Cleveland Browns Otto Graham ranked No. 5 quarterback all-time

In a recent NFL.com ranking for the top-25 quarterbacks to ever play the game, former Cleveland Browns signal caller Otto Graham came in at No. 5 overall

Before landing Baker Mayfield with the first overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, the Cleveland Browns were looking like a cursed team under center. They had gone through 29 quarterbacks since returning to the league in 1999, and it felt as though that revolving door would never stop spinning.

During that stretch, it may have been hard to believe but there was a time where that wasn’t the case. The Browns started out in the NFL as perennial winners and one of the biggest reasons for that was their star quarterback Otto Graham.

A seven-time champion, Graham won four-straight AAFC title before Cleveland moved to the NFL where he ended up winning three more championships. Not only does that make him one of the best to ever wear the orange and brown, but according to Elliot Harrison, Graham is one of the five best quarterbacks to ever play the game.

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Harrison recently ranked the best 25 best at the position and had Graham coming in as fifth overall — citing not only his championship runs but also the fact that he was an amazing passer during an era where the ground game was king.

"“The stat/number/fact that you hear the most about Graham is concise and carries import: 10 seasons, 10 championship game appearances. The first four came in the All-America Football Conference, a rival league that contributed three franchises to the NFL: the Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Colts (who later folded, then reformed.) Graham’s Browns dominated the AAFC, winning the title all four years. During those seasons, Graham not only engineered plenty of wins, but he also generated impressive stats in a prehistoric era for the passing game, including a 2:1 TD-to-INT ratio and a 99.1 passer rating.” — Harrison, NFL.com"

Graham is second all-time in Cleveland history with 23,584 yards passing — just behind Brian Sipe who finished with 23,713 yards. Even though he had fewer yards, Graham is No. 1 in touchdown passes with 174.

He accomplished that despite having nearly 800 fewer attempts in his career than Sipe. Graham even finished with a positive touchdown-to-interception ratio as he had 135 picks in his career, something which was uncommon at the time.

In 1965, Graham was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame for his play on the field.