Draft History: Browns known for blunders selecting quarterbacks
Draft History: Browns known for blunders selecting quarterbacks
Almost every year, the common theme at the NFL Draft is “how are the Browns going to mess up drafting a quarterback this time?” Although Cleveland may have found a winner in Baker Mayfield, the team has gone through 20 years of draft futility at the position. However, the team has been much better drafting all the other offensive spots, with three-star running backs, Hall of Famers at wide receiver and tight end and two productive and durable offensive linemen.
BEST
10. (tie) Brian Sipe, QB (Round 13, Pick 330 in 1972) and Thom Darden, S (Round 1, Pick 18 in 1972) - Not all quarterback selections were bad for the Browns. Sipe is the team’s all-time leader with 23,713 yards and ranks second with 154 touchdowns. His best season was 1980 when he was named NFL MVP and also earned his lone Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections after posting career highs with 4,132 yards and 30 scores. Sipe engineered 23 game-winning drives, but lost his only playoff start, a Division Round game in 1980 to the eventual champion Raiders. Darden is the all-time franchise leader with 45 interceptions. He had at least five in four seasons, including a league-high 10 in 1978, when he made his only Pro Bowl. The Michigan product could have had more, but lost the 1975 season to a knee injury.
9. Michael Dean Perry, DT (Round 2, Pick 50 in 1988) - Perry had a much better career than 1988 first-round pick, linebacker Clifford Charlton. The brother of Bears Super Bowl star, William “The Refrigerator” Perry, was selected to five Pro Bowls and two All-Pro teams with Cleveland. He ranks second in team history with 51½ sacks, including a career-high 11½ in 1990. Perry started in the 1990 AFC Championship Game, in which the Broncos defeated the Browns for the third time in four years.
8. Clay Matthews, LB (Round 1, Pick 12 in 1978) - The one who ranks higher than Perry on the sack list is Matthews, who totaled 62 in 16 years with the Browns. He also tops the franchise with 24 forced fumbles and 1,430 tackles (including eight seasons with 100 or more and three times leading the NFL), ranks second with 232 games played, and he also had 14 interceptions. The four-time Pro Bowler played in three AFC Championship Games, and he comes from one of the most well-known football families, with his dad (Clay Sr.), brother (Bruce), two sons (Clay III and Casey) and three nephews (Jake, Kevin, and Mike) all playing in the NFL.
7. Earnest Byner, RB (Round 10, Pick 280 in 1984) - Over seven seasons in Cleveland, Byner had 3,364 yards, including 1,002 in 1985. He had two 100-yard games in the playoffs (his first being a 161-yard, two-touchdown performance in a loss to the Dolphins in the 1985 Division Round), but he was held in check by the Broncos twice in the AFC Championship Game (1986 and ’87).
6. Gene Hickerson, G (Round 7, Pick 78 in 1957) - The former Ole Miss tackle played 202 games, the fifth-most in team history. He was moved inside as a rookie and was a great run blocker in front of Hall of Famers Jim Brown, Bobby Mitchell and Leroy Kelly. Hickerson was a six-time Pro Bowler and a three-time All-Pro who joined many of his former teammates in the Hall of Fame in 2007. He started in four NFL Championship Games, including Cleveland’s last title in 1964. Hickerson broke his leg twice during the 1961 season, but never missed another game after recovering from that injury. He suffered from dementia later in life and died in 2008.
5. Ozzie Newsome, TE (Round 1, Pick 23 in 1978) - The Browns had a tremendous first round in 1978, drafting Matthews early followed by Newsome. The Hall of Famer spent 13 seasons in Cleveland, topping the team list with 662 receptions and 7,980 yards, and ranking fifth with 47 touchdowns. He was a three-time Pro Bowler and an All-Pro in 1984, when he had one of his two 1,000-yard seasons. Newsome was named the first general manager of the Ravens (treated as a different franchise from the Browns despite the team relocating in 1996), a role he held until 2018.
4. Paul Warfield, WR (Round 1, Pick 11 in 1964) - The Hall of Famer ranks third in team history with 52 touchdowns and sixth with 5,210 yards, averaging an incredible 19.2 yards per catch (on 271 receptions). In six seasons in Cleveland, Warfield played in four NFL Championship Games, winning as a rookie. After three Pro Bowls and two straight seasons with double-digit touchdowns, Warfield was shocked by his trade from the Browns to the Dolphins in 1969. He won two titles with Miami and spent a year (along with Dolphins teammates Larry Csonka and Jim Kiick) with the ill-fated World Football League. Once the WFL dissolved, Warfield came back for two more years with Cleveland. His 85 career touchdowns are tied for 15th in NFL history.
3. Leroy Kelly, RB (Round 8, Pick 110 in 1964) - The Hall of Famer ranks second in team history with 7,274 yards and 74 touchdowns. He led the NFL in rushing yards twice and rushing scores three times. The six-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro was part of a title team as a rookie and was named the Bert Bell Player of the Year in 1968 after leading the league with 1,239 yards and 16 touchdowns in just 14 games.
2. Joe Thomas, T (Round 1, Pick 3 in 2007) – Thomas might be the biggest example of a player who gives far more to their team than they get from them. He played 11 seasons, making the Pro Bowl in the first 10 and also being selected to six All-Pro teams. Not only did Thomas not miss a game, but he did not miss a SNAP, playing an NFL-record 10,363 in a row before a torn triceps ended his 2017 season and ultimately, his career. All that success and durability was wasted on the Browns, who did not make the playoffs and posted a 48-128 record during his tenure.
1. Jim Brown, RB (Round 1, Pick 6 in 1957) - From football player to actor to social activist, there is nothing Brown doesn’t do well. He played just nine seasons in the NFL, but was a three-time MVP who had seven 1,000-yard seasons, led the league in yards eight times and added five rushing score crowns. The former Syracuse star was selected to nine Pro Bowls and eight All-Pro teams. He played in three NFC Championship Games and ran for 114 yards in Cleveland’s last title-winning contest in 1964.
WORST
10. Tom Hutchinson, TE/WR (Round 1, Pick 9 in 1963) – Back when the drafts were a lot longer (20 rounds in 1963), the Browns took Hutchinson, an All-American receiver from the University of Kentucky. That Wildcats team was coached by Charlie Bradshaw, a former assistant under Paul “Bear” Bryant in Alabama, a legendary coach who was famous for his grueling training camps. Bradshaw operated the same way, and the 88 players who tried out for Kentucky in 1962 were eventually reduced to the “Thin Thirty.” In the NFL, Hutchinson fell behind receivers Gary Collins and Paul Warfield, as well as tight end Johnny Brewer on Cleveland’s depth chart. He spent three years with the Browns (including the 1964 NFL Championship season) and one with the expansion Falcons before leaving the NFL. Hutchinson died of cancer in 2007. The Browns selected him over Hall of Fame tight ends John Mackey (taken 19th by the Colts) and Jackie Smith (picked in the 10th round by the Cardinals).
9. Mack Mitchell, DE (Round 1, Pick 5 in 1975) – The Houston product started all 14 games and made the All-Rookie Team, but was out of the NFL after five years and 69 total contests (56 with the Browns and 13 with the Bengals in 1979). Cleveland could have had Hall of Famer, four-time Pro Bowler, and two-time All-Pro Fred Dean, who was taken 33rd by the Chargers.
8. Bobby Garrett, QB (Round 1, Pick 1 in 1954) – The Browns needed an eventual replacement for Hall of Famer Otto Graham when they selected Garrett, an All-American from Stanford. Garrett seemed to have all the tools, but he also had one thing an NFL quarterback cannot afford to have, a stuttering problem. The issues (and coach Paul Brown’s mishandling of his condition) caused the Browns to trade Garrett to the Packers, where he made nine starts in 1954 before leaving the NFL. He worked for Sears Roebuck and Co. until he suffered a heart attack and died in 1987.
7. Bobby Crespino, WR/TE (Round 1, Pick 10 in 1961) – Crespino was a first-round pick of the Browns and a sixth-round selection of the AFL’s Oakland Raiders. He functioned mainly as a blocker for three years with Cleveland and five more with the New York Giants. When he was a pass-catcher, he usually worked in the middle of the field, which opened him up to big hits from defenders. He suffered many neurological problems later in life after years of living with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) stemming from football. He died in 2013, and his brain was donated to the CTE Center at Boston University for further study of brain injuries.
6. Mike Junkin, LB (Round 1, Pick 5 in 1987) – While his brother, Trey, is more well-known (mostly for his botched snap on a potential Giants game-winning field goal in a 2002 Wild Card game against the 49ers), Mike Junkin was a high pick, thanks to then-Browns coach Marty Schottenheimer, who overruled his scouts and drafted him ahead of future Pro Bowler Shane Conlon. Part of Junkin’s issues stemmed from the team wanting to move him to outside linebacker, but he actually played better on the inside his second year before injuring his knee. Schottenheimer went to Kansas City in 1989 and traded for Junkin, but steroid use plus a shoulder injury cost him most of the season. The Chiefs released him and he retired after no one picked him up for the 1990 season.
5. Justin Gilbert, CB (Round 1, Pick 8 in 2014) – Another player who did not live up to his hype, Gilbert was a 2013 All-American who has played just three years and 35 games in the NFL. He made 39 tackles and had an interception with the Browns over two seasons before getting traded to AFC North rival Pittsburgh for a sixth-round pick. The Steelers used him primarily on special teams before cutting him after the 2016 season. In June 2017, Gilbert was suspended one year for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy, and he hasn’t played in the league since.
4. (tie) Johnny Manziel, QB (Round 1, Pick 22 in 2014), Brady Quinn, QB (Round 1, Pick 22 in 2007) – Manziel and Quinn were both taken at the same spot in the draft, so why not have them in the same spot on the list? Manziel was so talented that he won the 2012 Heisman Trophy and was nicknamed “Johnny Football.” Instead of living up to his potential, Manziel wasted his opportunity with off-field issues. He was arrested for using a fake ID before even playing his first game in college game and he managed to get thrown out of a frat party at the University of Texas (I’m not even sure what you have to do to get asked to leave a frat party). The partying continued, costing him starts with the Browns. Manziel was fired by two agents and his drinking led to several domestic violence incidents. His alcohol and drug use spiraled out of control and he was cut by Cleveland and suspended by the NFL in 2016. Manziel played two seasons in Canada before the CFL voided his contract when he missed drug-related meetings with the league. He played with the Memphis Express for the ill-fated Alliance of American Football, but he has not played since the league folded in 2019.
With Quinn, the issue was with performance. After a stellar career at Notre Dame, he finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting behind Troy Smith and Darren McFadden in 2006. Quinn was thought to be a top 10 pick (with the Browns a potential landing spot with the third pick), but he kept dropping and Cleveland traded back into the first round to grab him. He was behind Derek Anderson and only came in during the last game as a rookie. Quinn started three games in 2008 before a broken finger sidelined him. He followed that up with his best season, making nine starts with the Browns until he suffered a Lisfranc injury in his foot. Quinn spent two years on Denver’s bench, then had one last run as a starting quarterback in 2012 after Matt Cassel suffered a concussion in Kansas City. He bounced around several other NFL stops, never latching on, and now works as an analyst for CBS Sports HQ and FOX.
3. Trent Richardson, RB (Round 1, Pick 3 in 2012) – Richardson was another player who squandered tremendous potential. The two-time BCS National Champion finished in third in Heisman Trophy voting (behind Robert Griffin III and Andrew Luck) after rushing for 1,679 yards and 21 touchdowns in 2011. He even had a solid first year in Cleveland, posting 950 yards and 11 scores, but was traded to Indianapolis just two games into the 2013 season. Richardson was cut by the Colts in 2014 and could not latch on with an NFL team over the next two years. After one season with Saskatchewan of the CFL and another with the AAF’s Birmingham Iron, Richardson is currently a free agent.
2. Courtney Brown, DE (Round 1, Pick 1 in 2000) – Brown was a 1999 All-American with Penn State who had 4½ sacks in each of his first two pro seasons and made the All-Rookie Team. The rest of his career was marred by injuries (ankle and knee in 2001, knee in 2002, torn biceps in 2003, foot in 2004, elbow in 2005 and knee again in 2006, leading to his retirement), and he underwent five surgeries. Brown was a missionary in the Dominican Republic after his playing days.
1. Tim Couch, QB (Round 1, Pick 1 in 1999) – Since Bernie Kosar retired after the 1993 season, the Browns have drafted one bad quarterback that failed to produce in the NFL after another. The team has taken duds Eric Zeier (1995), to Spergon Wynn (2000), Luke McCown (2004), Charlie Frye (2006), Quinn, Colt McCoy (2010), Brandon Weeden (2012), Manziel, Cody Kessler (2016) and DeShone Kizer (2017) before drafting Baker Mayfield first overall in 2018, and he looks like he could finally break the Browns into the playoff picture. However, the worst of the 30 (count them, THIRTY) quarterbacks Cleveland has used since restarting operations in 1999 after a three-year hiatus when the original team moved to Baltimore, is Couch, who makes many lists for bad draft picks and may just be the worst of all-time. He was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy in 1998 (won by Ricky Williams) and was the first draft pick of the Browns after their re-entry into the NFL. Couch ran the gamut of highs and lows, helping the “new” Browns reach the playoffs for the first time, but also suffering a broken thumb in 2000 and getting booed for poor and inconsistent play. He led Cleveland to a 9-7 record in 2002, but broke his leg in the final game. Kelly Holcomb threw for 429 yards and three touchdowns in a Wild Card loss to the Steelers, and he was named the starter the following season. Couch finished his five-year career with a 22-37 record. After comeback attempts with the Packers and Jaguars, he officially retired in 2007. He currently works as an analyst for FOX Sports South.
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-By: Kevin Rakas
Writer