CLEVELAND — More so now than in any season since their return to the National Football League in 1999 after a three-year hiatus has there been this much optimism surrounding the Cleveland Browns, and with good reason.
In addition to the improvements shown over the second half of the 2018 season, where they posted a 5-3 record with an interim coaching staff guiding a team of young players, the Browns added Pro Bowl receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to a roster that includes Jarvis Landry, Nick Chubb and Baker Mayfield.
Add that all together, and after years of struggles, months of waiting and weeks of anticipation, the Browns are set to kick off the much-anticipated 2019 regular season against the Tennessee Titans at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland on Sunday, and they expect the house to be rocking.
“Obviously, it has been an unreal offseason, being able to get excited and come out to the training camp, and we felt that energy the whole time,” Mayfield said earlier in the week. “We are expecting a good home crowd and a lot of noise.”
Landry added, “I anticipate it being a college atmosphere. I picture people from everywhere being at this game, and we’re going to make it worth it.”
Before the Browns get to game day, there is still much work to be done.
Browns coach Freddie Kitchens said all throughout the offseason program, training camp and the preseason that the only important day is today and the focus has to be there in order to maximize the work put in during the week leading up to a game.
Kitchens reiterated the importance of the “one day at a time” mindset during his press conference prior to Wednesday’s practice, and just in case that message did not sink in already, he pulled out another stop with the musical selection during warmups.
Kitchens had the song, “Nothing Else Matters” by Metallica blasting from the speakers as the team began its on-field work and kept in mind what it will take for the Browns to send those fans home happy come Sunday.
“I know our fans are excited,” Kitchens said. “We are excited. One of the best stadiums in football, the best fans in football and we are excited to go out and prep for them today, continuing the ‘one rep at a time’ mantra from the standpoint of how we approach things, one practice at a time.
“We can’t do anything about Sunday today except prepare for it to give our fans the best product that we possibly can on the field come Sunday.”
In addition to the fans, Kitchens has driven home the importance of accountability to teammates, something safety Damarious Randall feels the Browns understand well.
“We’ve got guys that have been fighting together through camp,” Randall said. “We’ve got guys that since OTAs have put together a plan. We actually believe in that plan and we trust that plan.
“We finally get to go out and show the world what we’ve been doing the last two, three months because there’s been a lot of talk. I’m tired of hearing the talk. I’m ready to play football, period. The fact that it’s finally here, I’m definitely stoked, happy about it, and I hope the fans are ready to go because we are just as excited as they are.”