Browns duo ranked among best playmakers of all time

The Cleveland Browns were once known for dynamic players on offense, but two in particular stand out among the league’s all-time best.

The Cleveland Browns have had some dynamic offensive players throughout the franchise’s 71-year history.

The list includes Hall of Famers Otto Graham at quarterback; running backs Jim Brown, Marion Motley and Leroy Kelly; wide receivers Paul Warfield and Dante Lavelli; and tight end Ozzie Newsome.

Those players hold a special place in league history – Graham as the game’s winningest quarterback, Brown as the league’s greatest running back, Warfield and Newsome for evolving their respective positions.

There are two players who stand above the rest, at least according to Mike Tanier at Bleacher Report, who ranked the 25 best playmakers in NFL history according to their versatility, elusiveness and consistency.

First up is running back Eric Metcalf, the Browns first-round draft choice in 1989 out of Texas. In six seasons in Cleveland, Metcalf had 4,961 yards and 26 touchdowns combined between rushing and receiving, while adding seven touchdowns as a kick returner. He also help to usher in the phrase “Metcalf up the Middle” thanks to the inability of then-head coach Bill Belichick to understand how to best use the versatile Metcalf.

That is a point that Tanier touches on in his article:

"Metcalf was the son of Terry Metcalf, an all-purpose back who starred for Don Coryell’s Cardinals teams in the 1970s who almost made this list himself. The Browns drafted the younger Metcalf 13th overall in 1989 but weren’t sure what to do with the dynamic multipurpose back from Texas. Metcalf excelled as a return man, with a touchdown off a kickoff in the 1989 playoffs (shown) and seven other punt-return touchdowns in five seasons for the Browns. But on offense, Metcalf was just another guy running draw plays."

Despite not being used properly, Metcalf made several highlight plays, two of which stand out vividly.

The first game during his rookie season, when his 90-yard kickoff return for a touchdown helped the Browns to a 34-30 playoff win over the Buffalo Bills. The second came in 1993, when his two punt returns for touchdowns – including a game-winning 75-yard return in the fourth quarter – helped defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The other Browns player on the list, coming in at No. 7, is Hall of Famer Bobby Mitchell, who played for the Browns from 1958 to 1961. During his time in Cleveland, Mitchell had 3,759 combined rushing and receiving yards and 32 combined touchdowns. He also added six touchdowns as a return man.

According to Tanier:

"The Browns lined Mitchell up in the same backfield as Jim Brown in the 1950s and early 1960s. Serving as a motion man and Brown’s “Mr. Outside,” Mitchell averaged 5.4 yards per rush for four seasons and returned three punts and three kickoffs for touchdowns. Mitchell was also a fine receiver for Cleveland. The Redskins, finally getting around to racial integration in 1962, traded for Mitchell and moved him to flanker. Mitchell led the league in receiving yards two straight seasons, averaging 19.2 and 20.8 yards per reception in 1962 and 1963, and then led the NFL with 10 receiving touchdowns in 1964."

Mitchell was traded to the Washington Redskins following the 1961 season in a package for running back Ernie Davis, who would pass away from leukemia before ever playing a down for the Browns. Nine years later the Browns would trade away Warfield, making Art Modell possibly the only owner in NFL history to trade away two Hall of Fame players in their prime.

Next: Browns: 10 best first-round picks of all time

It’s a fun list to go through, and makes you wonder just what kind of damage Metcalf and Mitchell could do to opposing defenses in they were to play in today’s offensive-friendly NFL.