With LeBron James doing the nearly impossible on Sunday night and winning a title for the city of Cleveland thanks to a dominating performance against the Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals (he won unanimous MVP and nearly averaged a triple double over the course of three-straight elimination games) there was a HUGE metaphorical sigh of relief for the city of Cleveland.
And it doesn't technically end their Super Bowl victory streak.
There are many Browns fans who are also Cavs fans, but there are also plenty of people who would love to see the Browns win a title. They're probably a little further away from doing so than the Cavaliers were before the year.
This is what happens when bold predictions about Johnny Manziel don't come true.
Johnny Football will one day be bigger in Cleveland than his buddy LeBron ever was.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) May 9, 2014
Whoops.
The good news? The Browns don't actually have the longest Super Bowl and/or NFL title drought. That awkward award belongs to ...
5. Tennessee Titans/Houston Oilers (1961): We technically have to count an AFL title, right? (The answer is yes.) There were only eight teams in the league before the merger and only three of them had records above .500. The title game, a 10-3 Houston Oilers victory over the San Diego Chargers, was a real scorcher.
4. Minnesota Vikings (1961): So this one is a little tricky. The Vikings won the NFL Championship during the 1969 season but actually lost in Super Bowl IV. They are still generally credited with winning a championship. But you can also make the argument the Vikings didn't win the championship because, you know, they lost the Super Bowl. We're going to make that argument and include them here as a team without a title. The team was formed in 1961.
Just to really rub it in, here's a video of Morten Anderson's missed field goal from the 1998 NFC Championship Game.
On a somewhat more positive note, the Vikings have won the NFC title four times since the merger and appeared in Super Bowls IV, VIII, IX and XI.
3. Philadelphia Eagles (1960): How long ago does Donovan McNabb puking in the huddle feel?
Not that long when you compare it to the Eagles' last title, which was an NFL Championship in 1960 (again, we are still pre-merger). That featured the late, great Chuck Bedarnik. You should watch video of him because he was a bad, bad man.
2. Detroit Lions (1957): If you were playing trivia and asking someone who had the longest Super Bowl drought, a lot of people would say the Lions because, well, Matt Millen. But the Lions aren't No. 1 on this list and actually have five total titles. You can actually watch their last one online. It is riveting television.
1. Arizona/Chicago Cardinals (1947): The Cardinals (then in Chicago) won a pair of NFL Championships prior to the merger (and the creation of the Super Bowl) in 1925 and 1947, but haven't won since. Their most recent trip to the Super Bowl is plenty memorable for Cards fans, with Arizona losing on a last-second Ben Roethlisberger throw to Santonio Holmes.
Apologies in advance.
