'You make a difference': Browns coach Kevin Stefanski issues challenge to fans ahead of home opener

BEREA, Ohio — Myles Garrett made sure not to disrespect the past.

But as the Browns prepare to welcome a sellout crowd at FirstEnergy Stadium for Sunday’s home opener after pandemic protocols limited attendance a year ago, the All-Pro defensive end made his and his team’s goal clear.

While fans who witnessed the Browns' 1964 championship tell the current Browns they want another title before they die, Garrett is focused on erasing his team from other dubious lists.

That’s eliminating the Browns from the company of three other teams — the Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans — that have never played in a Super Bowl. They are among the 12 teams that have never won the Lombardi Trophy, along with the Minnesota Vikings, Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, Carolina Panthers, Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles Chargers, Tennessee Titans and Arizona Cardinals.

“I’m not going to try to mock anything the ’64 team did, but they always put us up there as a team that has no Super Bowls,” Garrett, 25, said Friday. “I recognize we have titles and I appreciate what those guys did, but they left a legacy for us. When you look up at our banners, we don’t have any Super Bowls.

“I’m not worried about the past, I’m worried about right now and that’s this week and being 1-1. We’re trying to get on the road to do something we’ve never done. They’ve had their time; they’ve had their legacy. The old guys keep on living in the past and talking about that while we’re trying to march down and do something we’ve never done before.”

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Hosting the Texans (1-0), the Browns (0-1) are coming off an 11-5 season in 2020 that saw them make the playoffs for the first time since 2002 and win a postseason game for the first time since Jan. 1, 1995.

Garrett is not the only one who feels the fans’ excitement when he’s out around town. Left guard Joel Bitonio picks up on it, too, especially at the golf course.

“They’re always excited for Browns football,” Bitonio said Thursday. “You get an extra thing, you know when you see some older guys and they’re like, ‘Man, I was there in ’64 when they won’ or ‘I watched in ’64 and I want to see one before [I die].’

“I was like, ‘Oh, gosh, that’s a lot of pressure,’ but you get excited about it. It’s really exciting to be a part of it. I’ve been here long enough now that you’ve seen the lows, but it’s good to be around hopefully some highs and we can get them a win.”

Bitonio said 1964 and the 1980s teams that went to three AFC championship games in four years with quarterback Bernie Kosar dominate his conversations with fans.

“Those guys have these memories of their families with people in their past and they want to have those memories with their kids now,” Bitonio said. “It’s just cool how much tradition there is throughout the Cleveland Browns.”

Bitonio is the longest-tenured Brown, drafted 35th overall in 2014. Before last season, Bitonio’s teams went 24-71-1, including a 1-31 stretch in 2016-17.

He is eager for coach Kevin Stefanski to hear Cleveland fans at their loudest. In Stefanski’s first season in 2020, FirstEnergy Stadium capacity was capped at 12,000 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I think it’s going to be a packed house,” Bitonio said. “I’ve heard it loud a few times, but I think if we make some big plays, I don’t know if we’ve heard it as loud as it’s going to be. When the defense is out there, I expect to not be able to hear JC [Tretter] or Jed [Wills] or whoever on the bench.”

Bitonio doesn’t think Sunday’s 33-29 season-opening loss at Kansas City will affect the noise level.

“I know they were excited last week, but we came up a little short, but you kind of feel it already throughout the town,” Bitonio said. “I feel like it’s kinda been boiling over and it’s our first big chance to — especially with Stefanski, he hasn’t really even seen the fans — so I think they’re going to try and impress him as well.”

Perhaps fearing the Browns will overlook the Texans, Stefanski emphasized the importance of Sunday’s game, and Friday he challenged fans to do their part. He spoke directly to those who tailgate in the infamous Cleveland Municipal parking lot.

“Really excited to see that place at full capacity,” Stefanski said. “I’ve heard the stories, so I’m looking forward to all of Northeast Ohio coming out for this game. I [want] to get the message out that Coach Stefanski wants you in your seats when kickoff hits, there are no empty seats. And I want a full-throated effort for 60 minutes. So get out of the Muni lot, get in your seat, you can go back to the Muni lot after the game.

“You make a difference and I really believe that. The home-field advantage in the NFL is just such a big deal and I think our fans make a difference. You talk about third down, fourth down, we’ll be looking for any delays of game from them or false starts, those sorts of things have a direct correlation to our crowd. Then when we’re on offense, looking to hear a pin drop. Excited to experience that for the first time.”

Stefanski came to FirstEnergy Stadium for the 2009 season opener in his first year as assistant quarterbacks coach of the Minnesota Vikings.

“It was [Brett] Favre’s first game, so that was unique. I remember Percy Harvin had a touchdown,” Stefanski said.

His memory was on point. Hall of Fame-bound Favre, in his 19th of 20 NFL seasons, threw for 110 yards and was sacked four times in the Vikings’ 34-20 victory, with his lone touchdown pass a 6-yarder to Harvin.

“I don’t remember much of it from the experience, I was probably charting plays. Nose down in the chart and I had the pencil going,” Stefanski said.

But he added, “That’s a unique experience down there on the lake and I’m looking forward to that being a big part of how we win.”

Rookie receiver Anthony Schwartz said he’s heard from teammates how fun Sunday’s atmosphere will be. He got a taste of that last weekend from the crowd of 72,973 in Arrowhead Stadium. After undergoing renovation, FirstEnergy Stadium seats 67,431.

“I’m expecting that this week from the home crowd,” Schwartz said in reference to Kansas City. “If I know Cleveland, the stuff I’ve seen so far, they’ve been amazing, great fanbase. They love Browns football and I just can’t wait to go out there and play in front of them.”

Around town, Schwartz said when fans learn he plays for the Browns, they say, “ 'We got a team this year, we should do a lot,’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah, we should,’ ” Schwartz said. “It’s all about what we put out here and taking it game by game.”

Marla Ridenour can be reached at mridenour@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MRidenourABJ.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Browns coach Kevin Stefanski wants stadium packed at kickoff