The current Huntington Bank Field sits right on the downtown Cleveland lakefront. However, a new indoor domed stadium is being built for the Browns roughly 15 miles southwest in Brook Park, Ohio, right next to the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, which garnered the attention of Chad Johnson.

During a recent episode of the Nightcap Podcast, fellow former NFL player Shannon Sharpe brought up the topic of the Cleveland Browns’ new facility, which is expected to open for the 2029 NFL season. Sharpe showed renderings of the state-of-the-art domed stadium, while doing that, he took a subtle jab at the Cleveland-based franchise.

“Win five games a year in that pretty stadium,” Sharpe said on the Nightcap Podcast.

Statistically, the assessment is correct based on the Cleveland Browns’ 2025 season, where the franchise wrapped up with a record of 5-12, finishing 4th in the AFC North division. However, the Browns had their plans despite an underwhelming performance last season.

Chad Johnson, who was on the episode, shared his input on the Super Bowl contenders and what cities deserved to host the biggest event in the NFL calendar.

The Browns’ effort to host the Super Bowl led them to build a new stadium. They first publicly announced their plans for the new domed stadium, whose projected total cost is $2.6 billion, on August 7, 2024. And then, earlier this year on April 30, 2026, team owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, and Ohio Governor Mike DeWine held the ceremonial groundbreaking of the new facility.

While Chad Johnson and Sharpe may question the Browns’ intention behind constructing a new stadium with his subtle dig, for the franchise, it will be a significant shift.

The current open-air lakefront Huntington Bank Field only hosts about 10 primary events per year (mostly regular-season NFL home games) due to Ohio’s harsh winters. However, building a fully enclosed venue featuring state-of-the-art facilities and a translucent roof system unlocks climate control year-round.

And because of this, the Browns’ stakeholders would also be able to provide the venue for Super Bowls, stadium concerts, and other global events.

“We believe that Cleveland and all of Northeast Ohio deserve this state-of-the-art, first-of-its-kind venue, and we will continue to work on our commitment to build a stadium and football team that our fans and community will be proud of,” the Browns owners said in a statement.

However, unlike Chad Johnson, Shannon Sharpe shared a different view to raise question on Cleveland Browns‘ new home stadium.

“Everybody want to put a dome on, man. Don’t nobody want to come out cold weather and have a Super Bowl. Everybody want to put a dome on cuz now everybody want the Super Bowl,” Sharpe said on the Nightcap Podcast. “Man, ain’t nobody want to go in the da** cold and be in no Super Bowl in no d** cold. Minnesota was miserable. New York was miserable. Anybody that tell you that it wasn’t, they’re lying.”

Due to the cold climate in Ohio around February, Cleveland has never hosted a Super Bowl. However, following the groundbreaking for the new indoor Brook Park facility, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell explicitly stated that the new dome will be “Super Bowl quality”.