Six Signs that Cleveland Sports Are Cursed

Growing up off of the shores of Lake Erie is hard enough without sports. Combine the weather: mostly cold, rainy, snowy, and cloudy, with the poverty: in 2004, Cleveland was diagnosed as the most impoverished city in the country, and you've got a tough place to live. Sprinkle in the "Curse of Cleveland Sports", and it should come as no surprise that Cleveland also has ranked seventh in the country in alcohol consumption according to Forbes Magazine. Cleveland sports teams lose in a way that no other sports franchises do. They save their biggest meltdowns and chokes for the biggest possible games, as you will soon see. Cleveland players go down with season-ending injuries constantly, and Cleveland's bad luck in trades and drafts is second to none. In Cleveland, the phrase, "There's always next year" is uttered more often than "hello" or "nice to see you again." Read on to learn about the seven examples that prove, without a doubt, that Cleveland is blessed with a sports curse unparalleled by any other city. Please leave your comments, citing any examples that I may have missed. You may try to argue that your own city has a bigger curse than Cleveland, but that is an argument you will lose.

#1) "The Fumble" 1987 AFC Championship Game - Browns at Broncos. One of the greatest comebacks in AFC Championship history was staged by the Browns at Mile High Stadium in Denver. The Broncos capitalized on mistakes and penalties made by the Browns to take a 21-3 halftime lead. Trailing 28-10 in the third quarter, Bernie Kosar (how you can throw!) hit Earnest Byner for a 32-yard touchdown to make it 28-17. Byner then scored again on a 4-yard TD run, making it 28-24 Denver. Later in the 4th quarter, Kosar hit Slaughter on a 4-yard TD pass, tying the game 31-31. After a 23-yard touchdown pass from Elway to Sammy Winder made the score 38-31 Denver, the Browns drove down to Denver's 8-yard line. With 1:12 seconds left, Byner ran off left tackle, and seemingly had a clear path towards the end zone, when he was stripped by Jeremiah Castille, who recovered the fumble. Game, set, and match...Denver.