20 most disappointing Cleveland Browns quarterbacks of all-time
By Randy Gurzi
Most disappointing Cleveland Browns quarterbacks: 18. Trent Dilfer (2005)
The sixth overall pick in 1994 out of Fresno State, Trent Dilfer was supposed to be the quarterback who turned things around for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Instead, he ended up being a middle-of-the-pack starter for them who didn’t have a winning season until 1997 when he led Tampa to a 10-6 record.
After leaving the Bucs, Dilfer would find his first true success in the NFL as he went 8-1 as the quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens. He was never the reason they were winning but he was still a solid game-manager and even won the Super Bowl that year.
However, Baltimore moved on following that campaign and Dilfer then spent the next four seasons in Seattle. He served as a backup to Matt Hasselbeck and proved to be one of the better No. 2 quarterbacks in the game. He would end up playing in 22 games with 12 starts during that span and was 8-4 for the ‘Hawks.
His work in Seattle caused the Browns to trade for him in 2005 where he was supposed to mentor Charlie Frye. Part of that meant Dilfer would start as Frye learned the ropes but Dilfer was less than thrilled with his time in Cleveland.
There were reports that he didn’t get along with Maurice Carthon, the offensive coordinator at the time, and wanted out after just one season. Dilfer started 11 games for the Browns and was 4-7 with more interception (12) than touchdowns (11). Cleveland traded him when the season ended and his tenure was one of the many failed attempts to find a quarterback.