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Monday night exposure isn't what it used to be
Monday, October 13, 2008
Back when everybody had three or four TV channels, a "Monday Night Football" opportunity truly seemed like a big deal.
It was a chance for a city such as Cleveland to puff out its chest and say to the world, "Sure, Dennis Kucinich is our mayor, our river went up in flames, the weather's lousy and we're in default. But we're No. 1!"
Howard Cosell opened broadcasts from Cleveland by saying, "This city is alive!" And you almost believed it. Then, after the game, rowdy Browns fans would endeavor to rock Cosell's limo until it flipped over, although I don't think they ever succeeded.
Now the game's on cable and the broadcast booth is populated by the bland Mike Tirico, the annoyingly analytical Ron Jaworski and celebrity journalist Tony Kornheiser, who is better than Dennis Miller but only by degrees.
Can the 1-3 Browns upset the defending Super Bowl-champion New York Giants tonight, Oct. 13, with their last-ranked offense and tight end Kellen Winslow likely out? Anything's possible, but I'd frankly settle for keeping the score respectable and not turning this into just another Cleveland joke.
You only hope it doesn't resemble the 1981 season opener, a 44-14 Monday night loss to San Diego in which Chargers quarterback Dan Fouts made you question whether there indeed was another team on the field.
On this stage for the first time since 2003, the Browns are Sarah Palin in a throwback uniform. With expectations so low, anything good that happens will be celebrated as if they are the ones with the Super Bowl rings.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2408 or
smcclelland@DaytonDailynews.com.
