Halloween must be closing in…all these ghosts from Browns’ seasons past are popping up. First Modell shows up on the Hall of Fame ballot, now Bill Livingston writes about what I consider my darkest days as a Browns fan.

Pro Bowl defensive lineman Michael Dean Perry told me then that the veterans knew they could not win with Philcox, who was the only option after Belichick cut Bernie Kosar while his real choice to play QB, Vinny Testaverde, was hurt. When Seattle scored on Philcox’s fumble on his first snap in the first game after Kosar’s firing, the Browns were doomed. A 5-2 season crash-landed at 7-9.

Reminds me of a Seinfeld moment. I was dating some girl in law school the day Bernie got cut, and when she saw me sitting with my head in my hands, speechless, she was like, “I can’t believe you’re so upset about this…what’s wrong with you?” That was the end of that “relationship”.

From ESPN…

NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue and longtime owners Art Modell and Ralph Wilson are on the preliminary list that includes five former head coaches and 11 contributors.

Why does this man still keep getting mentioned for Canton? If he ever gets in, they’d better have riot police down there for the induction.

From Roger Brown…

According to CBS Sports officials, 10 percent of the nation’s viewers will see their Browns-Houston network telecast, not bad considering the game matches two poor teams with pop-gun offenses. The 1 p.m. game airs on WOIO Channel 19.

Good lord, I could barely stand to watch last week’s game. And I’m a Browns fan! Who’s buying ads on that airtime, Trent Dilfer?

Looks like we got another Z in the mix….Zendon Hamilton made the final cut over Jahidi White. But this tidbit on cutting Kelenna Azubuike was HARSH.

“The knock on him coming out of Kentucky is that he doesn’t play on every play and I experienced that with him in training camp,” Brown said. “In terms of talent and ability, he has it. He just has to come to play on every single play. . . . If he can do that, he will be a mainstay in this league.”

Ouch. Here’s the final roster, which is a good reminder that Anderson Verajao is still on the team. Yikes….when he comes back, that bench is gonna be something.

Pre-season over….so what kind of team is this? ABJ lays it out pretty well (free registration required).

In stretches, the Cavs have proven to be very difficult to score on in the half court. This delights coach Mike Brown, who designated the preseason as a time to install a defensive foundation his team can fall back on when all else fails. The offense often continues to look raw and disjointed, resulting in oodles of turnovers. It did again Wednesday, as the Cavs turned it over a preseason-high 30 times, though a majority were by the backups.

Offense will come together over time. I think by December, this team will be scoring at will.

Great story in the Houston Chronicle about Browns fans. Including a kid who used to live down the street from me in Middleburg Hts., Texans 3rd string QB Dave Ragone.

Ragone, the Texans’ third-string quarterback, was born in Middleburg, Ohio, about three hours from Cleveland. He became a standout athlete at St. Ingatius High School in Cleveland. Life revolved around football. “My whole family follows the Browns,” Ragone said. “They’ve always followed them.”

Umm, that would be Middleburg HEIGHTS, Ohio, fellas. Ragone isn’t so much of a Browns fan anymore, apparently, but Reliant Stadium is expecting a lot of Browns fans.

“Cleveland fans are crazy for their team,” said cornerback Lewis Sanders, who spent his first five years in the NFL at Cleveland before joining the Texans this season. “That tradition is what makes the team so special. All you’d ever hear about was the Dawg Pound. They love their team.”

Yeah. We love our team. Even when they stink up the place.

Odd game. Boston scored 32 points in the 4th quarter. That’s bad. Want worse? How about the Cavs leading by 15 with 3.33 to play? Yep…that’s bad, too.

Missed a lot of starters, perhaps Mike Brown was resting folks, getting healthy. Lebron didn’t play the entire 4th quarter.

…had better be on Trent Dilfer.

Browns quarterback Trent Dilfer will start Sunday’s game against winless Houston after getting the “benefit of the doubt” from Cleveland coach Romeo Crennel.

The first interception certainly qualifies for a yanking. First two series without a 1st down? How about 6 incompletions in a row? No TD’s at the half?

Incredibly thorough Cavs breakdown. Most ESPN analysts have the Cavs finishing 3rd in the division, 5th in the conference. John Hollinger’s got the Cavs finishing 1st in the division, 2nd in the conference, saying…

Take a team that won 42 games with zero long-range shooting. Add two of the league’s top bombers and, for good measure, replace Ira Newble with Larry Hughes. Jackpot.

I’m gonna predict the Cavs get that 4th playoff seed, at least. There’s a voting feature, and it looks like the voters think the Cavs are gonna beat the over/under (49.5) on wins this season.

Sometimes, I wonder if Roger Brown is just drunk.

Cleveland sports fans are notorious for being slow to accept change. That’s why many fans still refuse being pried, finger by reluctant finger, from their death-grip embrace of the Indians’ Chief Wahoo logo – an emblem that hasn’t become any less insulting or racially offensive since it debuted some 60 years ago. But, even given that, the current hysterical fan reaction to Ronnie Duncan, the Cavs’ new high-energy PA announcer, defies belief.

That might be one of the most idiotic pieces of writing I have ever read in my entire life.