Ineligible Man Downfield: 2020's best Cleveland sports moments.
It's been a weird year, but here are the moments that mattered.
Even if a weird year, so much still mattered.
The Browns hire Kevin Stefanski
Look: Kevin Stefanski could have been hired, changed up the scheme and it wouldn’t have mattered a bit if Baker Mayfield had remained a liability. That’s just how the NFL works — quarterback play is king.
But look: Stefanski is arguably the MVP of this Browns season as its architect. His heavy personnel-driven scheme yields so much of Cleveland’s good looks. He’s empowered Mayfield over the course of the season, clearly understand what made Mayfield struggle in year two and designing an offense that limits what doesn’t do well. And, perhaps most importantly, he’s been a calming presence — an actual coach, an actual leader — when the previous man in charge couldn’t help but stir up more chaos and more drama. That feels especially important in 2020.
So when Stefanski was hired in January was he the magic elixir? No. But his arrival started the team on the right path. And that’s exactly what the Browns needed. — Chris Manning
The Cavs Fire John Beilein/Hire J.B. Bickerstaff
After firing Ty Lue and letting the husk of Larry Drew coach in the interim, the Cavs needed a new head coach to usher in the second post-LeBron era in Cleveland. So they hired...a 66-year-old college coach who’d never so much as dipped his toes in the NBA’s murky waters. It went about how you’d expect. Beilein’s tenure included such highlights as contributing to a lost rookie season for Dylan Windler after running college-like practices during Summer League and calling members of the team “thugs” in a film session. That led to an even more hilarious correction from Beilein, who claimed he was attempting to say “slugs.” Fun times all around.
As the Cavs limped to a hideous first half, Beilein announced he’d be stepping down on February 18th. An absolute disaster of a hire was somewhat salvaged by Beilein’s replacement, J.B. Bickerstaff. The Cavs looked like a normal basketball team under Bickerstaff until their season was cut short by COVID, and have bolted out to a 3-1 start to kick off the 2020-2021 campaign. Hiring Beilein was a doomed mission from the start, but the Cavs may have saved some sort of face by not dragging it out and letting Bickerstaff get a head start on the current season. — Jordan Zirm
Shane Bieber Wins His First Cy Young Award
During his first full season in the big leagues, it was easy to tell that Shane Bieber would eventually win a Cy Young Award during his career. After two starts in 2020, it became easy to tell that Bieber could do so in a COVID-shortened year. By the end of August, Bieber was already the runaway winner of the award, sitting at 6-0 with 84 strikeouts and a 1.20 ERA.
Sure, things don't feel as special while winning a Cy Young in a season where there is no time to regress to the mean. That being said, it never looked like Bieber would slow down, no matter how many times he got to the mound. Things got a little rocky in the last month of the season, but the 25-year-old righty still finished with an 8-1 mark, 122 strikeouts, and a 1.62 ERA in 12 starts. That'll do.
Mainly, Bieber's ascent to the throne was a bright spot in what has slowly been a downslide the Cleveland Baseball Club. Things will be very different, very soon, but at least fans have yet another all-world ace to watch every fifth day. Will Bieber be the next leader of a Cleveland pennant run, or will he be yet another centerpiece in a deal that nets the next core of the club? — Alex Hooper
The Browns Throttle Tennessee
Headed in to Week 13 of the NFL season, the Browns sat at a bit of a tipping point. Their record was a gleaming 8-3, but two of those losses came against division opponents who made it look as if the Browns didn’t deserve to be on the same field. The Browns had a win over the Colts on resume, but outside of that, the team was looking to finally be taken seriously. A date with the playoff-bound Tennessee Titans in Nashville loomed, and it provided both the Browns and Baker Mayfield, in the midst of a bumpy season, the opportunity to arrive. And arrive they did.
Mayfield turned in his finest game as a pro, shredding the Titans secondary to the tune of 334 yards and four touchdowns as the Browns dropped 38 points on Tennessee’s head in the first half alone. When the dust settled in the Music City, the Browns had throttled one of the hottest teams in the NFL, Mayfield had solidified his spot as the franchise QB, and the Browns were 9-3 for the first time in nearly two decades. It was as satisfying a win as you could ask for. — JZ
Tristan Thompson Ejected for Love Tap
Things were weird for the Cavs in the early part of 2020. At least there was levity.
During a January 17 contest against the Memphis Grizzlies, Tristan Thompson slapped former teammate Jae Crowder's booty in one of the most harmless things you'll ever see on an NBA court. For it, he was tossed by official Ken Mauer, who called the love tap "a physical taunt."
If you've played sports, you've probably slapped a butt before. It is hard to imagine any malice in a butt slap. There are so many other ways to "physically taunt" an opponent. I would call what TT did "affectionate," or even "wholesome."
Of course, Crowder sold the slap, phishing for some sort of punishment for Thompson. I am surprised he didn't go full-Neymar and roll on the ground in "pain." But Mauer saw all he needed to (after a short delay), and the love tap went down as another chapter in the Season of 'Huh?' 2.0. — AH
The Cavs came back and started 3-0
Call this recency bias, but the Cavs had been off since March due to COVID-19 and weren’t an utter disaster when they returned. The team ultimately is overwhelmingly likely to head to the lottery, to pick high again and still need time to grow into whatever is going on here. But, unlike the last two years, this group feels peskier, a little more competent and has intriguing young pieces like Collin Sexton, Darius Garland and Isaac Okoro. It’s not a guarantee of future success, but this is as interesting as the Cavs have been since 2018. —CM
Who we are
Chris Manning: Site Manager at Fear the Sword, co-host of the Locked on Cavs podcast, words at places like Cleveland Magazine and Forbes. On Twitter @cwmwrites
Jordan Zirm: Social editor at @TheCheckdown. Formerly of ESPN Cleveland. Words at B/R, SB Nation and UPROXX. Host of The Rebuild podcast. On Twitter @clevezirm
Alex Hooper: Contributor at Fantasy Sports Insight. Former Cleveland Baseball Club beat writer for 92.3 the Fan (WKRK), and contributor at Sports Illustrated, Let’s Go Tribe, and the News-Herald. On Twitter @lexhooper.
Photos: Getty