{"product_id":"9781886228887","title":"False Start: How the New Browns Were Set up to Fail","description":"\u003cp\u003e“Your team never had a chance.” \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTerry Pluto, one of Cleveland’s top sportswriters, takes a hard look at the unhappy beginnings of the new Cleveland Browns franchise. This book chronicles the backroom deals, big-money power plays, poor decisions, and plain bad luck that have dogged the venerable team since Art Modell skipped town in 1995. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen the new Cleveland Browns took the field in 1999, it was supposed to be the dawn of a grand new era of football in Cleveland. Instead, it was a rude wakeup call. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLegions of loyal fans—once heartsick, abandoned, and disgusted at the loss of their team in 1995—were ready to forgive the past and embrace the future . . . a new owner, a new team, a new stadium. They just wanted their Browns back. But it soon became clear: Browns fans got a bum deal. The NFL had traded one of the most storied teams in football history for a franchise mired in mediocrity.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThese fans, after owner Art Modell skipped town with their beloved Browns, became the only fans ever to take on the NFL, demand their team back—and win. Yet while they were celebrating the supposed victory that kept “our name, our colors, our team” in Cleveland, fans should have been looking over their shoulders and keeping a close watch on the NFL. There would be few reasons to celebrate in the years to come. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHow much longer would they have to wait for a return to glory? Pluto sifts through the clues and looks for answers. This is a book the NFL does not want you to read.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gray \u0026 Company, Publishers","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47059339706608,"sku":"9781886228887","price":17.43,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781886228887_p0.jpg?v=1763606913","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781886228887","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}