The Ravens, who used to be the Browns before owner Art Modell moved them to Baltimore, returned to Cleveland for the first time Sunday and got an earful.

	Browns fans didn't hold back when it came to sharing their thoughts on Ravens owner Art Modell.

Modell didn't have to hear the invectives himself; he stayed in Baltimore and watched the game on TV. The Ravens, however, had to endure all the shouting, although they did have the last word by beating the Browns 41-9.

Baltimore running back Eric Rhett helped quiet the crowd with an 11-yard touchdown run on the first drive.

"That makes the crowd sit back in their seats and that's what we needed," he said. "We know this is the most hostile crowd in the NFL."

In addition to venting, fans in the Dawg Pound came to Cleveland Browns Stadium to "cleanse our souls" of the frustration they felt when Modell moved the old Browns in 1995, said John "Big Dawg" Thompson, one of the Pound's most familiar faces.

"We're ready to move on," Thompson said. "But I want Modell to see us and I want it to hurt him in the heart like it hurt us when they left."

Fans of the expansion Browns took advantage of every chance to yell.

Dawg Pounders won a shouting match with some of the Ravens players who ran toward their section during introductions. Some fans waved foam fingers -- that didn't indicate Cleveland is No. 1 -- at the Baltimore bench.

Thompson and others waved stuffed ravens, lynched from the ends of dog bones. One fan sneaked a banner into the stadium, where signs are forbidden. It said: "New Policy: No Art in Cleveland," a reference to Browns president Carmen Policy.

The crowd couldn't even keep quiet during a moment of silence for the late Hall of Fame running back Walter Payton, as a few fans screamed obscenities about Modell that reverberated throughout the stadium.

Then the game started. And after Rhett's touchdown, it only got worse for Cleveland.

By the time Rod Woodson intercepted a Ty Detmer pass and ran for a touchdown to give Baltimore a 34-3 lead midway through the fourth quarter, much of the crowd of 72,898 had left. Even the Dawg Pounders were headed for the exits.

Bob Miller, a 32-year-old Browns fan who has been coming to games for 20 years, tried to put it all in perspective from his front-row seat in the Pound.

"This is my team, starting from scratch," Miller said. "I know it's going to be a long time before they're any good. But you know what? There's no better feeling than being a Browns fan."

Ten-year-old David Jaranovic, with his dog mask pushed up on his head, tried to look on the bright side.

"I still had fun," he said, "but we stink."