Cleveland Browns: Top 30 moments of all-time
By Thomas Moore
There was a time when the month of December was a great time to be a Browns fan. The Browns were founded in 1946 as part of the All-America Football Conference, and won the first and only four championship’s in the league’s history.
The Browns joined the NFL in 1950 and did not slow down the dominant play.
The Browns finished the season with a record of 10-2, and beat the New York Giants by the riveting score of 8-3 to advance to the championship game where they faced the Los Angeles Rams.
Otto Graham led the way at quarterback, with Marion Motley in the backfield and Dante Lavelli out at wide receiver. This legendary lineup would wreak havoc over the NFL from 1950-1955, winning six out of six conference championships and three league championships.
The game took place in Cleveland back when a neutral site was not feasible, thus giving the Browns the advantage of playing in front of the home fans.
The Rams opened the game with an 82-yard touchdown pass, which is a very Browns way to start a game.
The Browns went into halftime down 14-13, and found themselves down 28-20 heading into the fourth quarter. An Otto Graham touchdown and Lou Groza field goal put the Browns up 30-28 with 28 seconds left in the game. A Warren Lahr interception sealed the victory for the Browns, securing an NFL championship in front of the home crowd in the team’s first season in the NFL.
So if you ever get stressed out about the current team, take pride in knowing that the franchise was a dominant force from the start. Things have just slowed down a bit. – SK
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