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In this series, I will be looking at the history of coaches, quarterbacks, rushers, and receivers for all 32 franchises. For coaches and quarterbacks, I will be looking at how much their franchise’s career records (regular season only) would change if we removed the games with that person. For rushers and receivers, I will note how many times that player was the team’s leading rusher/receiver over the course of their time with that franchise (regular plus postseason).

Previous Teams:

AFC East: Dolphins, Bills, Jets, and Patriots
NFC East: Cowboys, Eagles,Giants, and Redskins
AFC North: Steelers
NFC North: Packers

When it comes to the Browns, it starts with the man for whom the team is named: Paul Brown. Cleveland has an all-time record of 452-360-4, but nearly all of their notable success is tied to Brown. Under his watch, the Browns went 257-133-2 in 17 years (including their time in the AAFC). The team’s winning percentage under all other head coaches is just 0.446, but once you include Brown, that mark jumps up 6.5 percentage points to 0.511. On the flip side of things, you have Hue Jackson, who was responsible for just 0.6% of all wins in Cleveland history and 7.3% of the team’s losses.

Next, let’s look at quarterback records for the team since 1950. Unsurprisingly, Otto Graham is the standout here. Since joining the NFL in 1950, Cleveland has won 49% of their games, but that number drops to 46% without Graham under center (this excludes Graham’s performance prior to 1950, which was even more dominant). On the flip side, Tim Couch and DeShone Kizer were both 15 games under .500 as starters in Cleveland, with Kizer posting an 0-15 record. Baker Mayfield went 6-7 in his first season as a starter, and he has some work to do if he wants to bring the Browns all-time NFL record above .500.

When it comes to running backs, Cleveland has a rich history. Marion Motley was the best running back of his era, and then Jim Brown became the best running back of all time. Brown’s replacement, Leroy Kelly, made the Hall of Fame. As for the new Browns, Jamal Lewis has led the team in rushing most often since 1999.

When it comes to receiving, Cleveland has had a less impressive history, particularly during the Super Bowl era. Tight end Ozzie Newsome leads the team in number of games as a Browns leading receiver, while Braylon Edwards leads the ‘new’ Browns in this category. We’ll see how high Odell Beckham can get on this list.

Also, because I find Josh Gordon to be incredibly interesting, one last note. From October 2012 through the end of the 2017 season, Gordon suited up for the Browns in 36 games. He led the team in receiving yards 24 times, a 2-out-of-3 game pace that speaks to his talent. Only three players have done that over the course of their entire tenure with a team, minimum 20 games: Laveranues Coles in Washington (23 out of 32, 72%), Terrell Owens in Philadelphia (15 out of 22, 68%), Brandon Marshall in Miami (20 out of 30).

That’s it for the Cleveland version of this series. Please leave your thoughts in the comments.

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