Super Blog

Joe Cleveland thinks, if you ask any Browns fan, the best thing that could happen in a Super Bowl is if the Browns won it.

The second-best thing is if the Steelers lost it.

The second-best thing happened this weekend, and Joe Cleveland has enjoyed every single solitary second of it.

31-25. Say it with me.

Thirty-one-to-twenty-five.

Rolls right off the tongue, yes?

Change your passwords to 3-1-2-5. Play it in the local lottery. Make it the final four digits of your phone number, so your Steeler fan buddies have to be reminded of that every time they want to call you.

On March 1, 2025, Joe Cleveland will probably declare it "National 'How Does That Taste Steelers' Day," and remind all the Steeler fans in facinity that the numerical date is 3/1/25.

Oh, it's a beautiful thing to not see any Black and Yellow (for the record, that is not "Gold." The Saints uniforms are "Gold." Yours are Mustard Yellow.) around these parts (i.e. Northeast Ohio) the last few days. Apparently, the front-runners that live around here are stunned into submission. They're now digging into their Ohio State gear so they can support the No. 1 hoops team in the nation.

They'll find it on top of their old Michigan gear that they gave up wearing when Jim Tressel came to town.

Joe Cleveland was sick and tired of hearing about "six rings" and "Steeler legacy" and "Roethlisberger wasn't convicted of anything" and "there's no rivalry with the Browns cause we always beat them" and "Tomlin is God" and "Harrison plays the game the right way" and every other annoying thing that the Steelers fans have been uttering for the last few seasons.

"Here we go Steelers, Here we go?"

You would think, the way they talk, that the Lombardi Trophy is in their God-given right to have. Those other 38 Super Bowls didn't count, you know, the ones that DIDN'T have the Steelers winning it all? All that matters is the six. Heck, even that one loss to the Cowboys didn't happen. That gap from 1980-2005, where the Steelers didn't win any championships wasn't a gap at all.

Hey, all that matters is three in the last six years, right?

Well, until Green Bay passed all over them Sunday. They can stop pounding their chests about "seven" for a while.

The real NFL legacy franchise won the title and brought the trophy back to where it all began. 13 championships, four that have come in Super Bowls, and 4-1 in Super Bowls. The Packers have one loss, the Steelers have two.

Yes, it's a beautiful thing.

Browns fans like Joe Cleveland were happy to see the West Coast offense be so tough to stop against the "vaunted" Steelers defense. Aaron Rodgers had a performance for the ages. Hell, if his receivers would have caught the ball a few more times, he might have thrown over 400 yards.

Receivers ran open consistantly. Downfield blocks were made. The Steelers had three sacks, but none in the first half. And, they scored 21 points off of turnovers, which was the difference in the game.

For all those who bashed the hiring of an unknown guy like Pat Shurmur, take comfort in this tidbit. When Mike McCarthy was hired by the Packers, he was fresh off a stint as the offensive coordinator of the San Francisco 49ers. That season, the Niners were 32nd in total offense. Today, that man is a Super Bowl champ.

Shurmer won't have Aaron Rodgers or receivers as good as Greg Jennings, but in reality, they had a bunch of unknowns. Who is Jordy Nelson? James Jones? That Crabtree guy at tight end? James Starks? Their best receiver not named Jennings was on IR (Jermichael Finley). Imagine if he was healthy and playing in that game. It would have been brutal.

So, for those who think the Browns don't have the personnel, think again. Colt McCoy is tailor-made for the WC offense, and maybe, if his receivers ran better routes or put in better position, maybe they don't stink up the joint. Sure, they could use a big play guy or a reliable guy, but Massaquoi and Robiskie had flashes of brilliance at times, and Cribbs is still someone to be accounted for and a great utility guy who can line up anywhere (when he's healthy). And, Carlton Mitchell couldn't get off the bench under Mangini. Heckert drafted him for a reason. Keep an eye on him.

Be confident that, from the very top to bottom, the entire Browns organization is on the same page. They have the same philosophy. They have the same vision. That hasn't been the case since probably Ernie Accorsi and Marty Schottenheimer were in town back in the 1980s, and we remember how great (and heartbreaking) those years were.

For the next six months (or more, if the NFL can't come to a collective bargaining agreement), Steeler fans will be rendered speechless. They can still brag about their six Super Bowls, but it sounds hollow after losing the most recent one.

Now, it's up to the Browns to capitalize on this and finally beat those guys on the field. Sure, the Steelers are still a better team as of now. But, now, the Browns have to be happy. They have a blueprint on how to beat them. They don't have a coach who kept trying to run the ball down their throats or was afraid to take shots downfield against them, preferring to be conservative.

Today is a new day, Cleveland fans. The Steelers won as many titles as we did this season (NONE), and we saw our future offense at work.

F--- The Steelers!

***

Other Super Bowl observations:

<> The commercials this year sucked. Really.

I think GoDaddy needs to be retired for good. I'm sorry, but Danica Patrick is yesterday's news and isn't even that hot, and Jillian Michaels? That broad looks like she got hit in the face with a shovel. Look at her. Yeesh.

Some were good for cheap laughs, but most that tried for the cheap laugh were just plain bad. The Doritos commercials were head-scratchingly bad. The Faith Hill one was bad. The one where the baby hits the wall was terrible. And, hey ad execs, talking babies aren't funny anymore.

I did like the Eminem Chrysler Detroit commercial. I'm not a fan of Eminem or his music, but I thought that was the best commercial of the day. I was also happy to see a lot of American car commercials during this game. It only a few years ago that there were nothing but imported car company commercials, so, as someone in a family of American auto workers, that makes me happy.

<> Who are these Black Eyed Peas people, and how did they get so popular? That halftime show was a joke.

They sounded like garbage, and the Tron people didn't help. And, I'm sorry, but Fergie looks like a man, and she sings like one, too.

You hear those songs all the time (that "I've got a feeling" song is everywhere, along with the "Let's get is started" one), but it's painfully obvious that's nothing but studio magic that makes it good. Then again, the same can be said for most pop and hip-hop music.

Joe Cleveland likes his music to rock, and the Black Eyed Peas do not rock, even if they got Slash to join them for a weak cover of Sweet Child O Mine.

<> Christina Aguilera ... HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Some people were comparing her National Anthem rendition to Enrico Polazzo's. You know Enrico Polazzo, the fake opera singer from The Naked Gun that Leslie Neilsen's character winds up portraying on an undercover mission to stop Reggie Jackson from killing the Queen of England. So Leslie Neilsen sings a horribly (on purpose) bad, but comically hilarious, version of The Star-Spangled Banner ("... Bunch of bombs in the air ..."), that is one of the more memorable scenes in the movie.

That's how bad it was, Christina. You were compared to a comic version done for a comedy movie.

She apologized for flubbing some lines, saying that she was caught up in the performance and blanked out. Well. maybe that should be a lesson for all the "divas" out there who are trying to sing those five-minute long versions of the song with all of the voice changes and what-not. When you diva the song up, you only make it worse.

Just sing the song the way Francis Scott Key wrote it. The audience will be very happy and appreciative. And, don't be afraid to make it short. We love America, but there's a game to watch.

So, a pair of whores (Christina and Fergie) proved to be what they are on the grandest stage of them all. At least they didn't expose their boobs like Janet Jackson did.

<> I get the feeling that Dallas won't host a Super Bowl again for quite some time.

The wintery weather that hit Texas threw things for a loop, and it all went downhill from there.

People complained about how events were scheduled far away from each other. People complained about the stadium, Jerry Jones' "crown jewel" that he hoped to show off to the world.

The worst was when the fire marshall demanded that 800 temporary bleachers be removed, which cost half of those people a seat for the game that they all paid good money for. Sure, they wound up getting 3 times what they paid for the tickets, along with free admission to next year's game, but that still was a black eye.

And, finally, what was up with that turf? What that that old school AstroTurf from the 1970s? Did they have asphault under that turf? It seemed like every other play, someone was getting injured. Heck, 3/4ths of Green Bay's secondary was wiped out, and even Roethlisberger came up gimpy a couple of times.

As someone who never liked the Cowboys or Jerry Jones, it almost served them right.

***

Lastly, the good feelings Cleveland fans shared in after the Super Bowl came crashing back to reality when our basketball teams each lost.

For the Cavs, they set an all-time record for futlity -- 25 straight losses. Two more losses, and it becomes the longest losing streak in professional sports.

For CSU, it's only their second-straight loss, but it comes on the heels of a disappointing defeat to Butler and happens against Detroit, who aren't very good.

Both losses on Monday were by 3-points apiece. CSU should be able to bounce back. The Cavs, however ... I just hope they can win a few more games.

You throw in the realization that football season is officially over, coupled with the fact that the Indians are about to start spring training on what appears to be another dismal season, and you can see why we enjoyed the Steelers loss so much. What else do we have to enjoy around here?

Such is life. There's always a next year.

Until next time, remember that Cleveland Rocks!