Art Modell's passing has reopened some old wounds -- most recently, the Cleveland Browns were the only NFL team not to honor their former owner on opening weekend -- but there appears to still be some things coming out of the woodwork that fans in Ohio might not be happy about.
The latest news, courtesy of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, is that Modell was actually offered the possibility of the city building a new stadium -- a story that goes directly against Modell's reasoning for originally removing the Browns from the city:
George Forbes, who was Cleveland's council president during the late 1980s and a key player in negotiations with team owners during planning for Gateway, said he and others asked Modell to be a part of the project.
Forbes said leaders proposed building a third Gateway sports facility for the Browns, just south of the Inner Belt a couple of blocks from what is now Progressive Field. Forbes' memory for detail is hazy. But he said then-Cuyahoga County Commissioner Tim Hagan, Jacobs and lawyers familiar with the financing options were present with Modell at a meeting when the offer was made.
It's unfortunate that this news didn't come to light prior to Modell's passing as this is obviously just one side of the story, but Cleveland fans will likely be a bit more displeased if the exact reasoning they were given for Modell moving the team wasn't a legitimate reason at all.
Stick with this StoryStream for more on Modell's passing. For all things Browns, head over to Dawgs by Nature.