| 1955 Cleveland Browns season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Paul Brown |
| Home stadium | Cleveland Stadium |
| Radio partner | WTAM |
| Results | |
| Record | 9–2–1 |
| Division place | 1st Eastern |
| Playoffs | Won NFL Championship (at Rams) 38–14 |
| Pro Bowlers | Walt Michaels, LB Carlton Massey, DB Pete Brewster, LE Ken Konz, S Fred Morrison, RH Don Colo, DT Abe Gibron, G |
| All-Pros | Don Colo Len Ford Frank Gatski Abe Gibron Otto Graham Lou Groza Mike McCormack Don Paul. |
The 1955 Cleveland Browns season was the team's sixth season with the National Football League. The Browns' defense became the first defense in the history of the NFL to lead the league in fewest points allowed and fewest total yards allowed for two consecutive seasons. [1]
Quarterback Otto Graham was spurred on to come out of retirement and play one more year. The defending NFL champion Browns were 9–2–1 in the regular season and won the Eastern Conference while Graham won his fifth overall Most Valuable Player Award (two AAFC, three NFL). They played in the NFL Championship Game for the sixth consecutive year, and repeated as champion with a 38–14 win over the Rams in Los Angeles. Having played in the league championship game every year he played (ten), Graham retired for good after the game ended. [2] [3]
The 1955 season began in rough fashion for the Browns, with the defending world champions losing 27–17 at home in the opener to the Washington Redskins, [4] who had their best season in a decade by finishing second in the Eastern Conference at 8–4. But once hall of fame quarterback Otto Graham got back on track, so did the Browns. With Graham, who had been lured out of retirement when the team experienced problems at that position in training camp, leading the way, the Browns then went on to win six in a row and nine of their last 11 to finish 9–2–1 and capture their sixth consecutive conference title. The Browns then blasted the host Los Angeles Rams 38–14 in the league title game, [2] [3] after which Graham retired again – this time for good, ending the club's remarkable first decade of existence in which it played in the league championship contest all 10 times and won seven crowns.
The Browns really caught fire offensively in the last five games. Including the title contest, they averaged 37.8 points per outing during that span, in which they won four times and played to a 35–35 tie with the New York Giants. Also, earlier in the year, they won the important road rematch with the Redskins, 24–14.
On the season, Graham threw for 15 touchdowns with just eight interceptions for a 94.0 quarterback rating, the second-best mark of his six-year NFL career. The Browns had three receivers with 29 or more catches, combining for 18 TDs. Pete Brewster was tops in receptions with 34, with Ray Renfro leading the way in scores with eight. Also, the Browns had something they hadn't had since their first year in the NFL—that is, a big-yardage running back. Fred "Curly" Morrison rushed for 824 yards, the most by a Brown since the team joined the league in 1950, when hall of famer Marion Motley had 810 yards. [5]
| 1955 Cleveland Browns roster | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends | Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
| Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
| Reserve lists
rookies in italics | |||
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 12 | vs. College All-Stars at Chicago | L 27–30 | 75,000 |
| 2 | August 20 | vs. Green Bay Packers at Akron | W 13–7 | 22,000 |
| 3 | August 28 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 14–17 | 41,604 |
| 4 | September 2 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 21–38 | 35,948 |
| 5 | September 10 | Detroit Lions | L 3–19 | 29,581 |
| 6 | September 15 | at Chicago Bears | L 21–24 | 43,067 |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 25 | Washington Redskins | L 17–27 | 0–1 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 30,041 | Recap |
| 2 | October 2 | at San Francisco 49ers | W 38–3 | 1–1 | Kezar Stadium | 46,150 | Recap |
| 3 | October 9 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 21–17 | 2–1 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 43,974 | Recap |
| 4 | October 16 | at Washington Redskins | W 24–14 | 3–1 | Griffith Stadium | 29,168 | Recap |
| 5 | October 23 | Green Bay Packers | W 41–10 | 4–1 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 51,482 | Recap |
| 6 | October 30 | at Chicago Cardinals | W 26–20 | 5–1 | Comiskey Park | 29,471 | Recap |
| 7 | November 6 | New York Giants | W 24–14 | 6–1 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 46,524 | Recap |
| 8 | November 13 | at Philadelphia Eagles | L 17–33 | 6–2 | Connie Mack Stadium | 39,303 | Recap |
| 9 | November 20 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 41–14 | 7–2 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 53,509 | Recap |
| 10 | November 27 | at New York Giants | T 35–35 | 7–2–1 | Polo Grounds | 45,699 | Recap |
| 11 | December 4 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | W 30–7 | 8–2–1 | Forbes Field | 31,101 | Recap |
| 12 | December 11 | Chicago Cardinals | W 35–24 | 9–2–1 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 25,914 | Recap |
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
| NFL Eastern Conference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK | ||
| Cleveland Browns | 9 | 2 | 1 | .818 | 7–2–1 | 349 | 218 | W2 | |
| Washington Redskins | 8 | 4 | 0 | .667 | 6–4 | 246 | 222 | W1 | |
| New York Giants | 6 | 5 | 1 | .545 | 4–5–1 | 267 | 223 | W2 | |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 4 | 7 | 1 | .364 | 4–5–1 | 248 | 231 | L1 | |
| Chicago Cardinals | 4 | 7 | 1 | .364 | 3–6–1 | 224 | 252 | L2 | |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 4 | 8 | 0 | .333 | 4–6 | 195 | 285 | L7 | |
| Round | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Championship | December 26 | at Los Angeles Rams | W 38–14 | 1–0 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 87,695 | Recap |