I'm not gonna beat a damn dead horse about Art Modell dying. Everything to be said has been said by the local guys at the PD, on 850, and on 1100. Hell, it's been covered by all the national outlets like ESPN and SI. But I'll say just a bit about Modell. I never celebrate an individual's death (except for Osama and all those other sons of bitches we slay over there in the Middle East--but that's the Marine in me) but there's a difference in being happy for someone dies and feeling little or no sympathy or emotion for someone's death. Modell falls into that category for me. By all accounts he was a great guy, always willing to lend a helping hand to anyone who needed it. But what he did to Cleveland was heartbreaking. I've read about how many people have forgotten and moved on from The Move but not me. I wasn't even 6 years old when The Move happened and I had no idea what it meant then. Hell, I barely even remember it. All I remember about The Move was the countdown clock in Tower City before the Browns came back. When it all comes down to it though, there is more than one person to blame for The Move. Al Lerner was Modell's right hand man during the whole process, for example. But when the dust settled, it was Modell's call to up and move the team to Baltimore. It's part of his legacy in the NFL. And while I don't think we should do backflips over his death, I also don't think we should act like the assholes in Baltimore either (see below). I'll finish with this: rest in piece, Art. You were an innovative owner and the NFL is forever marked by those innovations, but you're still a son of a bitch.
PS: I'm glad to hear that the Browns aren't going to recognize Modell's death tomorrow, even if it is only because of the family's wishes. There is just too fine of a line to try to tightrope with an issue like this, and it opens up a massive opportunity for a few assholes to make Cleveland look like shit (again, see below for Baltimore's example).
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