Tough trivia #54

Which Brown once ran fake punts for first downs twice in the same game? Answer to #53: Milt Plum threw 208 passes without an interception in the early ’60s, a record since eclipsed by Bart Starr and currently held by Kosar with exactly 100 more.

Tough trivia #53

Before Bernie Kosar, which Brown once held the NFL record for most consecutive passes without an interception? Answer to #52: Oklahoma’s Kurt Burris was the Browns’ first-round pick in 1955 but never signed a contract due to impending induction into the Navy. He later played in the Canadian Football League.

Swept up

Ugh. What a letdown. Up two TDs in the second half. Couldn’t finish. Offense off-kilter. Defense beaten. Swept by a dreaded division demon. Against a tough rookie, Joe Flacco, the Browns brought pressure early, stuffing many a run, but they couldn’t reach the QB enough. They didn’t force any substantial mistakes. The offense stuffed it […]

The 3-4 Browns

The beleaguered and wildly inconsistent Browns have now won three of their last four games, putting them in the thick of the playoff hunt. It came right down to the last play, but in defeating Jacksonville, 23-17, they just knocked off a solid playoff team on the road. Somehow, after a week of internal strife […]

Tough trivia #52

What Heisman Trophy runner-up was drafted by the Browns but never signed? Answer to #51: Frank Minnifield twice picked off the Oilers’ Oliver Luck, a former Cleveland St. Ignatius star playing for the benched Warren Moon, in the overtime period of a 13-10 Browns win in 1986.

Tough trivia #51

Which Brown once intercepted two passes in an overtime period? Answer to #50: Bernie Parrish of the Browns and Lemar Parrish of the Bengals were both Pro Bowl defensive backs coached by Paul Brown.

Tough trivia #50

What last name was shared by two Pro Bowl defensive backs who played for Paul Brown? Answer to #49: The Kardiac Kids season of 1980 is the only time that a single player threw all of the Browns’ completed passes. Brian Sipe was the league’s MVP that year.

The booted booting call

Before we delve into the fuller dimensions of today’s costly loss to Washington, I again need to take Romeo to task for his game management. Let’s look at just one decision: trying for a game-tying 54-yard field goal on 4th-and-10 with 32 seconds to go. What choice did he have? Go for it, obviously. The […]

Giant killers

Must be a full moon. But, hey, those come every month. When’s the last time the Browns upset the Super Bowl champs by 21 points? Hell, when’s the last time they beat anyone by three TDs? The answer: November 20, 2005 — Browns 22, Miami 0. Only four Browns starters that day remain on the […]

Tough trivia #49

In which season were all of the Browns’ completed passes thrown by the same player? Answer to #48: Kellen Winslow, taking a desperation pitch from Derek Anderson, tried to throw but was sacked by the Ravens’ Bart Scott in 2006, Winslow’s only appearance on the stat sheet as a passer.