CLEVELAND — Anthony Lima knows better than most that consensus among Browns fans is rare.
A longtime radio host and media personality in his native Northeast Ohio, the cohost of The Ken Carman Show with Anthony Lima has spent the last 15 years starting and fighting in arguments focused on a litany of Cleveland football figures.
Typically, these debates follow the same format. A portion of the fanbase champions the player/coach/executive du jour, while the other side is ready to move on. The exercise is tailor made for a quarterback-starved city like Cleveland: Brandon Weeden, Brian Hoyer, DeShone Kizer, and Baker Mayfield have all received such treatment during Lima’s time at 92.3 The Fan. Even Johnny Manziel had his share of supporters.
The reaction to Monday’s announcement that the Browns have named Deshaun Watson as their starting quarterback less than 48 hours after he publicly clashed with fans who booed him during the team’s preseason loss to the Bills, however, has been different. For once, Cleveland fans appear to be aligned: They don’t want Watson as their starting quarterback.
“I can’t remember anything like this,” Lima told Front Office Sports on Monday morning. “Like, yeah, fans were against Dwayne Bowe and Kenny Britt towards the end, but that’s normal stuff. Every NFL team has a villain that they can’t believe they’re paying. But this is insanity.
