The Cleveland Browns are expected to have yet another starting quarterback in 2022, but who are the top 10 to ever play the position for them?
Heading into the 2022 season, the Cleveland Browns are once again turning the ball over to a new quarterback — or at least they will be when he’s cleared to play by the league. Deshaun Watson was added in a trade with the Houston Texans and while he’s facing a suspension, he’s under contract to be the leader of the franchise for the next five years.
With him coming in and replacing Baker Mayfield, it felt like a good time to once again look at all the former signal-callers in Northeast Ohio and select the 10 best to wear the orange and brown.
Cleveland Browns top QB all-time No. 10: Derek Anderson, 2006-2009
Coming out of Oregon State in 2005, Derek Anderson was a sixth-round pick of the Baltimore Ravens. However, he never made the team and was waived in late September. The next day, he was headed to Cleveland as the Browns brought in the 6-foot-6, 242-pounder.
He spent his rookie season on the bench and saw no action at all. Then in year two, he played in five games with three starts — with Cleveland losing each of those starts. In 2007, however, he unexpectedly put up a great campaign.
Cleveland had just added rookie Brady Quinn out of Notre Dame but Anderson wasn’t going to sit idly by and let the rookie show him up. He ended up winning the starting job over Charlie Frye and Quinn and led them to 10 wins in his 15 starts.
In those starts, he had 3,787 yards with 29 touchdowns and 19 picks. It was the best season the team had since making the playoffs in the 2002 campaign, although the Browns did just miss the postseason under Anderson.
Anderson ended up playing four years in Cleveland and was 16-18 as a starter with 7,083 yards, 46 touchdowns, and 45 picks. That might not sound great, but considering how bad the team has been from 1999 until recently, Anderson deserves a lot of credit for helping them field a competitive team for a brief spell.
Cleveland Browns top QB all-time No. 9: Vinny Testaverde, 1993-1995
In 1987, Vinny Testaverde wound up being the No. 1 overall pick for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Miami product ended up spending six seasons with the Bucs, but never helped them turn the corner.
In 72 starts with Tampa Bay, Testaverde led them to a 24-48 record while completing 52.1 percent of his attempts for 14,820 yards with 77 touchdowns and 112 picks. He ended up hitting free agency in the 1993 season, which is when he signed with the Cleveland Browns.
Recruited by head coach Bill Belichick, Testaverde joined former Hurricane teammate Bernie Kosar — and ended up stealing his job when the coach released Kosar. In 1994, he led them to the playoffs and was 9-4 as the starter while throwing for 2,575 yards with 16 touchdowns and 18 picks.
He even led them to a win over the New England Patriots in the Wild Card Game, which helped Belichick win some fans over again after releasing one of the most popular signal-callers in team history.
In all, he played three seasons with the Browns and was 16-15 as a starter with 7,255 yards and a 47-to-37 touchdown-to-interception ratio.
Testaverde then headed to Baltimore when the original franchise moved and became the Ravens. He continued to play well for them, even though they struggled to win early on in Baltimore.
During his lengthy career, Testaverde played for seven franchises in 21 seasons and last suited up at the age of 44 for the Carolina Panthers. Still, his prime was spent in Cleveland, where he made his name as a pro quarterback.
Cleveland Browns top QB all-time No. 8: Tim Couch, 1999-2003
Tim Couch was the first quarterback for the Browns when they were re-introduced to the NFL in 1999. The expansion franchise was given the No. 1 pick in the draft that season and Cleveland decided to bring in Couch, who was a stand-out for the Kentucky Wildcats in the NCAA.
Couch threw for 8,159 yards with 73 touchdowns in his final two seasons at Kentucky and in a draft that featured Donovan McNabb, Daunte Culpepper, Jevon Kearse, Torry Holt, and Ricky Williams, he’s widely considered a bust.
However, it’s not fair to simply slap that label on Couch and pretend he was a complete failure. The real truth is that he was thrown into an impossible situation. The Browns roster had a lot of holes and instead of building up their offensive line to be able to help their quarterback, they took the signal-caller first — and he was punished brutally because of this.
Couch was sacked 56 times as a rookie and 166 times in 62 career games. No one could have withstood the beating he took and it led to him suffering various injuries throughout his career.
Still, he had some solid moments for Cleveland, finishing with 11,131 yards passing with 64 touchdowns. He was also the one who threw the famous Hail Mary to Kevin Johnson in 1999 to give them their first win since returning to the NFL. It took years for them to find another quarterback who could start for them as long as Couch did — and he also goes down as one of the team’s biggest “what ifs.”
Cleveland Browns top QB all-time No. 7: Milt Plum, 1957-1961
Back in the late 1950s, the Browns used the No. 17 overall pick — which was a Round 2 selection at the time — on Milt Plum from Penn State. While playing for the Nittany Lions, Plum not only played under center, but was also a defensive back, punter, and placekicker.
In the NFL, he stayed at quarterback and was considered one of the most accurate passers of the time. As a rookie, he shared time with Tommy O’Connell after Plum showed his talent when playing in place of an injured O’Connell against the Eagles.
He still threw just 76 passes on the year and had 590 yards with two touchdowns and five picks. But then in year two, he became the full-time starter and had 1,619 yards with 11 touchdowns. He continued to grow as a passer and had his best NFL campaign in 1960 when he threw for 2,297 yards with 21 touchdowns and just five interceptions.
Plum spent five seasons with the Browns and was able to lead them to a 33-16-2 record while throwing for 8,914 yards with a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 66-to-39.
Before 1962, Plum was traded to the Detroit Lions and Cleveland turned the ball over to Jim Ninowski, but when he was injured, it was Frank Ryan that took over — and he also had an impressive career. Plum continued to play well for the Lions but it wasn’t the same for him since he didn’t have the help of the dominant running game he was able to lean on with the Browns.
Cleveland Browns top QB all-time No. 6: Bill Nelsen, 1968-1972
Before joining the Browns in 1968, Bill Nelsen was a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers — and while he didn’t have a lot of success with them, he endeared himself to fans due to his toughness and leadership. Nelsen dealt with injuries throughout his five seasons with Pittsburgh but kept on playing through the pain.
The team never found success though as they were 6-15-2 with him starting. Then in 1968, he was traded to Cleveland and that’s where his career took off.
In 1968, Nelsen started 11 games for the Browns and led them to nine wins. He followed that up with a 10-3-1 campaign in 1969. His worst season as a starter — in terms of wins and losses was 1970 when the franchise went 6-6.
Nelsen rebounded from that campaign by leading them to a 9-4 record the following year but struggled individually. He threw a career-worst 23 picks that season — plus another three in the playoffs — and would only start one more game for them in 1972 when he was replaced by Mike Phipps.
For his career, Nelsen threw for 9,725 yards with 71 touchdown passes and 71 picks. He did lead the Browns to a 34-16-1 record and was 2-3 in the postseason for them as well.
Cleveland Browns top QB all-time No. 5: Frank Ryan, 1962-1968
Milt Plum had plenty of success with the Cleveland Browns but was traded to the Detroit Lions ahead of the 1962 campaign. The plan was to go with Jim Ninowski as the new starter but he suffered a broken collarbone and in came Frank Ryan, a reserve they added in a trade with the Los Angeles Rams that same offseason.
A former fifth-round pick from Rice, Ryan had just 11 starts in four seasons with Los Angeles when Cleveland added him but he would go on to start 76 games with his new team during his seven-year tenure with them.
In his first season with the Browns, Ryan led them to a 3-3-1 record which was enough for him to be the primary starter in 1963. That year, he led them to their first of three-consecutive 10-win seasons, followed by two years with nine wins.
Overall, the Browns were 52-22-2 with Ryan starting under center and he had an impressive 134 touchdowns against 88 picks while throwing for 13,361 yards. That number had him second overall in passing yards for the Browns and he’s still fifth after a few other players surpassed him.
One interesting fact is that Ryan earned his Ph.D. from Rice and attended graduate school during his time with the Rams. Cleveland has had a lot of successful quarterbacks during their history but Ryan is still the only one who could go by ‘doctor’.
Cleveland Browns top QB all-time No. 4: Baker Mayfield, 2018-2021
Arguably the most polarizing quarterback to play for the Cleveland Browns, Baker Mayfield found plenty of success in his short time with the franchise. Taken first overall in the 2018 NFL Draft, Mayfield boldly proclaimed that he was the guy who could turn this franchise around after they went 1-31 in the two seasons prior to his arrival.
He proved that he was up to the task as he stepped into a Week 3 game for his first NFL action after Tyrod Taylor suffered a concussion. On that Thursday Night Football game, Mayfield led the Browns to a comeback win over the Jets — and opened the Bud Light Victory Fridge in the process.
It was their first win in 635 days and he led them to several more after that. Mayfield was 29-30 in 59 starts and led them to an 11-win campaign in the 2020 season. He also helped them secure their first playoff victory since returning to the NFL as they knocked off the hated Pittsburgh Steelers — on the road nonetheless.
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Unfortunately, things went south in 2021 as Mayfield appeared to have lost the confidence of the players in the locker room. He also was reportedly not on the same page as head coach Kevin Stefanski, which led to the Browns public pursuit, and eventual acquisition, of Deshaun Watson.
As of this writing, Mayfield is still technically on the Browns but there’s no way the two sides work together again. Still, he leaves as the No. 4 all-time passer in their history with 14,125 yards and is fifth with 92 touchdown passes.
Mayfield should be remembered fondly for what he did but again, with him being so polarizing, he also brings out a lot of emotion on both sides of the argument.
Cleveland Browns top QB all-time No. 3: Brian Sipe, 1972-1983
No one expected Brian Sipe to have the career he did. The former San Diego State quarterback was a 13th-round pick for the Browns back in 1972. He spent the first two seasons on the bench, never recording a single snap.
Then in 1974, he got into the action and started four games — but it was his Oct. 27th meeting with the Denver Broncos that previewed what he was going to be known for throughout his career. Facing a 12-point deficit, Sipe led his team to a come-from-behind win.
During his career with Cleveland, he engineered 23 game-winning drives. His ability to help the team pull off close wins led to the nickname “Kardiac Kids” during the 1979 and1980 seasons. Cleveland constantly gave their fans heartache as they continued to flirt with losses and had 11 of his career game-winning drives in those two campaigns alone.
Sipe also won the NFL MVP award in the 1980 season when he threw for 4,132 yards with 30 touchdown passes. Overall, he has 23,713 yards passing which is the most in team history, and 154 touchdowns which is second behind only Otto Graham.
Unfortunately, Sipe never won a title for the Browns and is often remembered for throwing an infamous pick in the “Red Right 88” game against the Raiders, which was easily their best chance at winning a Super Bowl.
Cleveland Browns top QB all-time No. 2: Bernie Kosar, 1985-1993
In the city of Cleveland, the name Bernie is still known and respected. Bernie Kosar can still go by just his first name alone as he has gone down as not only one of the best quarterbacks in team history but also one of the most popular.
A superstar coming out of Miami, Kosar entered the supplemental draft in 1985 and Cleveland used a first-round pick on the hometown kid — who made it known that he wanted to play for the team he grew up rooting for.
After leading them to a 4-6 record in 10 starts as a rookie, Kosar and the Browns took off in 1986. That season, they went 12-4 and he had 3,854 yards and 17 touchdowns. Year three was a personal best for Kosar who had 3,033 yards with a 22-to-9 touchdown-to-interception ratio in just 12 starts.
Most importantly, he led them to the playoffs in each of his first three seasons and did so four times from 1985 through 1989 — only missing out on the postseason in 1988.
Sadly, injuries started to play a part in Kosar’s departure from the team as he played a full season just once from 1990 through 1992. Then in 1993, he was surprisingly let go as head coach Bill Belichick favored Vinny Testaverde.
The good news for Kosar was that he joined the Dallas Cowboys that year as a reserve behind Troy Aikman. He had three touchdowns for them in the regular season that year and threw a touchdown in the playoffs as well. Kosar was rewarded with a Super Bowl ring as well as the Cowboys knocked off the Bills — and he was able to take the final knee in that game.
Kosar is still third in team history with 21,904 yards passing and fourth with 116 touchdowns.
Cleveland Browns top QB all-time No. 1: Otto Graham, 1946-1955
The original is still the best.
Otto Graham joined the Cleveland Browns in 1946 when the franchise was founded. At the time, they were part of the All-American Football Conference, and Graham was the biggest star in that league.
He led the Browns to a title in each of their four seasons in the AAFC and they had a 47-4-3 record in the regular season. In 1950, the Browns were selected to join the NFL after their league dissolved and Graham continued to have success.
Graham led them to a 10-2 record in his first season as an NFL quarterback, and they even won the league title that year. They continued to excel and made it to the NFL Championship Game in each of the next three seasons, although they lost each of those.
He then led them back to the top, beating the Detroit Lions for a title in 1954. He then decided he wanted to retire but was given the highest contract in the NFL at the time, which convinced him to return for one more season.
The Browns were able to cash in that year as well, earning another title as Graham led them to a win over the Los Angeles Rams that year.
Overall, Graham led them to four titles in the AAFC and three in the NFL — while winning three NFL MVP awards and two in the AAFC. He still stands atop the team’s leaderboard in terms of passing touchdowns with 174 and is second in yardage with 23,584.
Those numbers are even more impressive when remembering Graham played at a time when teams weren’t incredibly fond of the forward pass.