CLEVELAND — We Cleveland Browns fans are catching a lot of heat today from the national media for our treatment of Deshaun Watson following his injury during the loss to the Bengals.
I was there in person when Watson went down and experienced the horror firsthand when our dastardly fan base turned into a sadistic, howling mob that jeered him mercilessly as he was carted off the field.
Except, that wasn’t really my experience. In actuality, like most people at the stadium, I wasn’t even aware of the “Browns Fans Booing Controversy” until I was on my way home, listening to the postgame show. THAT’S how I found out how despicable we Browns fans are.
In case I’m not being clear, I think this incident has been blown out of proportion, considerably.
Now, were there jerks and morons booing Watson as he was carted off the field? I’m sure there were. There were about 60 thousand people there after all, so statistically speaking it’s a mathematical certainty that a percentage of that population is going to be comprised of jerks and morons. You’ve experienced society, that’s the standard breakdown.
Jerks happen. And they do jerk stuff. What I take issue with is the implication that the relatively small group of losers who celebrated Watson’s injury is even remotely representative of the Browns fanbase as a whole, because that’s some nonsense.
But that’s certainly the impression that the national media is rolling with. Most of the coverage of the incident doesn’t bother to mention how sparse the actual “booing contingent” was, nor do they bother adding context, like the fact that Watson was also booed by the fans at the start of the game. Now, that’s not classy either but is a useful reminder that it can be difficult to differentiate between improper injury-based jeers and tacky but totally valid, performance-based jeers.
Some of Watson’s teammates also came to his defense yesterday, gushing about the QB’s many positive attributes and scolding the Browns fanbase for our heartlessness. Myles Garrett was none too pleased with us. But I have to say - I don’t appreciate the decision not to differentiate the extreme minority of booing jerk fans from the vast majority of us that were just watching our terrible team lose in peace like most weeks.
Also, who the heck said that we’re not allowed to judge Deshaun Watson for his behavior on and off the field? I never agreed to that. I don’t think the guy should be booed when injured but he’s not immune from criticism or reproach for his behavior or game performance.
Backup QB Jameis Winston took it even further with his emotional defense of Watson. Now, let’s reel it in, just a bit Jameis. “He puts his life on the line for this city?” He’s not storming the beach at Normandy, he’s throwing slant passes against the Cincinnati Bengals.
In fairness, I will note that one of Watson’s teammates, Greg Newsome II, offered what I consider to be a much more appropriate response to the incident when he posted a take that is both full of truth and it specifically calls out THE ACTUAL JERKS AND MORONS who engaged in the booing rather than lazily condemning the entire fanbase. Thank you young man.
The bottom line is that Browns fans are currently enduring enough legitimate hardship, so if everyone could refrain from also vilifying the vast majority of us for things we didn’t do, we’d be much obliged. Thanks. And Go Browns.