Browne says he hoped to be "rewarded with a fair chance" in the top flight, but also "completely understands" Sunderland's summer transfer strategy, with the Black Cats having overhauled their squad in a bid to survive this season.
With Browne having dropped down the pecking order following an influx of new midfielders, the 30-year-old made the switch to Middlesbrough on deadline day on a season-long loan move.
And while that was the "ideal" move for Browne, both personally and professionally, there's frustration he didn't get his first taste of Premier League football.
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Asked whether he was at all annoyed at being shifted to the fringes at the Stadium of Light this summer, [Browne told BBC Tees](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0m1qfdh): "Yeah, of course. I think a lot of people probably are from last year.
"We're the players who got the club there and you'd like to think you'd be rewarded with a fair chance the following season. I'm disappointed but I completely understand the club's outlook.
"They want to stay in the Premier League, progress and get as high up the table as they can. They've made the choice to spend that money and bring in players who they think are capable of doing that and they didn't think most of the previous players were.
"It could be a fair assessment because you see it so often where teams go up and come down and go back up and become a yo-yo team. They obviously don't want to do that. I think they've probably looked at Nottingham Forest from a few years ago and tried to replicate that.
"Hopefully it works out. I'm not going to talk bad about them. I'm disappointed, which is fair, but hopefully I'll get another chance next season."
As much as Browne would have loved a crack at the Premier League, when he realised opportunities were going to be hard to come by, he liked the idea of a loan move so he could play.
He had plenty of interest in the Championship and thought one move was on the cards, until he got a call from [Boro](http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/sport/football/middlesbrough) boss Rob Edwards on Sunday night.
"It was quite sudden," he said.
"I had interest elsewhere and I was inclined to go there, but the night before the window closed the gaffer rang me up and said they were interested.
"It ticked a lot of boxes and I think I can help the team as well as they can help me.
"It made sense to come here. They've made a great start, hopefully we can continue that.
"I did say if Middlesbrough came in it would be the ideal scenario to keep my family who are settled in the area around. In that regard it was brilliant, but also as a club, it's a massive club and I want to get a massive club back where they belong."