It's been almost 30 years since their last head-to-headNFL matchup, but the mention of former Cincinnati quarterback Boomer Esiason still evokes a chuckle from former Cleveland quarterback Bernie Kosar.
Kosar slows his cadence before making a simple request.
"If he calls, tell him our big jokewasthathe would win the game at the beginning of the year,"Kosar told Sporting News before raising his voice to deliverthe punchline."ThenI would win the one that mattered."
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When Esiason hears that, the chuckle becomes a laugh-out-loud moment. He's quick to offer a statistical self-defense.
Kawhi Leonard Jersey"Tell Bernie I think I had a 16-7 or 17-7 record against the Browns," Esiason said. "I think that's what it was."
The totals are a bit inflated, but the sentiments come with mutual respect between the quarterbacks-turned-analysts. Kosar and Esiason represent the heart of the Battle of Ohio in the late 1980s, when the AFC Central race was almost always at stake.
It's the most revered chapter of the in-state rivalry between the Bengals and Browns.Now,Kosar andEsiasonare hoping Heisman Trophy winners Baker Mayfield and Joe Burrow bringthatback to their respective franchises.Mayfield and Burrowwill have their first head-to-head matchup when Cincinnati travels to Cleveland for "Thursday Night Football" in Week 2.The hope however slim is that this is thesecond coming of that Kosar-Esiasonheyday.
"I think it speaks more to what the franchises have gone through lately than anything else,"Esiasonsaid."You'd like to hope the next set of guys would make us fade into the past, but at the end of the day I like tosay we had Sam Wyche, Marty Schottenheimer and a lot ofgreat personalities on both sides."
Thosecomparisons Louis Williams Jersey are worth makingwhen looking back to the future.
Boomer vs. BernieEsiasonarrived in Cincinnatias a second-round pickin 1984, and he got theintroduction tothe rivalry with the Browns on the first bus ride to Cleveland that season.
"From our side, it was what it meant for Paul Brown, when he was alive, to beat the Browns and how important it was for that to be the case," Esiason said. "I sat next to Coach Brown, and he told me about the history and intensity. I really got to understand that fast."
Esiasonwould make his first startagainst Cleveland on Nov. 10, 1985. Kosar, a rookie with the Browns, was waiting. Esiason won the first Landry Shamet Jersey two matchups, but it was a Dec. 14, 1986, meeting that had playoff implications for both sides.
Cleveland and Cincinnati met with the division on the line, and Kosar took the first shotin a rabid Riverfront Stadium.
"On the road, I have a philosophical belief,"Kosar said."You want to set the tempo as a young quarterback by being aggre sive on your first play. I like to throw bombs on the first play, and typically with a 22-year-old quarterback that doesn't go well on the road to win the division, especially in the mid-'80s. It ended up working. I hit a bomb to Reggie Langhorne. It quieted the crowd down and showed that I'm here.We're here."
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Cleveland won 34-3, and the rivalry took on new life over the next few seasons.Kosar led the Brownsto theAFC championship game in 1986, 1987 and 1989.Esiasonwon the NFL MVP award in 1988, and Cincinnati advanced to Super Bowl 23. Esiason had a 6-4 head-to-head advantage against Kosar on the field, but it's the way both quarterbacks recall the details with remarkable accuracy that stands outevenmore.
Esiasonrecalled center Dave Rimington screaming at teammates on the sideline during a freezer-burned lo s atClevelandon Dec. 13, 1987, and quipped, "Maybe it was being lined up against Bob Golic." He remembers arguing for 10 minutes on "Monday Night Football" with NFL official Bob McElweeat Municipal Stadium after a touchdown was called back in the Blake Griffin Jersey 1990 matchup.
"I thought I had them totally confused enough that they would overturn the call,"hesaid."That's how close I had them. We scored the TD anyway, but that's how it wasin those games."
Those matchups are barstool legends now for franchiseswhosetaps haverun dry.Cleveland has the longest playoff drought at 17 seasons. Cincinnati has the longest playoffwin drought at 29 seasons.
Why do Boomer and Bernie still come up?Because fans have been waiting for something good to talk about. Mayfield and Burrow could provide thatopportunity.
The Battle of Ohio has been dormant since the heyday ofBernie Kosar, left, and Boomer Esiasonin the 1980s.
Pre sure on MayfieldCleveland hasthe rightpersonality at quarterback.
The Browns drafted Mayfield with the No. 1 pickin 2018 after an 0-16 season, and the Heisman Trophy winner's brash demeanor was amuch-neededjolt for the franchiseafter coach Hue Jackson was fired.
Mayfieldset a rookie record with27 TDsand riled up the fanbase with his swagger.Clevelandstock-piled talent including star receiver Odell Beckham Jr.ahead of the 2019 season.
It backfired.Mayfieldendured a sophomore slump that coincided with a 6-10 season under Freddie Kitchens, who also was fired. Now, Mayfield is on his third coach in three years with Kevin Stefanski.
"A lot of nonsense Rodney McGruder Jersey has gone on around him the last two years," Esiason said. "They brought in personalities and big-time players and they've never lived up to it. A lot of that goes to relationships with players on the field. Hopefully Kevin gets it straightened out."
When breaking down Mayfield, Kosar gives a measured response even if he knows fans don't want to hear that after a 38-6 lo s to Baltimore and third-year quarterback Lamar Jackson in Week 1.
In short,Mayfield needs more timein a new scheme.
"Multiple coaches and multiple systems in multiple years,"Kosar said."In a normal situation, that wouldn't be easy to get it right.Now, you added no OTAs,no realminicamp,nopreseasongames, noreal contactand noreal schedule. If you ever had a scenario to put a team and an offense behind, this is one of them.
"I really dobelieveit, even though it sounds like BS," Kosar said."But the fans and other people don't want to hear that."
EsiasonsaidMayfield should continue to improve with the presence of backup quarterback Case Keenum, whoworked Patrick Beverley Jersey with Stefanski in Minnesota.Week 2 offers a chance to quiet those critics, at least for a week.
"He'll learn how to prepare and have another guy in the room that understands the offense that Kevin is putting in,"Esiasonsaid."I know it's a little behind the 8-ball for Baker because it's three offensive coordinators in three yearsand he's had some really flaky pe
