Ken Carman, the morning host on 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland, did what any rational fan would do after hearing about the trade that delivered Odell Beckham Jr. to the Browns on Tuesday night.
He set off a bunch of fireworks in his driveway.
I wasn’t joking about the fireworks. pic.twitter.com/pvldeqMWOm
— Liz C (@lizzy297) March 13, 2019
Yep, that's him. You can hear him screaming, "Super Bowl! Super Browns! Hell yeah!"
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Carman is the real-life hashtag for all those texts Cleveland fans sent and received after news of the Beckham trade broke. They spent Wednesday telling the stories about those texts and what it means for a franchise that has morphed from an 0-16 laughingstock to a Super Bowl contender in less than 15 months.
To understand that, all you need to do is listen to analysts and fans on Cleveland radio Wednesday. It was a four-stage process that circles back to Carman in the driveway — and with good reason.
MORE: Grading OBJ trade for Browns, Giants
#OMG it's #OBJ
Where were you when Beckham was traded to Cleveland? That is a question Browns fans will ask for years — for better or worse. The "Really Big Show," hosted by Tony Rizzo, Aaron Goldhammer and Eric Wiliams on ESPN 850 WKNR in Cleveland, takes a call from John in Strongsville.
"I was in the shower," John blurts out. "I haven't stopped smiling. I'm in the shower. I live with my brother. My brother knocked on the door and screamed, 'We got Odell!' I get out of the shower. I had soap all over me. I couldn't get off my phone for an hour."
This is the "I-can't-believe-it" vibe that prevails the day after Browns general manager John Dorsey pulled off the trade. And it is accompanied by "I want more."
John finishes his story with what he and many Browns fans want next.
"I cannot wait to play the Pittsburgh Steelers."
#DawgPound
The Odell promo is fittingly set to "O Fortuna" on 92.3 The Fan, only this is a different ode blaring across the airwaves.
"The AFC North will never be the same now that OBJ will be wearing the colors of the Cleveland Browns."
This is the trade of a lifetime for a fan base that has been riddled with losing since the Browns' return to the NFL in 1999. Carman and co-host Anthony Lima are taking turns asking ESPN analyst Damien Woody how this might not work. Other than saying, "There is only one ball," Woody can't find a substantial answer.
"They're explosive on every position on the depth chart," Woody says. "For a fan base that loves football, it feels good to have the Browns back in the thick of things."
MORE: Timeline of Browns' wild transformation
Quarterback Baker Mayfield, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, is developing into a franchise passer on an accelerated timetable. Jarvis Landry, last year's big offseason get, was a college teammate of Beckham. The backfield features Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt (when and if the former Chiefs back returns from a probable suspension). The defense is padded with Sheldon Richardson and Olivier Vernon on a unit built around Myles Garrett, the No. 1 pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.
The universal euphoria streams across both morning shows. Woody goes on to say what everybody is figuring out: The Browns will be the favorite in the AFC North in 2019.
"Euphoria" is the word used most on the opening of "Browns Daily" show on later in the afternoon ESPN 850 WKNR in Cleveland. Browns senior media broadcaster Nathan Zegura and co-host Beau Bishop are wearing trademark Dorsey fleece sweatshirts. Bishop recounts the number of texts that poured into his phone when the news broke. He says his sons jumped on their bed in jubilation. He points out that Beckham has twice as many followers as Tom Brady on Instagram.
Directly from #Browns GM John Dorsey's closet. On loan for today from the man himself. Dont spill anything on them @BeauBishop @NathanZegura. pic.twitter.com/I0jhI8fv1B
— Browns_Daily (@Browns_Daily) March 13, 2019
"This is a global, superstar, rock-star who has been the best player at his position the last five years, and now he's wearing orange and brown," Bishop says.
Zegura compares the event to Christmas and points back to the Steelers, who have lost Le'Veon Bell and Antonio Brown this offseason. Cleveland is on the other end of the spectrum this time.
"This doesn't happen with Antonio Brown torpedoing his value," Zegura says. "I think the Giants got scared by that."
Bishop ends the first two segments with "Odell Beckham is a Cleveland Brown!"
Laughter — the kind that only comes with amazement — follows both. When was the last time the Browns were the model of upward mobility and the Steelers and Giants were being roasted?
MORE: What Beckham does for Browns' offense
#TBT
Rizzo tries to slow the hyperbole after recounting a Tuesday trip to the dentist during which the hygienist asked him if Beckham would be coming to Cleveland. A few hours later, it happened.
"I am giddy," Rizzo said. "I've got to slow my roll now. Lord knows we haven't played the Steelers, Ravens and Bengals with this kind of firepower in 35 years. You'd have to go back to Slaughter, Brennan and Ozzie, Mack and Byner."
Cleveland fans can fill in the first names there.
Browns radio play-by-play announcer Jim Donovan can, too. He points back to the 1986 season, when Marty Schottenheimer brought in offensive coordinator Lindy Infante to a team that featured Bernie Kosar and all those names Rizzo rattled off.
"That '86 season they went 12-4 and were the top seed in the AFC," Infante said. "But that team did it differently."
MORE: New York tabloids react to OBJ trade
That Browns team reached the AFC championship and lost to Denver. Cleveland came within one game of the Super Bowl three times in four years in that stretch. Are those days coming back?
Carman points out how much inept football Donovan and Doug Dieken have called over the years and asks him to put into perspective what it means for young Browns fans who cannot recall 1986 and have only experienced losing seasons.
"It's going to be a revolution," Donovan said. "It will be a happy revolution. There will be times when the week flies by, and you can't wait for Sunday to come."
#SB54
Donovan closes his segment with Carman and Lima by going where the Browns have never been. The intent of the Beckham trade is to take advantage of a window that has not been in Cleveland since the 1980s. That is the organizational message Dorsey and owner Jimmy Haslem have sent.
"There is no room for baby steps at this point," Donovan says. "Let's go get it."
Donovan signs off, and Carman beams at what is to come.
"To see him have really good football to call, he's going to be a great," Carman said. "I hope Doug and him have a lot of fun."
On the "Really Big Show," Dino the trucker is next. He wants to solute Dorsey one more time. As far as he is concerned, it is a national holiday.
"I just got off the oxygen, Riz," Dion says to Rizzo. "I want to have a national wear a sweater for 'The Dors' in Cleveland."
By the afternoon, Bishop, Zegura and producer Jason Gibbs are fielding a run of "Where were you when Beckham was traded?" calls on the air. Browns fans call in with their stories about texting their friends who root for Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. They bring in The Miz, a professional wrestler from nearby Parma, for the 2 p.m. segment. A caller orders up Browns vs. Patriots in the Thursday-night NFL season opener.
Jim in Akron is next. He talks about his grandma making cookies for the "Kardiac Kids" and the pain of "Red Right 88."
"I'm telling all my buddies we need to start planning on being in Miami," he said. " I'm probably getting a little head of myself …"
That is the location for Super Bowl 54. Bishop lets him play along before Zegura points out what happens if the Browns deliver the AFC North.
"Is this city ready for a home playoff game?"
MORE: Will OBJ get a contract restructure?
Bishop and Zegura sign off a few minutes later, and Bishop reels off the star power that has rolled through Cleveland across three sports for a city that spent 52 years as the easiest punchline. LeBron James. Francisco Lindor. Baker Mayfield. Now, Odell Beckham, Jr.
All of that is big, but a Browns Super Bowl would trump everything, and then some.
That explains why Carman lit off the fireworks in the driveway. It is the moment Cleveland wants now, and it was not a coincidence that it is how 92.3 The Fan signed off the morning show.
"Super Bowl! Super Browns! Hell yeah!"
Super Bowl.
— Ken Carman (@KenCarman) March 13, 2019
Super Browns.
Hell Yea.
Pin that tweet. Use whatever hash tag you want.
