Kyrie Irving named Eastern Conference Player of the Week
January 28, 2013Cleveland Indians ink five-year broadcasting deal with Clear Channel
January 29, 2013The Art Modell Hall of Fame story line played out when Modell passed away recently. Now, he’s been made a finalist on the ballot to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. That necessitates that we talk this thing over (at least) one more time, but I figured rather than trying to make an obvious and easy plea to the emotional side of the story, it might be interesting to attack the issue a different way. It’s pretty easy to summarize Browns fans’ overwhelming opinions and more importantly their feelings that drive those opinions. It is clear and obvious. The Browns fans are the most obvious and explainable of the stakeholders in this storyline. Now it’s time to deconstruct the proponents, namely Baltimore Ravens fans. Mostly that requires a question that no Browns fans can answer. I want to know the answer, just the same. What motivation do Ravens fans have to induct Art Modell into the hall?
This weekend in the Baltimore Sun and the Plain Dealer, Bill Livingston wrote on behalf of Cleveland and Peter Schmuck1 wrote on behalf of Baltimore as the two publications pitted Cleveland against Baltimore. While I understand the desire to do that and set it up that way, I’m wondering why Baltimore even cares this much to make the argument.
Modell delivered the Browns to Baltimore and after all the legal wrangling the name of the team was changed and it had no history, which remained in Cleveland.2 So, I do understand why the fans might initially like the guy. He brought them a team after the Irsay family stole theirs away in the middle of the night in 1983. The Baltimore fans had to wait almost a decade and a half for the NFL to find its way back to their city. That’s undeniably brutal. Still, the fact is that Modell’s first season in Baltimore was 1996 and he was then directed by the NFL to sell his prized possession to Steve Bisciotti in 2003 due to more financial strain. Bisciotti, already a minority owner has owned the team since that time.
What’s my point? Art Modell delivered the team, but he only owned it there for nine years. The team won a Super Bowl, but three years later, the same guy who delivered the team and a Super Bowl was forced to sell it despite a no-cost stadium lease and all the revenues from parking and concessions. Those were roughly the same dire financial straits that caused Modell to move the team in the first place. Lucky for Baltimore this time that their adopted football father was directed to sell the team rather than go looking for another municipality with the financial ability to bail him out.
Imagine a world where Art had been “forced” to go look for another city because he “had no choice” given the economics of his situation in Baltimore? I know it’s unrealistic because the NFL intervened this time in 2003, but imagine just for a second if Modell was forced to go find some favorable tax advantages in a city like Oklahoma City or something? Would Ravens fans be promoting good old Art for the Hall of Fame because of all he ever did for the TV deal or would they bemoan the mere idea that a failure who ripped their team away yet again was even being considered for the game’s most prestigious designation?
It’s an important question. If you read most of Peter Schmuck’s article about Modell, most of it focuses on attacking Browns fans for being bitter, judgmental and never letting it go. I can’t help but wonder why they even care if Browns fans ever let it go. But who has standing in the argument?
A stakeholder analysis looks to map out the various people and parties related to an issue. In the case of Art Modell and his candidacy, the primary stakeholders are his surviving family. They are the ones ultimately affected first-hand by the result. The secondary stakeholders are NFL fans, media and employees. These are the people indirectly affected by the events. Finally there are key stakeholders. These stakeholders can belong to the first two groups, but have significant influence upon or importance within the issue.
So the question becomes of the “key” stakeholders, who should have standing? Baltimore fans had Art Modell bring football back to them and he owned the team from 1996 to 2004. Browns fans had their team taken away by Modell and had him as an owner from 1961 to 1995. Does that discrepancy in time periods give Browns fans more standing than Baltimore fans in the argument? Not by default, but it is probably a factor in the voters’ minds.
I just wish I could get to the heart of the matter with Ravens fans. With all the good things going on right now for them and since 1996, do they really love Art Modell or have they merely enjoyed the team? Are those two things inextricable for them?
Obviously they’ve enjoyed the team, but what responsibility for all their good fortune did the guy who was in financial trouble when he delivered the team and again when he sold the team to their current owner have in making them happy? Yes, he hired Ozzie Newsome and Brian Billick, but even in the face of Super Bowl victories and appearances, this same guy couldn’t keep his QuickBooks enough in line that he could keep the team in his family. And even if his fingerprints are all over the game’s current financial viability, what does it say about the guy who couldn’t seem to take advantage of it?
Even beyond that, all the good things that Modell might have done happened when the people of Baltimore were still Colts fans. The things that Art Modell did that would ever make him Hall of Fame worthy were as Cleveland Browns owner. He wasn’t an executive for the NFL based on employment with the NFL. He was serving for the NFL as a franchise owner of the Cleveland Browns. Ultimately as franchise owner of the Cleveland Browns he was forced to move, then lost the history and colors in the legal process. The Cleveland Browns never actually moved to Baltimore as a result. Maybe it’s a technicality, but “Art Modell, owner of the Baltimore Ravens” never would have been considered for the Hall of Fame based on his stint post-move that resulted in the sale to Steve Bisciotti. Any case that he might have made for being qualified for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton he made as an owner of the Browns, not as owner of the Ravens. Yes, he’s still the same guy, but it helps identify which stakeholders might have the most standing in the debate.
Shouldn’t Browns fans voices ring loudest when it comes to lobbying? Why should Ravens fans even care? Should a Baltimore columnist care so much as to write that article and also be given equal time on the topic? Do the NFL fans at-large around the country think so? I’m curious.
As for Ravens fans, shouldn’t they be enjoying Steve Bisciotti and their upcoming appearance in a second Super Bowl since getting a team back in 1996? Maybe they’re not mutually exclusive. They can enjoy their success and also lobby for Art Modell, I guess, if they really want to. I guess I just don’t understand why they really want to. If anyone can make me understand that, I’d be grateful more than anything else.
Hopefully Modell’s bid is turned away again this weekend and we won’t ever have to talk about it again. I prefer the Baltimore vs. Cleveland stuff to exist only on actual football fields going forward.
- Ha! His name is Schmuck! It’s not really funny, people. It’s his name. Don’t think you can make that joke in the comments and be funny. It’s so obvious that it voids any potential humor that might otherwise exist. Trust me. Google “Low-hanging fruit” [↩]
- It was not graciously left there by Modell by the way. I’m not sure why this fake fact continues to live on. It’s right up there with the Cavs being unwilling to trade J.J. Hickson for Amare Stoudemire in terms of legitimacy. [↩]
57 Comments
1. Why was Modell directed to sell in Baltimore and not CLE? Who directed him to sell?
2. I think Ravens fans will always remember Modell bringing the team to Bal, and will want him in the hall of fame because they would think he would be labeled as a Bal Raven owner in the HoF. The majority of Ravens fans I know don’t really know the whole story, they just woke up to read the headline in the paper that they were getting a football team in 1996.
Modell was directed to sell the team only in 2003 when he ran into financial difficulties again. Sorry if that was confusing.
That’s an excellent column, Craig. I’ve wondered the exact same thing: Why should Baltimore fans care?
One other thing: Baltimore fans are responsible for some of their own misery. When Irsay shafted them royally, what did they do? Anything?
When Modell shafted us, Cleveland fans — to our everlasting credit — didn’t just sit around and whine. We raised some holy hell, and we forced the NFL to make it right, or at least try to.
I think that’s the point : why wasn’t he told to sell the team back in 1995?
my last name is also a slang term for a male appendage. I don’t make d*ck jokes about people’s names
Do Ravens really care at all? I’m guessing they are so wrapped up in their current team’s SuperBowl run that the vast majority don’t really care one way or the other Modell and the HOF. Maybe one of these years the Browns can make a post-season run so we don’t have to keep digging up our tortured past.
I think they believe that by him getting into the HoF it absolves him, and by extension, them from the same stink that clings to Jim Irsay. Look at how Baltimoreans perform all sorts of mental gymnastics to convince themselves that Cleveland “deserved” to lose our team. They think Art being inducted will erase some of their self-loathing guilt but it won’t.
that part seems simple. the NFL used Cleveland and Houston to demonstrate to the rest of the NFL cities that teams were being serious when they said to build them a stadium or they would leave town. and, it worked.
hopefully, this is the last time we ever have to discuss Art and the HOF at the same time. please direct any and all inquiries to Art’s HOF legitimacy to kanicki’s recent posting on the matter.
and, I love how Baltimore’s reasoning for Art belonging in the HOF is that we are bitter and need to get over the move. wait, that’s not a reason? could have fooled the city of Baltimore.
They had a protest rally in Houston when the Oilers’ move was announced. I’m told about 10 people showed up.
Art, Owner of the Browns, bankrupted the team. Art, Owner of the Ravens, bankrupted the team. Not only is he the only one to go bankrupt owning an NFL team, he did it twice. Maybe that’s unique enough to put him in.
If he had moved the team again then they would be against him just as much as we are. The NFL moved in the 2nd time, but we were not spared. We’ve been suffering ever since because of how the team was brought back. A mistake the NFL did not repeat with expansion teams since.
I’m glad we’re still the Browns, but since 1995 we have been an object lesson in how not to run an expansion team. We’re like the crime victim who never gets justice since it wasn’t illegal when it was done to us. Now they passed a law so it can’t happen to others. You’ll never see a bankrupt owner be allowed to move a team again. They’ll never be allowed to break a lease again, and you’ll never see an owner as inept as Randy Learner again. The NFL is better when all teams have a chance, they know that and they won’t allow a team to be as bad as the Browns 2.0 for as long ever again.
Hopefully since the NFL put Haslem in contact with Lerner, they did it since they know he’d be a good owner. Hopefully it’s true that Banner, Lombardi, etc. were all recommended by the NFL because they’re good at what they do, unlike Holmgren who was just a big name (Peter Principle).
Hopefully it won’t be long before Browns 3.0 will make a playoff run sooner rather than later, and hopefully the NFL doesn’t reward an owner for moving a team with a hall of fame bust. Otherwise it could happen to other cities as it happened to us.
I think Baltimore cares because his HOF rejection is felt, accurately, as a type of dissing of their team’s birth. Nobody wants their family history to begin: I was born after Dad ran off with someone else’s wife. You can’t feel too good about yourself as a fan of that team. So it’s much more palatable to repeat the story Mom was always sticking to: “Mom’s first husband was abusive and Dad saved her, thank goodness, and that’s why you were born.” It’s warm, fuzzy and legit; we saved each other. Now that’s a team we can love.
The other thing is that it is sometimes surprisingly easy for fans to glorify a transplant for things they mostly did elsewhere. Tribe fans went fairly nuts when Eddie Murray reached 3,000 hits. And older Cavs fans still talk about Nate Thurman like he was playing at a high level here rather than being just another broken down, limited minute, stop-the-nonsense-in-the-paint rebounder at the very end of a great career. We do it too.
interesting point on the irsay middle of the night thing. the maryland state senate had emergency legislation ready for eminent domain actions against the colts.
‘… the City of Baltimore sent legislation to the Maryland Senate with the a bill that would give “the city of Baltimore the authority to condemn and take over professional sports franchises,” according to law.jrank.org. The Maryland Senate decided to postpone the bill until they had passed legislation to give them eminent domain over the team.’ link. and a balt sun link.
now irsay was sniffing around with moving for years prior to the actual deed. we’re not really cool with that piece of it.
but with respect to the ungraceful departure, irsay truly had no choice.
i’ve been lightly monitoring the balt sun forums. i’m not feeling a strong ‘Get Art in the Hall’ vibe. if you read between the lines and discount the most strident as outliers, i sense that most ravens fans are resigned to art not getting in and a fair number, perhaps a majority, dont think he deserves it.
not so sure. you hear those guys talk and they have such reverence for Ass, er, Art.
I have this misfortune of living in Baltimore these days… They love him here. He brought back football for them.
I grew up and in Cleveland until I graduated college. I now teach south of Baltimore and proudly sport my Browns/Cavs/Indians/Buckeyes gear whenever I can. I teach 4th and 5th grade music classes. Throughout my short career (three years) I have made it clear my disdain for the Ravens. It has recently come to my frustrating attention, however, that not a single student I’ve asked knows how the Ravens came into existence or why me being from Cleveland would mean I loathe them (needless to say many of them know now). It really angers me that people gloss over it so much that its never mentioned. Especially with how many times I’ve heard them bellyaching (adults and kids) about the Colts.
No, Peter Schmuck making the case for Art Modell isn’t worth ridicule. In my mind, however, Ray Lewis making the case for Art Modell is. And that’s been going on, most vomitously when Lewis wore an Art Modell T-shirt while crying about God during the AFC Championship post-game. Salt in the wound.
And many of us remember Baltimore fans swearing up and down that they would NEVER cheer for a relocated team because of the pain they felt when the Colts moved. For more than a few Browns fans, the hypocrisy of Ravens fans adds to the hatred towards Modell.
Sometimes bitterness is not only earned, but appropriate.
Its been 17 years. Every one of you have forgiven a greater wrong, in far less time, its time to let go fellas. Its gone past creepy to sad.
forgiveness is one thing.
HOF credentials is an entirely other one.
he has not HOF credentials.
you’re wholly right that it’s time to move on. has been for a long time. holding on to resentments is poisonous.
but let’s not confuse group spiritual development with the fact of modell’s record of pedestrian involvement in pro football.
There’s one important point that should actually peeve off Baltimore fans about Art Modell: In the early 90s, he voted against expansion to Baltimore instead supported expansion to Jacksonville. Obviously this wasn’t a decision solely up to Modell, but given his influence, it’s not unreasonable to suggest that Baltimore possibly could have gotten a baggage-free expansion team in 1995 if not for him. The man obviously wanted to keep Baltimore open because he saw it as a possible destination for the Browns.
I think a combination of Harv and Lee are right: Baltimore fans see the Ravens (and by extension Art) as theirs, start to finish. As such, wouldn’t any city want to see one of “their” guys get into the HoF?
So I guess I understand their homer-ism, but agree with kanicki’s earlier (and extremely well done) post regarding actual qualifications. And from what he says about the balt sun forum, maybe most Baltimoreans do too.
Kind of like when we were pulling for Lofton, making cases about why, perhaps, he could make it in. We knew he probably wouldn’t, but he was “our” guy.
That is crap man. We had plans for the new stadium the day after he said he was moving
Man they had such sweet colors. Speaking of colors, that is one of the things that I talk crap to Bal fans. Out of all the colors, why choose purple? It’s not like it is original, and it’s PURPLE!!!
I’m finished being mad about it, but the Hall of Fame stuff is necessary to talk about as a Browns fan with a sense of history. The wounds have healed and I don’t want to cry or scream about it anymore, but I can still recall the time I was bitten by that shark, ya know?
but they paired it with black to be mean 🙂
Welcome to Masterpiece Analogy.
Love the example of the no-good first husband. Well done, Harv.
And gold to be luxurious
I think its disingenous to say its time to move on while actively campaigning to keep him out of the HOF. Unless on a yearly basis you comb through the list of all nominees and campaign just as hard to keep other “pedestrian” members out. Your interpretation of the facts of his candidacy are skewed by your personal feelings about the move.
This is why I think we should be sitting this one out, let the rest of the country judge his worthiness and accept their decision. If they feel his total body of work is HOF worthy then he should go in, while that is happening we should act like a normal fan base of a crappy team. Lets get back to worrying about how Lombardi is going to screw up the draft, how Horton is going to have the nerve to “Blow Up” the 23 ranked defense in football, and worrying whether or not Weeden recent attainment of age eligible SS benefits will cause him to lose the hunger for the game.
In the back of my mind I’ve always kind of blamed Indianapolis for our misfortunes.
Could be worse, I once had a dentist named “Dick Schmuck”
i know you want to ascribe emotional/bitter motives to my review of art’s record, but theyre not there. really.
my motive is to refute the narrative youre sustaining: that art is an otherwise deserving HOF candidate who is being kept out by petty hateful browns fans. if his record is not put forward by someone (i happened to have the cycles to do my bit), then your ‘vengeful cleveland’ story gains traction.
as for disingenuous, i get that youre a forgiving gent and above the rabble on this issue. i’m missing the part where you present art’s HOF-worthy credentials. last time we did this the only tangible point you made was of his hiring of ozzie newsome as GM. the rest was about his sitting on a TV committee for a long time.
you show me where art made a positive difference for pro-football (including the fans of pro-football), and i’m open to hearing about it.
Remembering the bite is one thing. Hunting the fish for 17 years is Ahabian.
the one thing I haven’t seen mentioned is an apples to apples comparison of Modell’s contributions to the contributions of other owners who have been inducted. So instead of comparing him to Rozelle, maybe to Ralph Wilson, Jr. And then factor in their respective warts.
I really don’t expend much energy thinking about Art Modell, but I have to say this is a perspective I hadn’t considered:
“The Cleveland Browns never actually moved to Baltimore as a result.
Maybe it’s a technicality, but ‘Art Modell, owner of the Baltimore
Ravens’ never would have been considered for the Hall of Fame based on
his stint post-move that resulted in the sale to Steve Bisciotti.”
This is an excellent point and, in my opinion philosophically eliminates Baltimore as influencers of the decision on Art.
thx, kind sir.
the burden of proof for that, imo, is on the modell backers.
but wrt wilson, he built his team out of nothing and got to four super bowls. nothing on modell’s side of the ledger compares to either.
and if you want to compare with al davis, see here and here.
agree where the burden lies, my point was not to rejoin the argument as to whether he should be in or out of the Hall but rather an appropriate methodology to analyze the question. It’s fun to argue about but overall someone getting in or out means as little to me as who makes the annual all-star team in any sport, i.e. not at all. So maybe the HOF is like a permanent all-star team, but I only care in those moments when my residual anger at Modell’s putziness overcomes hard-earned understanding that this is entertainment, not life, and it doesn’t matter even a little bit.
Only the PD would elevate a blogger from Baltimore to the status of columnist to lend credibility to an argument where non exists. Go to the baltimore sun website, and look for a column by Mr. Schmuck (they do not exist).
Art Modell had to be one of the world’s worst businessmen. He actually found a way to lose money owning an NFL franchise, where your revenues are guaranteed to exceed your expenses (the revenue sharing and TV contract share per team greatly exceeded the salary cap even in 1995). For the Baltimore blogger to consider Mr. Modell visionary is a laughable stretch. He was a huckster who acquired an appreciating asset with other people’s money and then lost it when he ran out of schemes to keep the asset. Read “Fumble : The Browns, Modell, & the Move” by former Stadium Corp. accountant Michael Poplar for an excellent explanation of what really happened from the inside.
one more thing-ask the fans in Indianapolis whether Mr. Irsay, who brought the team to Indy from Baltimore, also belongs in the hall of fame. I suspect the Indy Fans have a different appreciation for Mr. Irsay than the Baltimore Fans. Food for thought.
I’m married to an Indy fan. They like the Irsay family far more than Baltimore obviously, but I don’t believe there are any illusions that they should be popular or important nationally.
So, if Art makes it into the HOF, will they need to keep a security detail next to the bust at all times? It’s not like the HOF is within a 1-hour drive of most of the Browns’ fanbase or anthing.
Is there a history of fans defacing the busts of rivals at the HOF? Not promoting this by any stretch. Just curious.
There isn’t much that I could bring up that you haven’t already invalidated to your own satisfaction.
Modell’s team(s) had a winning percentage higher than that of contemporay owners already in the Hall. Modell’s team(s) won an NFL title and a SB. His team(s) competed in another NFL title game and multiple conference title games. Again, if you put it in a blind comparision with men like Mare, Rooney (A), or Wilson, his teams on field accomplishments measure up.
Where they don’t measure up is when you take the facts of the case and dismiss them through your own opinion that Wilson’s record should be weighted because he started a franchise from scratch. Which is fine and it certainly is something that voters should discuss if they put Modell and WIlson side to side. However you personally dismiss all of the teams accomplishments under Modell using this rational and that damages the credibility of your statement that you are not judging Modell on an emotional and personal level.
Modell is also credited with being instrumental in brokering the merger deal and no less than Jim Brown credited him with being ahead of his time in convincing other owners that TV was the way of the future. In addiition he sat on the broadcast commission forever. Again, you dismiss these points by determining in your own mind that his influence has been “overblown”. The “facts” are inarguable that he enjoyed the support of the other owners to be in charge of one of the most important commsissions in football. Your opinion is that this is due to croynism, if you can’t produce evidence that supports this claim, as well as evidence that supports your idea that his negotiating skills are “overblown” then quite frankly you are just spitting in the wind.
Here’s how I see for and against breaking down:
For:
1. Entire career spent in positions of power and influence at the NFL level.
2. Generally cited as critical to getting a merger deal done
3. Championships at bookends of ownership, solid if unspectacular franchise record.
4. Hired first African American GM
5. Credited with pushing for profit sharing among franchises, which led to the parity that so many people see as crucial to the games success.
Against:
1. Took over a winner and fired the man who built that winner, as Brown’s players retired, franchise slipped noticeably competitively.
2. Terrible businessman, most of his innovations in TV and profit sharing can be attributed to a need to constantly find new revenue streams as he could not balance his own checkbook.
3. Moved his franchise. No need to type all that out we all know.
So the question becomes does the first list outweigh the second? My position is that regardless of your protestations you are in fact making an emotional response to the idea of Modell in the HOF. Your personal argument is well reasoned, your rebuttal to me is wholly dismisive and lacking in first person accounts or other facts to back it up. Its not just you its all of us, my position is clouded by the fact that I am – candidly – sick of how whiny and grudge bearing we come off Nationally. Because of this I feel like we should be sitting out the debate on Art and let the rest of the country decide.
great thanks. here’s my read. spoiler: i’m not persuaded! 🙂
re other owners: you know about mara’s contributions beyond football. rooney eventually built a dynasty and longevity in one city is -sorry- material evidence. but did you know wilson floated loans to keep the oakland franchise afloat in the early 60s? i think there’s more to his story than we know. and of course rooney and wilson get my vote: they’re the only two owners who voted against modell’s move.
re crony: he and rozelle were men about town. he was on murchison’s island when rozelle closed the 64 tv contract. and he sat on the tv committee for so long that he attempted to give money back to his friends in the network. no surprise he’s so well liked in the media! this all speaks to cronyism. no there’s no link for that..
on your case for:
1. Entire career spent in positions of power and influence at the NFL level.
— vague. how did this manifest itself in goodness? was it the maintenance of home city black-outs through 73? or the not being around while rozelle created MNF and NFL Films? arledge said deals were done over lunch with rozelle.
2. Generally cited as critical to getting a merger deal done
— he pocketed $3MM to move the browns to the AFC. carroll rosenbloom seems to have done as much (and there’s no clamor for him to enter canton).
3. Championships at bookends of ownership, solid if unspectacular franchise record.
— 1964 was still Paul Brown’s team. through 95 only the lions, cards, falcons, and browns were the non-expansion teams not to make super bowl. not elite. congrats to art getting to his first super bowl after 35 consecutive seasons of fail.
4. Hired first African American GM
— got it.
5. Credited with pushing for profit sharing among franchises, which led to the parity that so many people see as crucial to the games success.
— vague. are you confusing modell with mara and rozelle?
.
i’m feeling that your main concern is how cleveland fans are perceived nationally and you want for us to be bigger men. (might you be projecting your emotions? it’s as fair to ask as your repeated questions on my emotional involvement.) but the thing is, it’s also time for us to put aside our concerns about being judged en-masse by baylesses and cowherds: boil it down and art’s record really isn’t great.
I think this gets to an important angle having to do with “loss framing” and the difficulty that folks in Baltimore have acknowledging that the guy who “brought” the Ravens to them is absolutely not Hall-worthy. Nice post, Craig.
Sorry but its never the time to allow people to re-write history. Question the motivation, as if it matters, but it shouldn’t allow the fable of Art Modell to be perpetuated.
Now that was some good rebuttal:). I can honestly say that youve swayed me to at least a positiom of neutrality.
!!!
thank you, worthy adversary!
until next time, jimk
could be worse. I know of a guy named Harry Schmuck. Not kidding.
Modell does not deserve to be in the HOF simply becuase he lied to the fans of Cleveland. He said in court proceedings that he would never move the team out of the city of its birth, while behind in closed doors he was negoiating with the Balitmore City Officials to move the team. Sounds sort like he dumped his lover of nearly 30 years for a more glamourous girl. We will never forgive you Modell and hope you are burning in hades.