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As far as I know there wasn't a Will Ferrell sighting in Cleveland on Sunday, but Cleveland's 8-0 victory over the Bills was about as Old School as you can get.

With the wind blowing the beer cups right out of the hands of the dawg pounders, and the snow swirling thicker than the haze of a New Year's day hangover, the Browns brought back many happy memories for their fans, including this one. Just as important, perhaps it also kick started a new generation of fans desperate for a Cleveland team to lead them out of the pro sports championship doldrums.

Coincidentally or not, this was also the first game that my 7 year old son watched with me from start to finish, enthralled not only by the snow storm raging on the field, but caught up in his dad's enthusiasm for the outcome of every play as well. He even picked up on the quiet sense of nervousness at the end as I watched the Browns' rubber band defense stretch to almost the breaking point at the end of the game, not being able to relax until the final 4th down play by the Bills ended at the Browns 10 yard line (I could have sworn I saw Clay Matthews make that last tackle).

"This is the weather of Cleveland. We had to dictate how the game was going to go," said left guard Eric Steinbach.

For the Browns, the game itself was a textbook example of how to win crucial late season games in the rugged wintery conditions that any playoff caliber team has to learn not just to cope with, but revel in and take advantage of. With the offensive line and Jamal Lewis (who "plowed" for 163 yards) being the only consistent offensive threat possible inside a snow storm, they held up their part of the bargain and immediately established themselves in the collective memory of Browns fans as tough and grizzled as any that came before. It should also be mentioned that despite the blustery and slippery conditions, not only did the Browns not turn the ball over, they didn't fumble once during the game, quite a feat in itself.

Not to be outdone, the Browns defense also took advantage of the conditions and kept Buffalo off the scoreboard, making a number of crucial third and fourth down stops throughout the game, even though the Bills got close at the end. They also won the field position battle (with help from Browns punter Dave Zastudil), an important factor in any game, but especially one like this where any single mistake or slip up could be the difference between winning and losing. Just ask the Bills long snapper, who lifted one over the head of the punter and gave the Browns a huge first half safety. Had the Bills been able to get a touchdown at the end of the game, that poor snap could well have been the difference between winning and losing.

As well as the Browns played overall and the impressive way they handled the hazardous playing conditions (for the most part, much better than the Bills did), it would be an extreme injustice to not mention kicker Phil Dawson, who not only somehow made 2 field goals (without a miss) in the worst conditions imaginable for a kicker, but made them from 35 and 49 (!) yards. Line up the best kickers in the history of the game from the same spot in the same conditions, and it's quite possible they'd go 0 for 10, yet somehow Dawson made both of his attempts. For anyone thinking Dawson just got lucky, he's now 24 of 27 for the year, and currently ranks 4th all time in NFL history for field goal percentage at 82.8%.

Despite all the feel good emotions of the post game euphoria and the Monday morning satisfaction, the fact remains that the Browns have still not clinched a playoff spot. They can do so with a road win against Cincinnati next week, or  even if they lose that game possibly at home against the 49'ers on New Year's Eve eve (where I'll be barking in the Dawg Pound on that day).

But until the Browns reaching the playoffs becomes a fact, the cold realization that this season could somehow still end in futility is felt by most Browns fans somewhere deep in their bones, no matter how many layers of "Believeland" t-shirts he or she may be wearing. Perhaps that inherent pessimism is hereditary among Cleveland sports fans, as my 7 year old son began the game yesterday with the comment: "Ah come on dad, you know the Bills are going to win, just get over it now". Whoever said the youth of this country are optimistic hasn't spent much time in Cleveland.

Tags: cleveland browns