Cleveland Browns: 15 best running backs of all-time

Not long after landing Greg Pruitt, the Browns added Mike Pruitt to their roster. The two had no relation to one another, but they played well together with Mike serving as a fullback the first few seasons of his career.

In 1979, he got his chance to star though, as Greg Pruitt suffered a knee injury which limited him to six games. Mike Pruitt had come off his best season as a pro with 560 yards and five touchdowns in 1978 and ended up putting up a career-best 1,294 yards in relief of his fellow Pruitt. Greg Pruitt never retained his role as the lead back, as Mike Pruitt ran for more than 1,000 yards in three straight seasons for the Browns.

In 1982, he wasn’t the same player as the well-documented NFL strike led him to play just nine games and he averaged only 3.6 yards per rush that year. He bounced right back in 1983 with 1,184 yards and 10 touchdowns. Pruitt played just one more season in Cleveland before finishing his career with the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs.

The fullback finds himself as the No. 3 all-time rusher in Browns’ history with 6,540 yards gained on the ground. He’s also third in touchdowns, as he crossed the goal line 47 times in his nine seasons with Cleveland.

Pruitt was never a big dual threat, but he brought enough to the table as a pass catcher to keep defenses honest. As a Brown, he had 255 receptions for 1,761 yards and another five touchdowns in that span.