The Browns think they may have landed something of a ringer by drafting Beau Bell in the fourth round. Time will tell, but today is as good a time as any to reflect briefly on another linebacker that the Browns acquired to play inside on their 3-4 defense.
A mere 26 years ago, Tom Cousineau came home. The St. Ed’s stud and Ohio State All-American signed the biggest contract in Browns history at the time, $3.5 million over five years. Today, he turns 51.
He didn’t come cheap, and not just monetarily either. If you think the Browns overpaid for Brady Quinn, Corey Williams, and Shaun Rogers (I don’t, but again, time will tell), check out what the Browns sent to Buffalo in trade: their first-round pick in ’83 (used on Hall of Famer Jim Kelly), their third in ’84 and their fifth in ’85.
Cousineau was the draft’s first overall pick in 1979, but he signed with the CFL’s Montreal Alouettes after feeling slighted by the Bills.
Three years later, amid much hubbub, including a still-very-readable cover story in Sports Illustrated, the curly-haired 25-year-old began his NFL career with high expectations and some talented teammates. The linebacking corps included Clay Matthews, Chip Banks, Dick Ambrose, and Eddie Johnson.
Browns owner Art Modell’s quote is interesting in retrospect:
“I know that if Cousineau performs, nobody will care what I signed him for. If he doesn’t, it’ll be Modell’s biggest boner ever.”
He played four seasons in Cleveland, at times quite well. Number 50 made his fair share of tackles (including the pictured gang tackle of Kellen Winslow), but never a Pro Bowl. He finished his career with two seasons as a backup in San Francisco, then resettled in northeast Ohio, where he still lives.
He wasn’t a bust, but neither was he the breakthrough player that my teenaged enthusiasm envisioned. Still, no other former Buckeye (with the possible exception of Pepper Johnson) has had a better Browns career since Cous came home.
