It's not every day you see the Cleveland Browns lead any sports category, especially if you're looking at successes. Unfortunately, we aren't talking about success, but rather failure. In this case, we are talking about all-time draft busts by sports franchises.
Bleacher Report recently ranked the 99 biggest draft busts of all time in the sports world. Cleveland was involved in four of these failures. The Cincinnati Bengals, Detroit Lions, Las Vegas Raiders, and the Portland Trail Blazers of the NBA also had four draft picks that went horribly wrong. While each of these other teams has had its share of missteps, the Browns should have easily been credited with far more than just four awful draft picks.
I wrote an article a few years ago for Dawg Pound Daily about the biggest flops in just the first round of the Browns' drafts since 1999, and I listed five players then. By my count, Cleveland legitimately has had more like eight or nine draft busts.
Let's consider the Bleacher Report list first. They included the Browns' former quarterback, Tim Couch, who helped Cleveland restart their team in 1999. He was the No. 1 overall pick of that draft and struggled as the team tried to reestablish itself as a competitive team. Unfortunately, Couch struggled from the start, getting sacked 56 times in that first season as he went 2-12 in 14 starts. He had a better 2002 campaign and helped that squad to an 8-6 record and a postseason spot. Couch was injured at that point and didn't play in the playoff game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Couch finished with a 22-37 record in his brief five-year career. It's easy for some to place Couch on a list like this, but I don't believe he was a bust, considering everything that was going on with the team at the time. He did have a good 2002 campaign that led to the playoff appearance, so that's definitely a plus for Couch's career highlights.
Outside of Couch (No. 19 worst bust) on the Bleacher Report all-time list, the article also listed quarterback Johnny Manziel (No. 26), running back Trent Richardson (No. 34), and edge rusher Courtney Brown (No. 45).
Bleacher Report said this about Manziel and his bust status:
"Ah, the saga of 'Johnny Football.'
At Texas A&M in 2013, Manziel was a phenomenon—the brash young quarterback who made magic on the field and had fun off it. The Heisman Trophy winner's draft stock was hurt by a lack of size and his off-field trouble, but the Browns still drafted Manziel 22nd overall.
In the NFL, he was an undersized, inaccurate passer who liked partying and 'hero ball' far more than practicing. After playing sparingly as a rookie, Manziel made six starts in 2015 but was benched multiple times for team rules violations.
The Browns released Manziel when the 2016 league year started, and he never played another snap in the NFL."
The Browns' draft history may be even worse than this ranking suggests
In my previous write-up on the Cleveland draft busts since 1999, I also included running back William Green, quarterback Braden Weeden, and cornerback Justin Gilbert. While wide receiver Josh Gordon didn't make my list, some will suggest Gordon was a bust. He was taken in the supplemental draft in 2012, and while his career lasted eight seasons, he was also suspended twice by the NFL for substance abuse issues. He had one dazzling season in Cleveland, where he caught 87 passes for a staggering 1,646 yards, averaging almost 19 yards a catch.
But the rest of his career was a dud. He moved around to several other teams after his four seasons in Cleveland, but because of his off-the-field issues, he never showed any consistency in his play.
By my count, that gives the Browns at least eight contenders for the draft bust title, and if you go back further in Cleveland football history, you could include players like quarterback Mike Phipps, linebacker Mike Junkin, and defensive tackle Gerard Warren.
The Bleacher Report writers were kind to Cleveland in regard to draft busts. We here in Cleveland all know far too well what bad football looks like. Let's hope the Browns don't add more busts to this list and instead focus on winning a championship.
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