Best of the new Browns: Quarterbacks
Expansion bests: Sixteen seasons since the Browns returned as an expansion franchise after a three-year exile, we have seen one playoff team and two winning seasons – 10-6 in 2007 and 9-8 (counting a playoff loss) in 2002.
The next-best record has been 7-9 (twice). Twelve of the 16 seasons have resulted in 10 or more losses.
But this isn’t to belabor the doldrums of the Browns since 1999. This is to celebrate their best players.
We set out to rank the best Browns by position group.
Quarterback
Failure to find a consistent and productive quarterback – and develop him -- is the bane of the Browns expansion franchise, of course. Twenty-two quarterbacks have started a game for them since 1999. Twenty of them have losing records. One is at .500. Only one went through the Cleveland quarterback-eating machine with a winning record. That merits No. 1 on this list.
5. Jake Delhomme, 2010: A high ankle sprain in his first game limited his only season with the Browns to four starts, of which he won two, qualifying as the second-best win percentage among 22 starting quarterbacks since 1999. He spent most of his season driving his successor to work and trying to coach up young Colt McCoy. Thanks to the generosity of President Mike Holmgren, Delhomme hauled in about $8 million for his four game appearances. That was in addition to a $12.8 million guranteed payout that year from the Carolina Panthers, his former team. Cha-ching!
4. Kelly Holcomb, 2001-04: In the Browns’ only playoff appearance, he threw for 429 yards and three touchdowns in a losing effort in the snow against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The shockingly good outing earned him the starting job in 2003, whereupon Holcomb fell into line, got hurt, and lost six of his eight starts.
3. Derek Anderson, 2006-09: Tall and big-armed, he delivered a storybook season in 2007, winning 10 of 15 games and earning a Pro Bowl berth as an alternate. The out-of-the-blue performance earned contract extensions for himself, GM Phil Savage, coach Romeo Crennel and coordinator Rob Chudzinski. When the clock struck midnight, Anderson lost 10 of his last 16 games, was jeered after an injury, and ultimately left with one of the nastiest exit interviews – “They don’t deserve a winner!” he wrote of Browns fans in an email. His 16 career wins (v. 18 losses) are the second-most among expansion-era QBs.
2. Tim Couch, 1999-2003: The first overall pick of the new Browns, he suffered a poor supporting cast and repeated injuries while winning 22 games (v. 37 losses) in five years. Two of the victories were on final-play Hail Mary passes, making him the unofficial NFL career leader in this category. Arizona coach Bruce Arians, Couch’s position coach who also coached Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger and Andrew Luck, has said that Couch was “one of the toughest, best players” he’s ever coached.
1. Brian Hoyer, 2013-14: His 20 months with his hometown team was a ridiculous roller coaster ride that saw him: 1. rise from No. 3 to win his first two starts, 2. tear an ACL in his third start, 3. rehab the injury and stave off Johnny Manziel to win six of his first nine games to put the Browns in a first-place tie while the GM reportedly texted coaches during games to yank him, 4. lose three of his last four games and, 5. fail to receive a contract offer from the team – or a face-to-face interview with the GM. Ultimately, Hoyer’s 10-6 record as a starter – 9-6 if you eliminate the game in which he suffered the knee injury – is the best of the new Browns’ quarterbacks.
Honorable mention: None.
On a lighter note: Jeff Garcia’s one season of 2004 was perhaps the most eventful year of any of the 22 quarterbacks. He is the only quarterback to post a win in a season-opener. He completed a never-to-be-surpassed 99-yard pass play for a touchdown. And he registered a 0.00 passer rating in a game against the Dallas Cowboys before departing with three years left on his free agent contract.
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