Cleveland Browns: Is there a curse on Hard Knocks?

Since coming back in 2012, Hard Knocks has been one of the great sources of NFL off-season entertainment. But let’s step back and take a look at the history. Is there some superstition that Cleveland Browns fans should be worried about?

Every Cleveland Browns fan who’s any Browns fan (that has HBO) will be tuning into Hard Knocks this season. NFL Films’ in-depth saga for NFL training camp always delivers, and this year, the Browns will be featured on the show!

But hold your horses, because I know my superstition and something’s fishy about all this. Being the natural worrier that I am, I went back to the show’s 2012 reincarnation until now, and took a look at how each team’s record changed after appearing on Hard Knocks.

These results are not 100 percent, there are some changes in how things pan out, but these are all strictly factual. Depending on how you look at it, appearing on Hard Knocks can actually be a blessing or a curse. Let’s dive in.

First, the bad news. Since 2012, the teams that have appeared on the program have a collective follow-up record (CFR) of 4-7. That is to say that, overall, Hard Knocks teams have experienced a negative change on average from the season before.

This occurs most recently in two big drop-offs: 2016 and 2017. In 2016, the Los Angeles Rams performed three games worse than they did in 2015. In 2017 alone, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers experienced a four-game drop-off from 2016 to 2017.

Let’s spin this on its head, though. Out of the last six Hard Knocks teams, the two most recent ones are the only teams to experience any drop-off.

The other four either stayed even with the year before, or actually improved on their record a slight bit.

All in all, this one could be a coin-flip in the superstition department. If you play the odds, the Browns have a better chance of being better than they do of being worse.

But, if something manages to go south for Cleveland, it could go very south, very fast.

Next: Gordon is the puzzle piece that needs to fit

I think we all want to believe that the Cleveland Browns will be better in 2018. Fans can believe whatever they want to believe, but it may be best to look at Hard Knocks as a good omen for this team, hopefully for years to come.