substantiated, said AEVS.
The perimeter sweeps of the two schools were complete by 11:34 a.m., and law enforcement then conducted the interior sweeps of the buildings, AEVS explained.
Amherst Junior High School and Powers Elementary School lifted their lockdowns at that time and resumed normal procedures, according to AEVS.
AEVS also confirmed at that time that all students and staff were accounted for and safe.
The Amherst Police Department completed its sweep of Steele High School and cleared the building of any threat by 11:51 a.m., AEVS updated.
Students were dismissed for the day at that time, according to AEVS.
AEVS instructed student drivers to leave the campus, and students unable to immediately leave were to stay at the school until they could be picked up by a parent, guardian, or approved emergency contact.
The bus routes were running at the scheduled normal dismissal time for students who need a ride home, AEVS added.
APD completed its sweep of Nord School and cleared the building of any threat by 12:32 p.m., AEVS updated.
Nord School students were safely escorted back into the building, according to AEVS, after evacuating to the New Beginning Church as a safe location.
AEVS instructed parents, guardians, and approved emergency contacts who wanted to pick up their student to report to the school’s front entrance, where staff and APD officers would help.
Classes, activities, and normal dismissal procedures resumed as scheduled for students who stayed at the school, AEVS shared, and bus dismissal also proceeded per usual.
“We appreciate the cooperation, patience, and support of our families and community throughout today’s situation,” AEVS stated.
According to AEVS Superintendent Mike Molnar, all evening activities at the school will continue as scheduled, and school will resume on Friday.
Molnar added that AEVS will have an increased police presence at schools on Thursday night and Friday.
CLEVELAND METROPOLITAN SCHOOL DISTRICT
The Cleveland Metropolitan School District confirmed two threats were received on Thursday morning. The threats were against East Tech High School and Buhrer Dual Language Academy.
According to CMSD, Cleveland police and CMSD’s Department of Safety & Security conducted an investigation and found the buildings to be safe.
From the information gathered during the searches, Cleveland police believe both calls were swatting incidents.
Classes at both schools were uninterrupted, and the school day progressed normally.
Cleveland Metropolitan School District’s Communications Officer Jon Benedict added that parents were informed about the incident.
LORAIN CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT
Lorain City School District confirmed the high school has been evacuated due to a bomb threat on Thursday afternoon.
This is the third Northeast Ohio school district to receive a bomb threat on May 7.
The district announced the evacuation of Lorain High School at 12:23 p.m., and dismissed students at 12:40 p.m.
Bus riders were escorted to the buses waiting to take them home, according to LCSD.
LCSD said many elementary and middle school students were at the high school for the dance showcase.
Those elementary and middle school students were brought back to their home schools, said LCSD.
All students and staff are safe and following established protocols, LCSD stated, and these measures are being taken out of an abundance of caution.
The district safety team and law enforcement partners continue to investigate this threat.
“Your students’ and our staff’s safety is our top priority,” LCSD stated.
A 19 News crew is on their way to the scene to learn more.
SHAKER HEIGHTS SCHOOL DISTRICT
Shaker Heights High School received its second threatening phone call this week on Thursday, the district confirmed.
Shaker Heights School District said it immediately teamed up with the Shaker Heights Police Department to investigate the threat and determined its credibility.
SHSD said it was aware of the other Northeast Ohio school districts that received similar threats on Thursday.
“Based on the SHPD’s assessment and established safety protocols, the decision was made to continue normal school operations rather than initiate a shelter-in-place,” SHSD stated.
Additional SHPD officers and a K-9 unit were sent to the school out of an abundance of caution to support the safety and security of the building as the investigation continues, SHSD added.
Orrville City Schools were also placed on a soft lockdown on Thursday.
However, this was not a bomb threat, nor any direct threat to the school.
The soft lockdown was a precautionary measure for an incident that happened not just off school property, but out of the town.
This is a developing story. Return to 19 News for updates.
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