1968 Cleveland Browns season

Last updated

1968 Cleveland Browns season
General manager Harold Sauerbrei
Head coach Blanton Collier
Home field Cleveland Stadium
Local radio WHK
Results
Record10–4
Division place1st NFL Century
Playoff finishWon Eastern Conference Championship Game
(vs. Cowboys) 31–20
Lost NFL Championship
(vs. Colts) 0–34
Pro Bowlers Walter Johnson, DT
Ernie Kellermann, S
Dick Schafrath, LT
Milt Morin, TE
Erich Barnes, CB
Paul Warfield, E
Leroy Kelly, RB
Gene Hickerson, G

The 1968 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 19th season with the National Football League. The Browns made it to the playoffs for the 2nd straight year thanks to an 8-game winning streak. Quarterback Bill Nelsen replaced Frank Ryan as the starting quarterback prior to week 4 of their season.

Contents

Veteran wide receiver Paul Warfield had the best season of his entire career catching 50 passes for 1,067 yards and scoring 12 touchdowns.

Season summary

The Browns had enjoyed some recent success, qualifying for the 1965 season NFL Championship Game, in which they lost to the Green Bay Packers 23–12. They finished 9–5 in 1966 and '67, making the playoffs in 1967. The Dallas Cowboys blew them out 52–14 in the Eastern Conference Championship Game. The Browns retooled their roster entered the 1968 season and sought to reestablish themselves as series title contenders. After a slow start in which they lost two of their first three games and three of their first five, the re-tooled Browns won eight in a row before falling 27–16 to the St. Louis Cardinals in a meaningless game in the regular-season finale. The result was a 10–4 mark, the Century Division crown (by the slimmest of margins over the 9–4–1 Cardinals) and a spot in the conference title game again opposite those same Cowboys.

Only this time, the Browns advanced, beating Dallas 31–20 to get to the league title game against the Baltimore Colts. The Colts were returning to Cleveland Stadium, where they were had been stunned by the Browns 27–0 in the championship contest four years before. The Colts got revenge with a shutout victory of their own, 34–0, and advanced to Super Bowl III.

The key to the Browns' turnaround in 1968 was the insertion of Bill Nelsen at quarterback early in the season. Nelsen had been acquired in an offseason trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He replaced Frank Ryan, who had been the team's starting quarterback since 1963 and lead the team on its playoff run in 1964. By 1968, though, Ryan was struggling with shoulder problems. Nelsen made an impact right away, helping to beat the Colts 30–20 to hand Baltimore its only loss in a 13–1 season.

Offseason

NFL draft

The following were selected in the 1968 NFL/AFL draft.

1968 Cleveland Browns Draft
RoundSelectionPlayerPositionCollegeNotes
121 Marvin Upshaw Defensive end Trinity
247 John Garlington Linebacker LSU
364 Harry Olszewski Guard Clemson
366 Reece Morrison Running back Texas State
4104 Wayne Meylan Linebacker Nebraska
5131Mike WempeTackle Missouri
5134Jackie JacksonRunning back Clemson
6152 Nate James Defensive back Florida A&M
7186Dale BradyRunning back Memphis
8212 Tom Schoen Defensive back Notre Dame
9238David PorterDefensive tackle Michigan
10255James GreerDefensive end Stephen F. Austin
10267 Alvin Mitchell Defensive back Morgan State
11293Jim AlcornQuarterback Clarion
12319 Tom Beutler Linebacker Toledo
13348Terry SellersDefensive back Georgia
14374Edgar WhippsRunning back Jackson State
15400Bob BaxterFlanker Memphis
16429Dick SievertDefensive end Wisconsin-River Falls
17455Wayne McDuffieCenter Florida State

[1]

Personnel

Roster

1968 Cleveland Browns roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

rookies in italics

[2]

Staff/Coaches

1968 Cleveland Browns staff
Front office

Coaching staff

Offensive coaches

 Defensive coaches

Strength & Coditioning

  • Athletic Trainer - Leo Murphy
  • Equipment Manager - Morris Kono

[3]

Exhibition schedule

WeekDateOpponentResultAttendance
1August 9at Los Angeles Rams L 21–2364,020
2August 18at San Francisco 49ers W 31–1726,801
3August 24at New Orleans Saints L 27–4070,045
4August 30at Buffalo Bills W 22–1245,448
5September 7 Green Bay Packers L 9–3184,918

There was a doubleheader on September 7, 1968 Lions vs Jets (AFL) and Packers vs Browns.

Regular season schedule

WeekDateOpponentResultRecordAttendance
1September 15at New Orleans Saints W 24–101–074,215
2September 22at Dallas Cowboys L 7–281–168,733
3September 29 Los Angeles Rams L 6–241–282,514
4October 5 Pittsburgh Steelers W 31–242–281,865
5October 13 St. Louis Cardinals L 21–272–379,349
6October 20at Baltimore Colts W 30–203–360,238
7October 27 Atlanta Falcons W 30–74–367,723
8November 3at San Francisco 49ers W 33–215–331,359
9November 10 New Orleans Saints W 35–176–371,025
10November 17at Pittsburgh Steelers W 45–247–341,572
11November 24 Philadelphia Eagles W 47–138–362,338
12December 1 New York Giants W 45–109–383,193
13December 8at Washington Redskins W 24–2110–350,661
14December 14at St. Louis Cardinals L 16–2710–439,746

Game summaries

Week 7: vs. Atlanta

Week 7: Atlanta Falcons at Cleveland Browns – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Falcons00077
Browns7133730

at Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

  • Date: October 27
  • Game time: 1:30 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 45 °F (7 °C), relative humidity 63%, round (wind) 17 mph
  • Game attendance: 67,723
  • TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber (play–by–play), Eddie LeBaron (color commentator) and John Fitzgerald (sideline reporter)
Game information

Playoffs

RoundDateOpponentResultRecordVenueAttendanceRecap
Eastern ConferenceDecember 21 Dallas Cowboys W 31–201–0 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 81,497 Recap
NFL Championship December 29 Baltimore Colts L 0–341–1Cleveland Municipal Stadium80,628 Recap

Standings

NFL Century
WLTPCTDIVCONFPFPASTK
Cleveland Browns 1040.7144–27–3394273L1
St. Louis Cardinals 941.6925–0–18–1–1325289W4
New Orleans Saints 491.3082–43–7246327W1
Pittsburgh Steelers 2111.1540–5–11–8–1244397L5
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Awards and honors

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Playoff Bowl</span> Defunct NFL sports playoff game

The Playoff Bowl was a post-season game for third place in the National Football League (NFL), played ten times following the 1960 through 1969 seasons, all at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida. It was originally known as the Runner-Up Bowl.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1971–72 NFL playoffs</span> American football tournament

The National Football League playoffs for the 1971 season began on December 25, 1971. The postseason tournament concluded with the Dallas Cowboys defeating the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VI, 24–3, on January 16, 1972, at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The NFL playoffs following the 1968 NFL season determined who would represent the league in Super Bowl III.

The 1965 NFL playoffs determined the champion of the National Football League in professional American football for its 1965 season. Although a single championship game between conference winners was the current format for the league, a tie in the Western Conference standings between the Green Bay Packers and Baltimore Colts necessitated a rare tiebreaker playoff, the first in the league in seven years and the first in the Western Conference since 1957. A coin flip decided the home team. The teams had played twice during the regular season and Green Bay had won both: 20–17 in Milwaukee on September 26, and 42–27 in Baltimore on December 12.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1966 NFL season</span> 1966 National Football League season

The 1966 NFL season was the 47th regular season of the National Football League, and the first season in which the Super Bowl was played, though it was called the AFL-NFL World Championship Game. The league expanded to 15 teams with the addition of the Atlanta Falcons, making a bye necessary one week for each team.

The 1965 NFL season was the 46th regular season of the National Football League. The Green Bay Packers won the NFL title after defeating the Cleveland Browns in the NFL Championship Game, the last before the Super Bowl era.

The 1960 NFL season was the 41st regular season of the National Football League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Nelsen</span> American football player (1941–2019)

William Keith Nelsen was an American professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans before playing professionally for both the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns. He was known for his leadership and willingness to play with pain, enduring a series of knee injuries during the course of his career. He later served as an assistant coach with four NFL teams.

The 1968 NFL Championship Game was the 36th annual championship game. The winner of the game represented the National Football League (NFL) in the third AFL–NFL World Championship Game. The NFL title game was held December 29 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio.

The 1970 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 21st season with the National Football League and their 25th year in pro football overall. The Browns attempted to improve on its 10-3-1 record from 1969. The team would fail to do so, and they finished with an even 7-7 record and missed the postseason. This was the first season that the Browns would play the Cincinnati Bengals, their new arch-rival in the AFC Central. The two teams split their two meetings in the first season series.

The 1972 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 23rd season with the National Football League. The Browns finished at 10–4 which qualified the team for the NFL Playoffs as a Wild Card. In the Divisional Playoffs they played the undefeated Miami Dolphins and held a one-point lead in the 4th quarter. But a late Dolphins touchdown put them up for good, and the Browns lost 20–14.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1980 Cleveland Browns season</span> 35th season in franchise history, nicknamed the "Kardiac Kids"

The 1980 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 35th overall, and 31st season in the National Football League. The Browns finished the regular season with eleven wins and five losses, and their first division title since 1971, winning a tiebreaker with the Houston Oilers. The 1980 Browns were known as the Kardiac Kids for having several games decided in the final moments. The 1980 season was the first time that Cleveland had qualified for the postseason since 1972. Also, for the second straight year, Browns head coach Sam Rutigliano was named NFL Coach of the Year, and quarterback Brian Sipe was named the league's Most Valuable Player.

The 1964 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 19th season, and 15th season with the National Football League. The Browns won the NFL Championship, despite having not made the playoffs in six seasons.

The 1966 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 17th season with the National Football League. They finished just 9–5, their worst record since 1962, and failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 1963.

The 1967 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 18th season with the National Football League. The Browns were back in the playoffs after a one-year absence. They finished 9–5, the same as in 1966, but this time, it was good enough for them to get in as they won the Century Division championship in the first year of play after the NFL split the Eastern and Western conferences into two divisions each. The division race was not close, as the Browns finished two games ahead of the runner-up New York Giants (7–7), their old arch rival in the 1950s and early 1960s.

The 1969 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 20th season with the National Football League and their 24th overall in professional football and the last before the 1970 AFL-NFL Merger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1970 Dallas Cowboys season</span> NFL team season

The 1970 Dallas Cowboys season was the team's 11th in the National Football League (NFL).

The 1960 Philadelphia Eagles season was the franchise's 28th season in the National Football League, and finished with the Eagles' win over the Green Bay Packers in the NFL championship game to get their third league title. The victory over the Packers was also the first and only playoff defeat of the Packers' Vince Lombardi's coaching career. The 1960 season was the Eagles' first postseason appearance since their last NFL championship season of 1949. It was their only postseason appearance in the 28 seasons from 1950 to 1977, and their last NFL title until their victory in Super Bowl LII, 57 years later.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baltimore Colts</span> Professional American football team in Baltimore, Maryland, from 1953 to 1983

The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1983, when owner Robert Irsay moved the franchise to Indianapolis. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breeding and racing. It was the second incarnation of the Baltimore Colts, the first having played for three years in the All-America Football Conference and one in the National Football League (NFL). This Baltimore Colts played their home games at Memorial Stadium.

References

  1. ↑ "1968 NFL Draft". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  2. ↑ "1968 Cleveland Browns Starters, Roster, & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com .
  3. ↑ "1968 Cleveland Browns (NFL) - Pro Football Archives".
  4. ↑ "Maxwell Football Club - Bert Bell Award Past Recipients". Archived from the original on June 19, 2009. Retrieved June 28, 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.