Your Cleveland Browns have found several starters among undrafted free agents (UDFAs), and have even sent a few to the Pro Bowl and Josh Cribbs made All-Pro.
Undrafted free agents are extremely important as a source of players for all NFL teams, including your Cleveland Browns, who have had their share of stars over the years.
Looking at the roster from the standpoint of an amateur general manager, value is defined as production divided by the cost of the player’s services. “Production” is a difficult term to define precisely, but intuitively it’s about how much a player helps the team win football games.
How much is each player helping the team to win versus how much is the team paying him to do it? In the case of UDFAs on their rookie contracts, the paycheck is almost always the NFL minimum or close to it, so if the team can get contributors and pay very little for them, that is the definition of high value.
The Browns have had some good ones. There might be some others that slipped through our net, but at least three UDFAs went to a Pro Bowl; one became an All-Pro; two went to the Super Bowl — and one was on the winning side.
Why is it that UDFAs are usually bigger contributors than the team’s sixth and seventh-round draft picks? It’s not that teams are terrible at drafting (except for your Browns who seemed to have never produced a decent seventh-round draft choice). However, remember that they bring in 10 to 15 UDFAs in summer camp, and even more as injury replacements, so there are many chances to find a good player with UDFAs.
For that reason, there are usually two or three UDFAs on the team every year, but usually only one seventh-round pick and one sixth-round pick.
A team that can find major contributors among UDFAs is going to have a healthy roster and can survive the stretch run in December. Conversely, it’s not possible to sign top-dollar free agents at every position on the field, and teams that have no depth are exposed in the last month of the season.
For the purposes of this article, a UDFA does not have to be a true rookie who was signed by the Browns for his first contract. A UDFA who signed somewhere else, got cut, and then picked up by the Browns is still a UDFA to this author’s thinking.
However, if the player was on an NFL roster for a while and got as a second-year player, then he was not really a UDFA, especially if he signed for more than the league minimum (KhaDarel Hodge or Brian Hoyer were never drafted, but they came to the Browns as established veterans, so that’s why they were not considered). Players are listed who had at least one good year with the Browns, even if their best years came with another team.
Rather than rank each player in terms of ability, which is just too hard, Charley Hughlett is listed first because he is still on the active roster, and because this article also serves as an editorial to encourage the Dawg Pound to vote him into the Pro Bowl.
He’s the best long snapper in the AFC and deserves to be recognized. After Hughlett, the players are listed in reverse chronological order starting with D’Ernest Johnson and concluding with all-time Browns great Phil Dawson of the Class of 1999. In between, there have been some very good players. The Browns can actually scout talent (except for the quarterback position).
One player who should be on the list based on his accomplishments on the field is Isaiah Crowell, but after his obscene gesture on national TV when he returned to the Dawg Pound as a New York Jet, we just could not find the bandwidth on the website to mention him. Tsk, tsk.
The players are listed in order, except that Charley Hughlett is leading off so that everyone who reads this article would at least see the teaser and be made aware that long snappers are now part of the Pro Bowl, and our guy needs to be there.
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 12: Charley Hughlett should be in the Pro Bowl!
What? Charley Hughlett in the Pro Bowl, you ask? How could this be?
We never hear anything about him! That’s exactly why Hughlett deserves to be in the Pro Bowl. You never want to hear anything about the long snapper, because, in order to be famous, he has to hike the ball over the punter’s head. However, Hughlett is absolutely reliable. In preparation for this article, I googled “Charley Hughlett bad snap” and came up empty. Nothing. Nada.
Since 2019 the position of long snapper has been selected for the Pro Bowl, and if anyone in football deserves to go, Charley Hughlett of the Browns absolutely deserves it. The Browns made him the highest-paid long snapper in football back in 2017 with a six-year contract, because the Browns knew what they had. It was a brilliant signing.
Hughlett has been the anonymous Brown since 2015, which is exactly what we want for the long snapper. No surprises, just hike the ball, get clobbered by a rhinoceros wearing a football uniform, for that’s who plays opposite the long snapper on special teams, and then see if you can make yourself useful by hustling down the field. That’s exactly what Hughlett does, and he is among the best in the business.
Hughlett has 18 tackles in 113 career games to his credit, including a forced fumble, which is actually not half bad for a long snapper. That’s an average of 2.5 per season. You could interpret that in one of two ways. One is that Hughlett hustles down the field in punt coverage very well. The other interpretation is that the Browns gunners are not containing the punt returner as well as they should.
Hughlett wasn’t drafted, but he bounced around with different organizations before catching on with the Browns. He was initially signed by the Dallas Cowboys who cut him. He is a three-time New England Patriot, plus he was a Jacksonville Jaguar and a Kansas City Chief.
But he has only worn a Browns uniform on the field in an NFL game. He was in camp with the Browns in 2014 but did not make the 53-player roster on the first try.
He had to get cut six times before making and ultimately becoming the highest-paid at his position in the NFL. Granted, it is the lowest-paid position in the NFL, but he is still vital to the success of the team and he truly fought his way to the top. Nobody gave him anything. He’s a true member of the Dawg Pound. He is one of us, and it is our duty as fans to help get him to the Pro Bowl.
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 11: D’Ernest Johnson, running back, Class of 2019
D’Ernest Johnson is in his fourth year with the Browns, and he may very well be traded because the Browns have plenty of bodies in the backfield, and not so many roster spots. But before we usher him to the door let’s take a little peek at the numbers and realize that DEJ has been amazingly productive in the limited opportunities he has had.
But even before discussing his numbers, in which your humble correspondent dares to compare Jim Brown, Josh Cribbs, Nick Chubb, Bobby Mitchell, and DEJ, let’s not get carried away. Jim Brown is flatly the best football player of all time. The quarterback may impact the game more, so I will not cross swords with fans of Otto Graham and the current King, Tom Brady, but Jim Brown was the greatest player ever in this fan’s opinion.
Brown never missed a game in his entire career, took a pounding like no one else, and blocked like a madman for his teammates. Speaking of which, I never realized until doing research for this article, that Cribbs, Chubb, Mitchell, and Johnson actually had more yards per carry than Brown.
For those not familiar with Mitchell’s career, he was a halfback for Cleveland and was traded to Washington for the right to draft Ernie Davis. Washington used him as a flanker and he made All-Pro at that position and led the NFL in receiving yards. So, no, essentially nobody thinks he was a better running back than Jim Brown, and it is realized that having fullback Brown act as a lead blocker was a sweet gig for a halfback with breakaway speed like Mitchell.
The chart below (stats throughout this article are derived from Pro Football Reference) is truly weird because probably few among us would have guessed that anyone could have had higher career yards per carry than Jim Brown. Now, please, nobody is saying that any of these players is better than Jim Brown, but perhaps we should now ask the question if a player can average the same or better yards per carry that Mr. Brown did over an extended period of time, shouldn’t the team consider playing that individual a little bit?
Perhaps the Browns should think twice before replacing Johnson. A side issue is that perhaps Josh Cribbs could have been given some more touches on offense during his career. More on Cribbs a bit later in this article.
PLAYER CARRIES YARDS YARDS/CARRY
Joshua Cribbs 141 808 5.73
Bobby Mitchell 423 2297 5.43
Nick Chubb 908 4816 5.30
D’Ernest Johnson 137 721 5.26
Jim Brown 2359 12312 5.22
Johnson came to the Browns in 2019 after starring in the short-lived Alliance of American Football. Johnson came from a small school and was too small and too slow (4.81 seconds in the 40-yard dash)to make an impact in the NFL. General manager John Dorsey thought differently and offered him a contract. Working out with Olympian Tim Montgomery at NUMA Speed seems to have helped him to significantly surpass his Pro Day ratings.
This offseason, he was a Restricted Free Agent (meaning that the Browns tended a $2.3 million non-guaranteed contract offer), but even the mighty Rosenhaus Sports Agency could not elicit a better counteroffer from any of the 31 other NFL teams, so Johnson remains a Brown with a $2.3 million non-guaranteed deal.
He hasn’t been given much of an opportunity to play with the Browns. When Nick Chubb was down and Kareem Hunt was physically at maybe 75% versus Arizona last season, the Browns preferred to have Hunt carry the entire load rather than play Johnson, and the result was that Hunt aggravated his injury late in the game.
However, Johnson finally had a breakout game versus Denver the following week, gaining 146 yards on 22 carries (6.64 yards/carry). He wound up with 534 rushing yards and 671 total yards from scrimmage last season.
Maybe it is time to get over the Pro Day results and stop assuming that he has to be ushered out the door. Perhaps the Browns should go ahead and allow him to shoulder his share of the rushing burden, along with Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt?
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 10: Taylor Gabriel, wide receiver, Class of 2014
Is it really possible to find a sub-4.4 wide receiver as a UDFA? Sure! In fact, you can even pick up a sub 4.3 guy once in a while. Taylor Gabriel was supposedly clocked at 4.27 at his Pro Day, although your humble correspondent does not actually believe that time, truth to tell.
Pro Days can be inconsistent in track conditions and timing technology, and may not exactly mirror the Combine results. Hence, 4.27 has to be taken with a grain of salt. On other occasions, he was timed at 4.4 seconds. He was still very fast, but not necessarily Deion Sanders’ class speed.
Gabriel got dinged for being too short (5-7), too small (168 pounds), and the usual bugaboo of coming from a small school (Abilene Christine, where he was a 1,000-yard receiver as a junior in 2013
Hence the Browns were able to sign him as a UDFA in 2014. Pro scouts, like fans, seem to like tall, fast wide receivers; but a short quick guy with sure hands is better than nothing. Once summer camp starts, it often turns out that Pro Day stats are not decisive, anyway. The players actually have to play football, and Gabriel could actually play.
He posted 621 yards as a rookie and 17.3 yards per reception. True you don’t throw him jump balls in the end zone very often, but much of the time, football is just about getting open.
In 2015, Gabriel had concussions and did not post very good numbers. In the following offseason, the Browns had veteran Andrew Hawkins and surprise converted quarterback Terrelle Pryor, and they managed to draft four wide receivers, including first-round pick Corey Coleman plus Ricardo Louis, Rashard Higgins, and Jordan Payton. Hence there was no roster spot for Gabriel and he would end up becoming an Atlanta Falcon.
With the Falcons, Gabriel gained 579 receiving yards despite a late start with the Falcons playbook. As for the Browns’ Fab Four draftees, Coleman was the best for the Browns with 413 yards but only a 45.3% catch percentage.
Taylor made it to the Super Bowl, which you may recall was famous for the Falcons’ collapse, blowing a fourth-quarter lead, with one of the keys being an unnecessary sack of Matt Ryan which took them out of field goal range.
Players like to showboat sometimes, and it might be that offensive coordinators do the same thing, as we have seen a few outrageous in-your-face play calls by Shanahan as well as the ultimate disaster by Darrell Bevell of the Seahawks., although Pete Carroll wanted to accept the blame for it.
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 9: Jamie Meder, defensive tackle, Class of 2014
Jamie Meder doesn’t get nearly as much recognition as he should have. He made the greatest play of the 2016 season that saved the team from a historically poor winless season. Jamie Meder, let it never be forgotten, blocked the kick from Chargers kicker Josh Lambo, preserving a 16-13 Browns victory, which allowed the 2016 Browns to finish 1-15.
His feat did not go unnoticed by the rest of the league. He was selected as the NFL Special Teams Player of the Week, and rightly so.
Jamie Meder, the kid from Ashland University, played in 44 games for the Browns in a four-year career, starting a total of 16 games, and accumulated 95 tackles in that span. He did not make the cut in 2018 and resurfaced briefly with the Detroit Lions for just 13 plays in 2019.
Nowadays, Meder is keeping a low profile. As far as we know, he was sworn in as a Police Officer in Brooklyn Heights in January 2021. He doesn’t post very much on social media, although recently Joe Thomas jerked his chain for some advice on pierogies. In his playing days, Meder was renowned as a world authority on pierogies and was given the unofficial title of the Pierogi Prince of Parma, which is a title that carries immense power.
Meder had the reputation of being a very tough, hard-nosed-run defender. Most of us fans loved the guy for being a true Brown, and it felt like a punch in the gut when he was cut and worse when no other team picked him up.
What took the edge off from Meder’s feat, and really his career, was the fact that the 2017 Browns were more talented than the 2016 team, but nevertheless turned around and dropped 16 in a row in 2017. Worse than that, as an organization, the Browns were not afraid to go 0-16 and didn’t seem to realize what a historical disgrace it was.
They were happy to get good draft position. However, even though they were rebuilding and a losing season was not unexpected, there should be an unwritten rule of football that goes like this:
Unwritten Rule of NFL Football: “Everyone in authority must be fired if the team is winless for the season.”
The finger-pointing exercise between the head coach and general manager trying to blame each other was shameful, like sibling brats trying to blame the other for a disaster.
It doesn’t matter whose fault it is. The coaching staff and front office should equally fear for their jobs if they go winless and thus have no choice but to work together. As the great American philosopher Bill Parcells said, “You are what your record says you are.”
If your team is winless, you are nothing. Don’t even bother to show up for work on Monday if your team fails to post a win. Just pack up and leave.
However, it’s too late and the 2017 Browns failed to build upon what Meder had given them in 2016. That hurts, but it is part of the team’s horrific legacy.
In any case, if you happen to see Officer Meder, don’t forget to thank him. He at least tried to lead the horse to water. Just don’t anybody speed in Brooklyn Heights, because our guy is on the job there, okay?
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 8: Craig Robertson, inside linebacker, Class of 2012
Is this a familiar theme? A linebacker stars for a smaller school like North Texas in the Sun Belt, but does not get drafted because of the uncertainty surrounding the small school plus a less than scorching 40-yard dash time (4.76 seconds in Craig Robertson’s case).
Robertson didn’t attract any attention from NFL scouts and did not get a single invitation to try out during rookie camps around the league. However he kept working out, and eventually, when NFL rosters started to get thin in December, he was signed to the practice squad of the Cleveland Browns.
Funny thing is that some players continue to improve after they leave college. Robertson was one of those players and actually made the team in 2012 as a backup linebacker. He got his chance to play due to injuries (and let’s face it, the Browns were never terribly deep on defense), and the Browns used him as an extra linebacker in coverage situations and in the nickel formation.
He managed to start three games as a rookie, which is not bad for a UDFA. Remarkably, he had 93 tackles that year while playing in only 53% of the defensive snaps. That has to be some kind of record.
In 2013, he was an every-down linebacker but didn’t have the same kind of amazing statistical year with only 85 tackles.
In 2014 he played less, moving from left inside linebacker to the right side, with only 11 starts and 57% of the defensive snaps, but 99 tackles.
By 2015, Christian Kirksey had emerged as the starter at inside linebacker. Robertson still was part of the rotation, but the Browns decided to let him go in free agency. Hence Robertson became a New Orleans Saint.
Of course, the Dawg Pound hates it when a player becomes a star when he plays for another team? Robertson blossomed after leaving Cleveland, sorry to say.
While he was perceived as a situational linebacker by the Browns, the Saints played him as an every-down player, and he responded with 115 tackles, making him 18th in the NFL in 2016. That’s our Browns, stumbling to 1-16 while giving away a guy who became the leading tackler for the New Orleans Saints. We in the Pound really do not want to hear about that, but it is part of his legacy.
In all, he played nine seasons in the NFL between the Browns and Saints.
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 7: Tashaun Gipson, strong safety Class of 2012
Strong safety Tashaun Gipson attended the University of Wyoming, partly to be on the same team as his brother. By now you are getting the idea that smaller schools are often a place where outstanding players, in particular safeties, wide receivers, and an occasional All-Pro quarterback (namely, Josh Allen) hide out.
The stopwatch and measuring tape usually identify the cornerbacks, monster tackles, and defensive ends early on and send them to the Power Five, but the Browns did a great job scouting Gipson and were able to sign him directly out of Wyoming as a UDFA in 2012.
Making a long story short, despite a productive college career, Gipson made the Cleveland team out of training camp as an UDFA and immediately received playing time. He played in 10 games as a rookie and started three, and then became a full-time starter in 2013.
In 2014, he had a monster year, leading the NFL in interception yards that season for coach Mike Pettine, and was selected for the Pro Bowl in 2014. He had a knee injury that kept him out of the actual game, however, injury issues May have limited his effectiveness later on in his career. He has been a very good player over the years, but in 2014 he was monstrously good.
People forget how good that 2014 team was, despite the distraction of having upper management order Pettine to start Johnny Manziel in the last two games of the season, which they lost to finish 7-9. They could have just as easily gone 9-7 with Brian Hoyer as the quarterback, but they “had to get their draft priorities set” by viewing Johnny Manziel screw up in live game action. Oh.
Gipson had another good — but not as great — season in 2015 while Manziel distracted the team into disaster, and that was it for our Pro Bowl strong safety. Does anyone blame him for taking the money and becoming a free agent? Sashi Brown was more interested in accumulating cap dollars and draft picks, anyway.
The Browns were awarded a fourth-round compensatory pick for Gipson and he was rewarded with a five-year deal worth $36 million dollars. It worked out for both sides.
Gipson went on to play with the Jacksonville Jaguars (2016-2018), Houston Texans (2019), and Chicago Bears (2020-2021).
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 6: Jordan Norwood, slot receiver, Class of 2010
Jordan Norwood was recruited as a basketball player as well as football player out of high school, where he made a name for himself because of his jumping ability, which led to a good-but-not-great career at Penn State with Joe Paterno.
As a Nittany Lion,he was Academic All-Big 10, and in his senior year, he hauled in 41 passes for 637 yards and six touchdowns, which is very acceptable, but not enough to cause the scouts to salivate. At the Combine, he was also good-but-not-great, turning in a 4.58 second 40-yard dash time and a 38-inch vertical.
That was not good enough to get drafted, but it was good enough to get him on the 90-man roster of the Cleveland Browns. However, the Browns cut him and the Philadelphia Eagles signed him. However they waived him and the Browns claimed him in September 2010, which is the basis for assigning him to the Class of 2010.
He made the practice squad in 2010, and then the 53-player roster in 2011. In 2012, he was the starting slot receiver and actually was the favorite target for Brandon Weeden for two games. Yes, it was a small sample size, but he made Weeden look good, and that was not easy to do.
He lit it up for 13 catches on 19 targets for 137 yards and then sprained his foot. Then the Browns just sort of forgot about him. He never came back that season, and the Browns cut him that season. He went over to the Tampa Bay Bucs but failed to make their regular roster, and then went to the Denver Broncos, and promptly tore his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in practice and was missed another year.
Finally, he came back in 2015 as an extra receiver and punt returner and helped the team down the stretch. In the Super Bowl, he had a record-setting 61-yard punt return.
So why did the Browns forget about this guy? It’s not like they were so deep with wide receiving talent that they did not have room for a wide receiver on their team. It’s worth remembering that the Browns had a receiver who was a starter for them, then they gave up on him after a non-career-threatening injury, and watched him collect a Super Bowl ring.
Whatever, Browns.
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 5: Evan Moore, tight end, Class of 2009
Evan Moore played his college ball at Stanford, ultimately playing his senior year under Jim Harbaugh. In college, he was used as a wide receiver, although as he matured he started to take on the role of tight end.
After a very good sophomore campaign, he suffered a serious hip dislocation injury, resulting in a medical redshirt, and probably diminishing his accomplishments thereafter. In any case, his sophomore stats were by far the most impressive of his college career with 616 yards and six TDs.
Had he been able to post similar numbers as a senior, he probably would have been drafted, but instead, he was held to 39 catches, 481 yards, and only one touchdown. Hence it was not a shocker that he wasn’t drafted.
Nevertheless, he received a tryout from the New Orleans Saints and Green Bay Packers before getting a chance with the Cleveland Browns in 2009. In 2010, he averaged 20.1 yards per reception and 12.4 yards per target on 16 receptions and 26 targets for 322 yards. Moore was sometimes used as a wide receiver as well as a tight end, in combination with veteran Ben Watson and Jordan Cameron.
He had three solid campaigns for the Browns, totaling 804 yards overall during that time. Prior to the 2011 season, he signed a contract extension for three years at close to three million per year (although probably not much of that was guaranteed). Somewhat mysteriously, however, he was cut at the end of the 2011 season and wound up playing for the Seattle Seahawks.
Perhaps the Browns believed that Cameron was going to develop and that made Moore expendable. Alternatively, it might be that Moore’s injuries were catching up with him.
In Seattle, he played in 14 games but had only one reception during the year. He moved on to Philadelphia, where he underwent surgery for a back injury, and that concluded his career. Perhaps that injury explains the downturn in what had been a promising career up to that point. In any case, Moore decided to call it a career.
These days, Moore is working as a college football analyst for the PAC-12 Network.
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 4: Josh Cribbs, returner, receiver, QB, RB, class of 2005
Josh Cribbs is the Summa Cum Laude undrafted free agent, coming to the Browns, about an hour’s drive away from the Kent State Golden Flashes, where he starred as a quarterback. Like Lamar Jackson, he was a two-way threat, gaining over 1,000 yards on the ground in two separate seasons while also throwing for over 7,000 yards in a four-year career for the Golden Flashes.
Yet his 40-yard dash time did not jazz the scouts that much at 4.55 seconds.
Looking at films of Cribbs, his “game speed” appears to be way faster than 4.55 seconds. He just blows past people like they are standing still and once he accelerates, he cannot be caught.
The way he changes directions, to these uneducated eyes he does not look like 6-foot-1, 215 pounds, either. He looks a lot like Greg “Do It!” Pruitt, who was 5-10 and 190 pounds, who would regularly leave scorch marks on the turf of Cleveland Municipal Stadium when he would change directions.
Defenders would be faked out of their jocks trying to catch him. The same effect was caused by Eric Metcalf at exactly the same size. And don’t even get me started on the Ice Cube, Gerald McNeil, who claimed to be 5-7 (probably a lie), and only 145 pounds. Cribbs had that kind of maneuvering ability. As they say, it’s not how fast you can run, it’s how fast you can stop.
One of the highlights of his career had to be the game on December 20, 2009, at Kansas City in which he took two kickoffs coast-to-coast versus the Chiefs, the same game in which Jerome Harrison ran wild and broke Jim Brown’s single-game record for rushing yards with an amazing 286 yards.
Another highlight came against the Steelers, on November 11, 2007, when he flubbed the kickoff, picked it up at the goal line, and then took it all the way to the house. He had a 90-yard return earlier in that same game.
Cribbs took eight kickoffs and three punts to the house in his career. Why did teams even kick to him? This is a serious question. Teams probably should have just tried the on-sides kick or gone for it on fourth down. At least in that case there is a chance something good might happen. Kicking to Cribbs was assuming a major risk of a big play or a special team’s score.
Cribbs was All-Pro twice and made the Pro Bowl three times. In this fan’s opinion, he should have been used more as a wide receiver and situational running back as well. He also played quarterback in the so-called Wildcat formation (it was basically a two-back spread formation, with a commitment to running the ball).
Let’s get real. Just who did the Browns have that was in his way on the depth chart? Looking at his career numbers, both his running numbers and receiving numbers were outstanding. So why not let him play?
Cribbs was continually agitating for a chance to play, but the Browns coaching staff just would not let him, on the grounds that he was too valuable as a return man. Finally, at age 28, the Browns gave him a legitimate shot at wide receiver and he had a very good year with 518 receiving yards and a catch percentage of 61.2%. 12.6 yards per reception was not half bad.
Still, 28 is rather late to be developing the unique skills to play wide receiver at the level of an NFL starter. The Browns might have had another Bobby Mitchell on their hands, had they let him play five years earlier, who knows?
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 3: Leigh Bodden, cornerback, Class of 2003
Leigh Bodden starred for Duquesne University, an NCAA Division I-AA school, where he was a shutdown corner and basically did not post stats because teams were afraid to throw at him. At his Pro Day, he put up good but not eye-popping numbers.
His 40-yard dash time was 4.56 seconds, and his vertical leap of 38-40 inches. He bench-pressed 225 pounds 13 times. All those are well within the range of NFL talents, but it didn’t happen for him, so he wound up signing with the Browns. He made the team, but was used mainly on special teams and did not become a starter until 2005 when he started 11 times and had three interceptions and 58 tackles for his trouble.
His best season was 2007 when the Browns went 10-6 and narrowly missed the playoffs. However, the Browns traded him, along with a third-round draft pick for defensive end Shaun Rodgers.
Rodgers was a legit star, but with a legit contract to go with it. He made the Pro Bowl in 2008, but on the other hand, the Browns managed to trade away their first three picks that year and spent major cap dollars on Rodgers and Corey Williams.
The Browns were acting like they had the deepest roster in the league, trading two draft picks to land Brady Quinn, then a pick plus Bodden plus dollars that could have been used for a free agent for Rodgers, then a draft pick plus free agent money for Williams. Then they blamed Romeo Crennel for the team not improving. Oh well. That’s the Browns, the deepest roster in the NFL, right?
As for Bodden, remember, he didn’t leave Cleveland for money, he was traded. He eventually did get paid, signing a free-agent deal with New England. However, a shoulder injury ended his career in 2011, or else he might have had the chance to play in the Super Bowl that year.
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 2: Mark Campbell, Tight End, Class of 1999
Mark Campbell was a boring blocking tight end who played on the boring 12th-ranked Michigan Wolverines team catching passes from a boring, slow but accurate quarterback named Tom Brady.
What kind of pedigree is that?
Accordingly, Campbell went undrafted in the 1999 NFL Draft, and the Browns picked him up. After breaking his leg in 2001, he muscled up during rehab and had a bit of a breakout year in the Browns’ playoff season of 2002, expanding his role from blocking tight end to more of a pass receiver, catching 46 balls for 390 yards and four touchdowns. He was just a really good tight end for the Browns.
Here’s where Campbell’s story gets a bit loopy. As you may recall, coach Butch Davis seemed to be trying to build a cult of former Miami players to pledge undying allegiance to him. Accordingly, they traded Cambell to Buffalo (coached by young Gregg Williams) for a fourth-round draft pick.
They traded Campbell because they thought they had a generational talent in Kellen Winslow, Jr. If I may interject a personal story here, I was working at West Virginia University at the time, supervising a team of graduate students, and they were mostly Big East football fanatics, which at the time included the University of Miami.
We all knew Winslow was a head case. In particular, one student named Joe, referred to him as “the tight end equivalent of Ryan Leaf.” He pretty much nailed that.
Nevertheless, Mark Campbell was traded to make room for generational talent Winslow. Ouch. Not only that, the Browns gave up their second-round pick to move up one position while Ben Roethlisberger was still on the board, to make sure that the Detroit Lions would not take this generational talent at tight end.
Campbell played in 111 games in his career and started 77 of them. His old quarterback at the School Up North had a good career also.
Cleveland Browns UDFA No. 1: Phil Dawson, kicker, Class of 1999
Phil Dawson was an undrafted free agent who flunked tryouts with the Raiders and Patriots before the Browns picked him up as a free agent in 1999, the first year of their existence.
He’s an original Brown, and he lasted 14 years with them, including one Pro Bowl year, which is a farce. He should have been in the Pro Bowl most every year, but of course, the Browns didn’t score a lot of points during his career so his stats are not that great compared to a kicker who might have played for an offensive powerhouse.
Nevertheless, when he retired, he was the seventh most accurate kicker in NFL history.
Dawson, not Lou Groza, is the Browns career leader in field goals with 305 (Groza is way behind with only 234); however, Groza is still the career points leader because he had a pile of extra points, 641 to Dawson’s paltry 350. Dawson’s Browns teams had trouble finding the freaking end zone. Lou the Toe played with guys like Otto Graham, Marion Motley, Dante Lavelli, Mac Speedie, Paul Warfield, Gary Collins, and (of course) Jim Brown, who had no such problem.
All those points were truly awesome, but what the Dawg Pound really liked about Dawson was that he was not afraid to mix it up in kickoff coverage. A former offensive lineman, he always contributed a few tackles each season he played.
Dawson was famous for a quirky sidelight in NFL history which led to a new rule being adopted, the so-called “Dawson Rule.” Versus the Ravens, he kicked a field goal through the uprights but it hit the curved rear stanchion and bounced backward. Initially, the officials ruled it was a missed kick, but then they realized that since the ball had traveled through the uprights, it had to count.
The next year, the NFL made those plays reviewable; hence, the “Dawson Rule.”
Cleveland loved Dawson and he loved us, but eventually, the realities of pro sport caused a split. The Browns franchise tagged him in 2011. Dawson wanted a shot to play with a playoff team, and perhaps he was not convinced that the Brandon Weeden era was going to get him there.
He made it to the NFC Title game with San Francisco and was a perfect 3-for-3 in the playoffs in 2013. He played for the 49ers for four seasons and then played for the Arizona Cardinals for two more before finally hanging up his cleats after the 2018 season with Arizona, his 21st in the NFL.
However, he only made it to the playoffs twice in his long career, once with the Browns in 2002 and once with the 49ers. Had he played with better teams, he might arguably have had a shot at the Hall of Fame like his former teammate Adam Vinatieri. Realistically, it is not possible to go to Canton while missing the playoffs 19 times out of 21 seasons.
As it is, the Dawg Pound knows what kind of greatness he represents and 49ers fans also know him very well. Cardinals fans got to see him for 26 games at the end of his illustrious career