Paul Kengor: Bad things happen in Cleveland

“I’m telling you!” yelled Myron Cope in the voice of, well, only Myron Cope. “Something bad always happens in Cleveland!”

I was sitting in my car in Shadyside, waiting to pick up my wife from her aerobics class, listening to the legendary Myron on WTAE-AM.

The subject was the Steelers vs. the Browns. This particular year, the Steelers were on a roll, and the Browns were on the ropes. (Come to think of it, that describes most years.)

The Steelers were playoff- bound and the Browns were not. Surely that coming Sunday’s game would be smooth sailing for the black-and-gold at the Dawg Pound.

“No!” barked Myron, imploring his listeners to never take lightly a trip to Cleveland, no matter what kind of year the teams were having. “I’m telling you! Something bad always happens in Cleveland!”

The prophetic voice of Steelers Nation nailed it. The Steelers went into Cleveland that Sunday, October 1993, and hit a buzzsaw. The awfulness was best captured by what happened to Steelers linebacker Jerry Olsavsky.

Olsavsky was a local favorite, drafted from Pitt in 1989. He managed to earn a spot in the starting lineup of the Blitzburgh defense. Things looked sunny, until Cleveland happened. Jerry O suffered a devasting knee injury. His season was over. Sure, the Steelers made the playoffs again, and the Browns didn’t, but Jerry O was never the same.

Something bad always happens in Cleveland.

Well, needless to say, in the Browns-Steeler matchup in Cleveland for 2019 — the 50th anniversary of the Cuyahoga River fire — all hell broke loose. What happened in Cleveland Nov. 14 quickly transcended the Dawg Pound and sports itself. Browns lineman Myles Garrett ripped the helmet from Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph and weaponized it, swinging it at Rudolph’s head.

I watched in amazement, as did millions in the days that followed. Commentators of all stripes weighed in, debating how many games Garrett should be suspended for, and even whether criminal charges should be brought.

Something bad always happens in Cleveland.

Things got worse: Garrett told the NFL that he was set off by Rudolph having leveled a racial slur. This was denied by Rudolph as well as teammates within earshot of the fracas. Rudolph was backed by coach Mike Tomlin and by the NFL, which found no proof of Garrett’s allegation.

And yet, I agree with Trib sportswriter Mark Madden that Rudolph’s denials will not matter to many. “It doesn’t matter,” wrote Madden. “This will follow him forever.”

No doubt. For the rest of Rudolph’s life, this charge will hound him. He’ll be under a cloud of suspicion. That’s sad.

Something bad always happens in Cleveland.

And so, on Dec. 1, the Steelers and Browns met again, this time in Pittsburgh. In the interim, Browns’ coach Freddie Kitchens donned a shirt claiming “Pittsburgh Started It” — meaning the Steelers were somehow culpable for Garrett’s eruption. Only in Cleveland could such an absurdity receive an ovation from fans consumed with hating the Steelers.

Kickoff came at 1 p.m., with the NFL choosing an earlier start in order to cool the national focus and avoid fanning further flames. Everyone anticipated a brawl, fistfights. There were none. It was a tough game, but the guys behaved themselves. No violence, no one out of control. Nothing bad happened.

Maybe that’s because the bad things happen in Cleveland.