CLEVELAND — Home is where the heartbreak has been for the Browns.
Cleveland has fallen off in a variety of categories from a surprising 2007 to a disappointing 2008. From quarterback Derek Anderson to offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski to safety Sean Jones, just about everything connected with the team has experienced a drop in production.
Perhaps nowhere is the decline as obvious as Cleveland Browns Stadium.
“It is big to win at home,” guard Eric Steinbach said. “For some reason, we haven’t done that.”
The Browns set a franchise record with seven home wins last year. After a miserable opener against Pittsburgh, they repeatedly thrilled the fans as they fell just short of the playoffs.
They came crashing back to earth this year.
The Browns (4-6) were outclassed by Dallas in the opener, then lost 10-6 to Pittsburgh in Week 2. They overwhelmed the Giants 35-14 Oct. 13 on “Monday Night Football” as the new stadium rocked as never before. But losses to Baltimore and Denver in a five-day span at the beginning of the month dropped the Browns to 1-4 on the lakefront and ripped out the heart of the Dawg Pound.
“It’s frustrating, man,” linebacker D’Qwell Jackson said. “We’ve got to get a win at home. It feels good to win on the road, but it’s not the same.”
With wins at Cincinnati, Jacksonville and Monday night in Buffalo, the Browns are 3-2 on the road. It’s just another example of the up-and-down nature of the team that’s so frustrating.
“It’s tough to really put a finger on it,” quarterback Brady Quinn said of the home struggles. “Looking back at how the season’s gone, we’ve just been inconsistent.
“We haven’t really put together an efficient, consistent team effort.”
While St. Louis guard Richie Incognito made a fool of himself this week when he ripped Rams fans, Browns players know where to place the blame.
“Our fans are always consistent,” Steinbach said. “We’re not worried about the fans.”
Linebacker Andra Davis is in his seventh season, so he’s been around for much of the 28-49 home record since the franchise’s return in 1999.
“The fans have always been great my whole career here,” he said. “Nothing’s changed.
“They’ve been giving their effort and cheering us on regardless of the situation. We’ve just got to go out there and play better.”
The Browns still have a chance to salvage the home season. They host Houston today and Indianapolis next week and conclude the home schedule Dec. 21 against Cincinnati. If they swept, they would finish 4-4 at home and give the playoff hopes a much needed lift.
“First and foremost, I’m thinking about the playoffs,” Jackson said. “We can’t take another step back. We’ve been down that road and don’t want to go down that road again.”
The Texans (3-7) seem like the perfect cure for the home woes. They are 0-5 away from Reliant Stadium and haven’t won on the road since Nov. 4, 2007, at Oakland, a stretch of eight games.
“I think we’re due,” tight end Owen Daniels said.
The Browns dug themselves an 0-3 hole and battled back to 3-4 with consecutive home games against Baltimore and Denver straight ahead. But a chance to revive the season disappeared in a disheartening display. The Browns blew a 14-point third-quarter lead to the Ravens and a 13-point third-quarter lead to the Broncos.
“We’ve got to start making plays at home,” said receiver Braylon Edwards, who had a pivotal drop against the Ravens. “We’ve been in situations where we could have gotten victories at home, but we didn’t finish.
“We’ve got to come out and play four quarters worth of football. Football is not always pretty, as you saw on Monday night, but if you finish, if you stay the course, you win ballgames.”
The Browns needed a missed field goal in the final minute to beat the Bills, and it wasn’t enough to impress Houston receiver Kevin Walter.
“We know the past few games they haven’t finished as strong as they like to,” he said. “If we can keep playing our game and playing like we do in the first quarter, and play it all four quarters, there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be up by quite a few points and, obviously, winning that game.”
Cleveland coach Romeo Crennel has a different vision for this afternoon.
“We need to start winning at home,” he said.
Contact Scott Petrak at 329-7253 or spetrak@chroniclet.com.

In order to comment, you must agree to our user agreement and discussion guidelines.

Need help? Email Us.