During the month of June, the Last Word On Sports NFL department will construct a Mount Rushmore for each team. For this series, we will only consider players. For this article, the Cleveland Browns are the focus.
Cleveland Browns Mount Rushmore
Otto Graham
One word should come to mind when you think of Otto Graham: winner. Graham was the first player that head coach Paul Brown signed when he began organizing the Browns to play in the new All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Otto was a tailback at Northwestern, but Brown truly believed he was the perfect fit to play quarterback for the Browns and he was right on the money. Cleveland won four straight AAFC titles and went 52-4-3 with Graham under center. The Browns winning ways didn’t change when they faced NFL competition, as they defeated the Los Angeles Rams in the 1950 NFL championship. With Graham at the helm, the Browns went 105-17-4 and played in 10 straight title games, winning four AAFC and three NFL championships.
Jim Brown
Jim Brown is one of the best football players–not just running backs–of all-time. He still holds various franchise records, including career rushing yards (12,312), single-season rushing yards (1,863) and career rushing touchdowns (106). Brown finished his career averaging an incredible 5.2 yards per carry, and had he not decided to retire at the age of 29, he would have undoubtedly further improved upon all of those numbers. Brown was named to the Pro Bowl in each of his nine seasons. He also received MVP honors three times and never missed a game. In 1971, Brown was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Ozzie Newsome
Ozzie Newsome is one of the best tight ends to ever play in the NFL. The Browns drafted him in the first round (23rd overall) of the 1978 NFL Draft, and he played his entire 13-year career in Cleveland. Newsome’s 662 receptions and 7,980 receiving yards are both still franchise records. He also amassed 47 receiving touchdowns, and his 89 receptions in a single season (1983 and 1984) is still a franchise record (tied with tight end Kellen Winslow, Jr.). After being a finalist in 1997 and 1998, Newsome was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999.
Paul Brown
Most fans think of the legendary Paul Brown as a coach instead of a player, and rightfully so. He was an innovator as a coach and was largely responsible for the desegregation of football because he was not afraid to sign African American players. He just wanted the best players, regardless of the color of their skin. While he was at the helm, the Browns went 167-53-8, winning four AAFC titles and three NFL championships. When the Browns joined the NFL in 1950, most fans thought they would fail to continue winning, but they were wrong. The Browns played in the next six championship games, winning it all in 1950, 1954 and 1955. Before his historic coaching career, Brown played quarterback at Miami University in Ohio. This list is really supposed to be for players only, and Brown is really known as a coach, but the team is named after him. He has to be on this list.
