For the last month, this city has been lying to itself in the hope that it won’t waste Sundays.

Quarterback Deshaun Watson simply needed more time to familiarize himself with the receivers after practicing without his full gear in the offseason. Or time to throw behind an injured offensive line. Or, or, or… maybe three years (17 games) is enough time to decide that the player Cleveland traded isn’t coming back.

The latest proof: 15 of 28, 125 yards (4.5 yards per pass attempt), one touchdown. Bad, bad, bad. Against the 28th ranked pass defense in the league.

Cleveland’s running game? I just needed more confidence from coach Kevin Stefanski and/or a healthier offensive line in front of running backs Jerome Ford and D’Onta Foreman. Ford and Foreman just had to hold the fort until star rusher Nick Chubb returned.

Counterpoint: 4.3 yards per carry this season (18th as of Sunday). 94.8 rushing yards per game (26th). Two rushing touchdowns in five weeks. Bad, bad, bad. Take your time returning from injury, Batman. This season can no longer be saved.

But Cleveland’s defense played so well last season. It just needs to get that swagger back and approach it with the same discipline. If cornerback Greg Newsome doesn’t call a roughing penalty on the passer to prevent a Giants interception, or Alex Wright avoids the same mistake against the Raiders, then –

Stop. That’s how bad teams talk.

After Sunday’s loss, Cleveland’s language makes sense. Losing teams find excuses. They make rookie quarterbacks look unstoppable. And they make their fans tell lies in the mirror.

The Browns just need a break. They just need to make one more winning play. Cleveland just needs a bad team to play well.

Unfortunately, the bad team played poorly against the Commanders because that’s what bad teams do.

I know it hurts to hear this just five weeks into the season, but this year’s Dawg Pound is already looking forward to next year. Forget Super Bowl dreams and other postseason ambitions. They died on Sunday against Washington, if not earlier this season. I don’t know how many 1-4 teams in NFL history have made the playoffs, but I’m confident in telling you that this team won’t be one of them.

Sure, Cleveland still has 12 games left. And yes, every team has a bad week. But to call Sunday’s defeat a fluke is to ignore your own eyes and lie to yourself in the mirror.

Do you want the truth?

The Browns are a mess, and the rest of this season will be spent picking through the rubble for the culprits. Trainer? Quarterback? Front office and ownership?

Don’t get ahead of yourself, Browns fans. You still have 12 games left to decide who should pay for the barking, biting, bad dog. Because Cleveland only needed five weeks to show their fans what kind of team they saw this season.