Damarious Randall had better hope he doesn't bet like a Brown.
After all, the last time a member of the Browns publicly issued a guarantee based on the outcome of sporting events, coach Hue Jackson ended up bound for Lake Erie.
Big words: New Browns player Damarious Randall.
Photo: AP
Randall has put himself out on a limb anyway. The safety is an unabashed Golden State Warriors fan who's so confident his favorite professional basketball team will defeat LeBron James and the Cavaliers that he made a bold proclamation late Monday night.
"If the Cleveland Cavaliers win the 2018 NBA finals I'll buy everyone who retweet's this a jersey," Randall wrote on Twitter after the Warriors beat the Houston Rockets 101-92 in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals.
Five minutes later, after a fan tweeted there's "zero chance" Randall will deliver, the trade acquisition from the Green Bay Packers tweeted there is a "100 percent chance" he'll make good on his promise should the Cavaliers prevail.
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Before 11am Wednesday (AEST), Randall's vow had been retweeted more than 500,000 times.
Randall didn't specify the type of jerseys he would purchase – Cavaliers, Browns or another team – or the quality. The cheapest adult-sized jerseys on the Cavaliers' website are $89.99 (USD), and $49.99 on the Browns' website. Even if Randall could get 500,000 jerseys for $25 apiece in a bulk deal, it would cost him $12.5 million, excluding taxes and any other fees.
Randall, 25, is scheduled to make $1,514,418 this year in salary and bonuses and $9,069,000 next year, according to the contract tracking website Spotrac.com
Of course, the Cavs would need to pull off a huge upset to force Randall to pony up. The Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas opened the Warriors as -1,000 favorites to win the title, making them the largest NBA Finals favorites in at least 16 seasons, per odds database Sportsoddshistory.com.
Even if the Cavaliers fail to make Randall eat his words, the native of Pensacola, Fla., has angered countless Cleveland sports fans by openly rooting for the Warriors.
"They will love me when they see me play Free Safety," Randall tweeted Sunday, adding three emojis symbolizing faces with tears of joy.
Jackson is scheduled to jump into the lake Friday because after the Browns went 1-15 in 2016, the coach promised to take the plunge if they finished with the same record the next season. Then they proceeded to go 0-16.
If the Cavs triumph over the Warriors in their best-of-seven series that begins at 9 p.m. Thursday at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Cleveland fans will find it easier to forgive Randall than Jackson, provided Randall supplies jerseys to those who retweeted him.
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