Just for kicks

They were two of the most popular Browns players since the franchise returned to the NFL in 1999.

One arrived at the very beginning with nothing but a promise of an opportunity after being undrafted and failing in two other stints with two other franchises in 1998. In fact, when he won the job, he was given the caveat from then-head coach Chris Palmer -- "We'll go with you for now."

The other arrived in 2005 after a stellar career as a quarterback at Kent State, but went undrafted in seven rounds by every team in the league because no one was really sure where he could excel. With nothing more of a promise to simply "play," he signed with the Browns and found his niche as a kickoff and punt returner.

Today, both Phil Dawson (49ers) and Josh Cribbs (Cardinals, although his failed physical puts his status in limbo) are with different NFL franchises for the first times in their respective NFL careers after both became local folk-heroes based on their performances over the years with the Cleveland Browns.

Cribbs became a perennial Pro Bowler as a returner and special teams player. His eight career kickoff return touchdowns is still an NFL record, even though he hasn't had one since returning three for scores in 2009 -- the best all-around year of his career that finally earned him the payday he had always desired.

Dawson toiled in relative NFL obscurity, mostly because the Browns teams he's played on have largely been mediocre. He was finally rewarded with a berth to the Pro Bowl this past season. I'm sure it had to mean a lot to him that his last game wearing an orange helmet was while wearing the AFC's game jersey in Hawaii.

In fact, Dawson and Cribbs were two of the Browns' three Pro Bowlers this season (the other being perennial Pro Bowl and possible future Hall of Fame tackle Joe Thomas). While that's a great accomplishment, it's also indicative of all the people who have been making decisions here with the Browns from 1999 until now.

The Browns had never used their franchise tag on any player until Dawson became a free agent following the 2010 season. They used it on him again following the 2011 season. While it kept Dawson a Brown for two more seasons and paid him a nice chunk of change for doing so, the fact that the only player in Browns history to be franchised was a kicker is just sad.

The fact that two of the most popular (fanbase-wise) players during the expansion era are a kicker and a special-teamer is also just sad.

Joe Cleveland was not surprised to see either go, although I did hold out hope that Dawson would be brought back at least one more year. Cribbs, on the other hand, I had washed my hands of.

Cribbs' "home run" ability (his ability to change games with long kickoff returns) had waned over the past few years -- ironically, since he finally signed a lucrative contact extension prior to the 2010 season. The contract may have played a part in it. However, changes in NFL rules concerning kickoffs (kicking from the 35, which greatly increased touchbacks) and injuries building up due to his reckless style of play were starting to catch up to him.

Plus, he's 29. You don't see a whole lot of 30-year-old kickoff and punt returners in the NFL. And, with Cribbs, he was never really able to find his niche offensively with the Browns. While that may be a slam on some of the coaches he's had for not better utilizing his playmaking ability, it is also indicative of Cribbs. Perhaps he was just too raw of a project to do much offensively, and us fans were not able to take off the Orange and Brown blinders to see it.

Cribbs endeared himself to Browns fans not just with his big play ability, whether it was returning kickoffs or punts, taking Wildcat snaps on offense, or covering kicks and punts and making big hits, but also with his accessibility. Cribbs became one of the most visible Browns players during his career. Whether he was attending other sporting events in town or Tweeting or visiting local schools or making other public appearances, Cribbs quickly became Mr. Cleveland. Some even compared him to Bernie Kosar, who was also a beloved Cleveland sports icon who fans loved because of his play and his accessibility.

When Cribbs complained about his contract, which he signed shortly into his rookie year, instead of rebelling against him, fans took up for him. "Pay Da Man" became a rallying cry when it came to Cribbs, especially when he backed up his cries for more money with his 2009 season.

Cribbs returned three kickoffs -- two of which in a wild 40-34 win over Kansas City that highlighted a season-ending four-game win streak -- and one punt for a touchdown during that Pro Bowl season. He also carried the ball a career-best 55 times for 381 yards (mostly out of the Wildcat formation) and one touchdown, and added 20 receptions for 135 yards and another score. The 20 catches, at the time, were his season-best and exceeded his career reception total by four. He was rewarded with his second Pro Bowl berth, and incoming president Mike Holmgren tore up the remaining three years on his rookie contract and gave him a big pay raise.

In the three years since, Cribbs only returned one punt for a touchdown. While he set a career-high with 41 receptions for 518 yards and 4 scores in 2011, he became an offensive afterthought in 2012. In fact, 2012 was the first season in his eight-year career that he was held without a single touchdown (although he did catch a TD pass in the Pro Bowl).

Cribbs could be a bit of a "drama queen" in the locker room, complaining about playcalling, his contract, his coaches, etc. Especially on a team that was losing a lot more than it won, it could become an unwanted distraction.

Dawson, on the other hand, seemed to be getting better with age. After missing five games due to injury in 2009, Dawson became one of the NFL's most reliable kickers over the past three years, especially from long range. Which is interesting because the knock on Dawson early in his career was that he did not possess the leg to consistently hit deep field goals or touchbacks.

His 29 field goals this past season was one off his career-high for field goals in a season (30 in 2008), and his 29-of-31 performance gave him the highest field goal percentage (single-season) of his career (93.5 percent, which exceeded his 93.1 in 2005. He was also 7-of-7 on kicks longer than 50 yards, which was by far his best percentage from that distance and matched the 7 50-plus yarders he made in 2011 for the most in his career.

Dawson was old reliable, which was big because many times over the years, the Browns' offense had difficulty putting the ball in the end zone. It seemed like coaches would get conservative in the red zone because they knew Dawson would give them a guaranteed three points on each drive.

One thing the Browns have had extremely good luck with in their storied 66 years as a franchise was finding good kickers. From the great Lou "The Toe" Groza during all but one season from 1946-67 to Don Cockroft to Matt Bahr to Matt Stover to Dawson, you can trace the kicker lineage fairly quickly. Sure, there were a few blips on the radar -- Sam Baker in 1960, Dave Jacobs in 1981, Jerry Kauric in 1990, Jeff Jaeger in 1988, and even Dawson was replaced twice by Brett Conway (2003) and Billy Cundiff (2009) due to injuries -- but for the most part, kicker has been the one rock-solid position the Browns have had. Especially during the expansion era, when you consider Dawson has been the last remaining regular player from that rag-tag group of 1999'ers.

While the Browns made no secret about their desire to walk away from Cribbs (and Cribbs made no secret about his desire to come back) this offseason, the situation with Dawson is still pretty questionable.

The Browns were pretty coy about their intentions with Dawson, and, likewise, Dawson was coy right back. Even after he signed with the 49ers, Dawson wouldn't confirm or deny that the Browns made him a contract offer, only to say that once the 49er interest happened, he made that his priority. Likewise, Browns CEO Joe Banner has resisted commenting on the Dawson situation from the end of the season until now.

Somewhat surprisingly, the fan backlash has been more about Dawson than Cribbs. Dawson wasn't as visible as Cribbs was. However, Dawson endeared himself to the fanbase just because he became the lone reliable offensive weapon for so many years.

Dawson left just 73 points shy of matching Groza's record as the Browns' all-time leading scorer. He was also within reach of passing Groza and linebacker Clay Matthews for the most games in a Cleveland Browns' uniform. Instead, he'll be content with sitting second on the scoring list with 1,271 points and third on the games list with 215.

"I think Mr. Groza deserves to be the all-time leading scorer of the Cleveland Browns," Dawson told Cleveland reporters in a conference call the day after he signed with the 49ers. "He's Mr. Cleveland Brown, and I'm happy with that."

After the 2010 season, Dawson was set to become a free agent and seemed ready to move on to the next phase of his football career with a new team. He sold his Westlake home and didn't make a secret about testing the free agency market. He wasn't happy that the Browns weren't offering him a multi-year deal and was starting to get tired of the losing, aching for a chance to kick for a winner while he still had the chance. In fact, the Browns themselves took a moment to honor Dawson during the 2010 season finale.

However, in a surprising move, Holmgren decided to give Dawson the franchise tag that offseason. The move paid him over $3 million a year. Dawson briefly held out, but signed his franchise tender and went out and had a phenomenal 2011 season.

The following year, Holmgren quickly tagged Dawson for the second-year in a row, and Dawson quickly signed the tender. However, with the sale from Randy Lerner to Jimmy Haslam III and the move from Holmgren and Tom Heckert to Banner and Mike Lombardi, Dawson expected that he'd be moving on.

By rule, the Browns couldn't offer him the franchise tag for a third-year-in-a-row. If they did, they'd have to pay him a one-year salary that was an average of the top five overall salaries in the league. No team is going to pay a kicker quarterback money. For that matter, very few teams would pay a kicker over $3 million a year.

Dawson signed a one-year, $2.25 million deal with the 49ers. It was one that the Browns probably easily could have matched, but didn't. Now, Dawson gets a legitimate chance to kick in a Super Bowl (and possibly win). Had he stayed in Cleveland, he likely wouldn't have gotten that chance -- the Browns may not be a legitimate contender until he'd be over 40.

The Browns have been pushing for signing younger players; players in the prime of their careers. Dawson, Cribbs and tight end Ben Watson (who was allowed to walk to the Saints for a three-year deal) are older and may not fit into this braintrusts' immediate plans.

Just a day later, the Browns brought in internet sensation Havard Rugland for a tryout and an interview. Rugland, a Norwegian, posted a video that quickly went viral of him kicking balls a very long way and other trick kicks. They may even spend one of their later-round picks on a kicker like Florida's Caleb Sturgis or Oklahoma State's Quinn Sharp (who also projects to be a punter).

The Browns may already have Cribbs' replacement on the team in second-year speedster Travis Benjamin, who wowed fans with a 93-yard punt return touchdown during a blowout win over Kansas City. However, they do not have a kicker in tow.

Free agents come and go in all three sports. It seems like with Cleveland teams, they go more than they come. A lot of them have been booed with their other teams, with LeBron James leading the charge in that regard. Very few of them continued get cheered.

Dawson may never get a chance to play against the Browns before he retires (the 49ers don't play the Browns again until 2015, and I'd be surprised if they met in a Super Bowl prior to that), but you can bet he'd be cheered if he came back in another uniform.

The only other player I can think of like that was Omar Vizquel. Vizquel was extremely popular in Cleveland, and when he left in free agency following the 2004 season, it was clear that the Indians had no interest in bringing him back.

While Omar was cheered whenever he came back to Jacobs/Progressive Field in an opposing uniform, his replacements at shortstop -- Jhonny Peralta and Asdrubal Cabrera -- have been lightning rods for criticism by fans and the media. Peralta was run out of town; Cabrera came very close to doing so this offseason.

Also, the Indians dispatched Vizquel because he was 37. And yet, he wound up playing eight more seasons for four different franchises, finally retiring at the ripe age of 45 this offseason. Couldn't you see that happening with Dawson?

Whoever becomes the next Browns kicker may have to be perfect (or darn near close) to even attempt to fill Dawson's shoes over the next few seasons. Or else, he (or they) will get booed and heavily criticized.

The Browns don't need another Peralta or Cabrera to replace their version of Omar. They need a Stover to replace their Bahr, or a Dawson to replace their Stover, or a Bahr to replace their Cockroft.

Good luck to whoever the Browns' new kicker will be in 2013 and beyond. I'm afraid you'll need it.

Until next time, remember the Cleveland Rocks!

Top 10 Browns-Steelers games (according to Joe)

Yes, this has been a miserable Browns season.

And yes, by all indications, the Pittspuke Stillers should blow out the Browns at the giant ketchup bottle in front of a bunch of yellow towel-waving sheep and a national television audience (well, at least those who don't subscribe to Time-Warner Cable, which still does not have a deal in place with the NFL Network).

However, it's Steeler Week, and Joe Cleveland can't help but get fired up.

When the Browns first came back in 1999, I admit that I hated the Ravens ... err, the Thieving Bastards ... more than the Steelers. After all, Judas was still that team's owner, and he ripped them out of Cleveland and put them in Colt-ville. So, Browns fans were pretty pissed off when it came to those imposters in purple.

It also didn't help that the Thieving Bastards caught lightning in a bottle and won the Super Bowl after the 2000 season. If you wonder why 2001 was such a bad year, you can point to the fact that it began with Judas holding up the Vince Lombardi Trophy. Meanwhile, the Steelers hadn't quite found their mojo yet.

In fact, the Browns (after taking a 43-0 pasting in front of a national audience in the first official game back) beat the Steelers twice in their first two years of existance. They won five games in those two years -- two of those came against the Stillers.

I think it all changed when the Browns caught lightning in a bottle themselves and qualified for the playoffs in 2002. Their reward -- the Stillers at the giant ketchup bottle. The Stillers had swept the Browns that season, but each game was decided by three points and each game came down to the bitter end.

The Browns, heavy underdogs and led by a backup quarterback named Kelly, jumped out to leads of 23-7 and 33-21, the latter late in the fourth quarter. But, in typical Cleveland fashion, a former castoff named Tommy Maddux led the Stillers to two late touchdowns, Dennis Northcutt couldn't catch a third-down pass that hit him right in the hands that would have allowed the Browns to run out the clock, and Andre King couldn't quite get out of bounds despite being in Phil Dawson's field goal range before time ran out, and Pittspuke won, 36-33.

The next year, the Stillers drafted an Ohio boy named Consentlessberger or something along those lines, and since then, they've been among the NFL elite. The Browns, meanwhile, have not.

Even in 2007, when the Browns won 10 games, they swept the Ravens, but were swept by the Stillers. Had they beaten Pittspuke just once, the Browns would have made the playoffs. But they didn't, and they didn't.

Recent history hasn't been kind to the Browns in the longest-standing rivalry in the AFC (which is because these two teams started playing before the AFL existed). The Browns got off to a 32-9 start in this series, but the Steelers have recently taken the lead thanks to only losing to Cleveland FOUR times since the Browns returned to the lakefront.

But, those who neglect to follow history are doomed to repeat it. So, to remind Browns fans that it hasn't always bad against the Squeelers (and to remind front-running Pittsburgh fan that, No. 1, the team existed before 1970 and was mostly terrible, and, No. 2, that the 1980s and the early part of the 1990s were not the Squeelers finast moment, and that they always haven't been great during the so-called "Super Bowl Era"), here are my top 10 games in the Browns-Steelers rivalry.

Jaded Steeler fan may wonder how someone like me could find 10 winning Browns games against the Steelers. I would like to remind Jaded Steeler Fan that your team only leads the series 60-56, not counting two playoff victories over our beloved Dawgs.

So, here goes:

10. Browns 13, Steelers 6 (Dec. 10, 2009): The most recent win for the Browns in this series cracks our list because of how out-of-nowhere it really was. The Browns came into this Thursday Night home contest with a 1-11 record, and new coach Eric Mangini was on the hot seat with the rumored hiring of Mike Holmgren as team president earlier that week. However, instead of rolling over to the vaunted Steelers, the defending Super Bowl champions, they hit them in the mouth. Ben Roethlisberger was sacked eight times -- a season-best for the Browns' beleagured defense -- and held them to just two field goals. Brady Quinn only threw for 90 yards and was offset a lot by receiver Josh Cribbs, who ran for a team-best 87 yards out of the Wildcat formation. But, he led two first quarter scoring drives (both Phil Dawson field goals) and another just before halftime, capped by rookie Chris Jennings' 10-yard touchdown run to make it 13-0. The game wasn't over until linebacker David Bowens batted away a fourth-down Roethlisberger pass with just over a minute remaining, and Santonio Holmes was leveled after a short punt return with no time remaining to cap one of the most satisfying Browns victory during the "Expansion Era."

9. Browns 24, Steelers 19 (Oct. 9, 1965): -- The Browns came into 1965 as the defending NFL champions (alas, they haven't been able to do that since then) and picked up right where they left off, winning two of their first three games before hosting the hated Steelers (0-4) on a Saturday night. However, the underdog Steelers hung tough with the vaunted Browns, rallying from a 10-0 first quarter deficit to take a 19-17 fourth quarter lead on a Dick Hoak 15-yard run. Jim Brown (who Cleveland drafted just one pick after the Steelers selected Len Dawson in the first round of the 1957 draft) scored two touchdowns, one receiving, and gained 168 yards on the ground. However, it was his backup Leroy Kelly (who also wound up in the Hall of Fame), who made the biggest plays of the game-winning drive, which began on their own 22 with 3:35 remaining, catching passes of 22 and 21 yards. Following a four-yard run by Brown to put the ball on the Pittsburgh 14 with less than a minute to go, Frank Ryan found Gary Collins on a post pattern in the end zone for the game-winning score. The Browns wound wind up going 11-3 and reaching the NFL Championship game for the second-straight year, but lost to the Green Bay Packers in what turned out to be Brown's final game of his storied career.

8. Browns 16, Steelers 15 (Nov. 14, 1999): After three years without football, the Browns were reborn as an expansion team in 1999, playing in a sparkling new stadium in the exact spot that the old Cleveland Stadium stood. In their first game back, the Browns were humiliated by the Steelers, 43-0, at home. Just a few weeks later, on Nov. 14, the Browns played like a totally different team. keeping themselves in the game. The Browns scored first on a 35-yard touchdown pass from Tim Couch to Kevin Johnson (both rookies), but the Steelers battled back to take a 15-7 lead on a touchdown and three field goals. But, with 6:26 left in the game, defensive lineman John Thierry intercepted Kordell Stewart and was brought down at the Steeler 15, setting up a Couch to Mark Edwards touchdown pass a few plays later. Karim Abdul-Jabbar's two-point conversion run was stopped, but the Browns had one more chance. Taking over with no timeouts at his own 20 with 1:51 remaining, Couch drove the Browns 58 yards in five plays. Without stopping the clock and with 18 seconds left, Chris Palmer ran the field goal team out on to the field. The Browns snapped the ball with two seconds left, and rookie Phil Dawson, into an 18 mph wind, calmly drilled a 40-yard field goal to give Cleveland the stunning upset win. It turned out to be the Browns' second-to-last visit to Three Rivers Stadium and their first win there since 1989's 51-0 blowout.

7. Browns 26, Steelers 24 (Nov. 19, 1972): The suddenly resurgent Steelers, after decades of ineptitude, took a 7-2 record into this contest at Cleveland Stadium, with the Browns at 6-3. The Browns jumped out to a 20-3 lead behind two TD passes from Mike Phipps, but the Steelers scored just before halftime to make it 20-10, then got two touchdown runs -- the latter a 75-yard run from Franco Harris -- to take a 24-23 fourth quarter lead. Don Cockroft missed a 27-yard field goal with just under two minutes remaining, but he got another chance thanks to the defense forcing a three-and-out and a clutch drive led by Phipps. With 13 seconds remaining, Cockroft earned his redemption with a 26-yard field goal, giving the Browns a much-needed victory. Both teams made the playoffs that season, but both were defeated by the undefeated Miami Dolphins.

6. Browns 27, Steelers 26 (Oct. 16, 1980): This game virtually signaled the death of the first Steeler dynasty and helped propel the "Kardiac Kids" to their first-ever AFC Central crown and first playoff berth since 1972. Despite the Steelers missing most of their regular offensive starters, Pittsburgh jumped out to a 26-14 fourth quarter lead with backup QB Cliff Stoudt, an Oberlin native, at the helm. But Brian Sipe and Co., despite blowing a couple of golden scoring opportunities earlier in the game, came to life in the fourth quarter. Sipe found Greg Pruitt for a 7-yard touchdown pass on fourth down with 9:21 remaining (Don Cockroft missed the extra point, keeping the Steelers ahead by six). Then, with 5:38 remaining, Sipe found a streaking Ozzie Newsome wide open for an 18-yard touchdown, sending 80,000 fans at Cleveland Stadium into a frenzy. Ron Bolton prevented Stoudt from making a late rally with an interception at the two-minute warning, and the Browns were able to run out the clock on this huge victory over the defending Super Bowl champs.

5. Browns 18, Steelers 16 (Oct. 10, 1976): This game is famous for Browns defensive end Joe "Turkey" Jones' sack of Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw, where Jones slammed Bradshaw right on his head and knocked him out of the game. The Steelers had won Super Bowl X the previous season and were poised to try to win it again. They knocked out Brian Sipe early in the game, which resulted in little-used rookie Dave Mays (the Browns' third-string QB) making his NFL debut. Mays -- who was Cleveland's first black quarterback -- earned his way into Browns lore by calmly leading the Browns to two third-quarter scores -- a 1-yard run by Cleo Miller and a 50-yard field goal by Don Cockroft -- which gave them a 15-10 lead. Following Turkey's sack, Cockroft added the game-clinching 40-yard field goal with less than two minutes remaining.

4. Browns 27, Steelers 24 (Oct. 5, 1986):Since Three Rivers Stadium opened up in 1970, the Browns had never won there. They would always seem to lose in bizzare fashion as well, which perpetuated the local myth of the "Three Rivers Jinx." The previous season, the Browns had the Steelers on the ropes before Gary Anderson's last-second field goal gave Pittsburgh a 10-9 win. The Browns tried everything; staying in different hotels, busing instead of flying, bringing dirt from Cleveland Stadium and sprinkling it on the field during warmups, you name it. And, this one wasn't without its bizarre moments as well. The Browns took a quick 10-0 lead, but back-to-back turnovers gave Pittsburgh a 14-10 lead late in the first half. That's when Gerald McNeil, nicknamed "The Ice Cube," became a permanent fixture in Browns lore when he returned the ensuing kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown, giving the Browns a 17-14 halftime lead. At the time, it was the Browns' first kickoff return touchdown in 12 years! However, the Steelers regained the lead early in the third quarter, and the two teams traded scores which resulted in Pittsburgh leading, 24-20, to start the fourth quarter. But, Mike Johnson recovered a muffed punt, and Earnest Byner's four-yard TD run with eight minutes left gave the Browns the lead for good. It got interesting though -- Matt Bahr missed a chip-shot field goal with just under five minutes to play, but Mark Malone's pitch to Earnest Jackson on a bizarre option call from the Browns 35 was botched and the Browns recovered.

3. Browns 37, Steelers 31 OT (Nov. 23, 1986): The Browns had just endeded their 16-year "Three Rivers Jinx" earlier in the season (see No. 4) and had come off a huge win over the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night at home. Bernie Kosar and Mark Malone engaged in a wild shootout. Kosar completed 28 of 46 passes for a then-career-best 414 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, just two days before his 23rd birthday. The Browns had taken a 31-28 lead with 1:51 left on a Matt Bahr field goal, but lost Bahr for the season on the ensuing kickoff when he made a game-saving tackle on the Steelers' Lupe Sanchez at the Browns 40. Gary Anderson made a 40-yard field goal to send the game into overtime and the Browns did not have a kicker. After both teams went three-and-out in the OT, Kosar went to work. With 6:37 remaining and the ball on the Steeler 36, Kosar pumped once and fired deep down the left sideline for rookie Webster Slaughter. Slaughter caught the ball in stride and scored the walk-off touchdown. The Browns' 536 yards offense was the most a Pittsburgh defense had ever yielded up to that point.

2. Browns 51, Steelers 0 (Sept. 10, 1989): The Browns were in the midst of a five-season playoff streak, where they qualified for the AFC Championship game three times in a four-year span. This season capped off both streaks and began with question marks concerning new head coach Bud Carson. Carson, who was the architect of the famed Pittsburgh "Steel Curtain" defense in the 1970s, had never been a head coach before. But, in this season opener at Three Rivers Stadium, Carson's attack 4-3 defense stunned Bubby Brister and the Steelers by forcing six turnovers and scoring three defensive touchdowns -- two of which by linebacker David Grayson. Rookie running back Tim Worley fumbled the ball at least four times, and two of them were returned for touchdowns. This rout catpulted the Browns to a 9-6-1 season and their last AFC Championship game berth.

1. Browns 28, Steelers 23 (Oct. 24, 1993): Just two weeks later, Bill Belichick and Art Modell touched off mass furor when they released regional icon Bernie Kosar. However, all was right in the world with this game, simply remembered as the "Eric Metcalf Game." The Browns jumped out to an early 14-0 lead, thanks to a 62-yard touchdown pass from Vinny Testaverde to Michael Jackson and a 91-yard punt return by Metcalf, but the Steelers tied at 14 just before halftime. The Browns led again, 21-17, on a short TD pass from Testaverde to fullback Ron Wolfley, but the Steelers came back to take a 23-21 lead midway through the fourth quarter. With Testaverde knocked out of the game with a separated shoulder, Kosar was poised to direct one his patented two-minute drives. However, Metcalf never gave him the chance, weaving through the Steeler special teams for a breathtaking 75-yard touchdown with 2:05 remaining. Metcalf became just the first NFL player to have two punt return TDs in the same game. The win improved the Browns to 5-2, but Kosar's release deflated this team that wound up a disappointing 7-9. It was also the last time the original Browns beat the Steelers.

HONORABLE MENTION: Browns 10, Steelers 9 (Dec. 19, 1982):Nothing particularly memorable about this game, expect it helped propel the Browns into the playoffs with a 4-5 record in this strike-shortened season. Johnny Davis' 1-yard touchdown run in the third quarter gave the Browns a 10-7 lead it never relinquished, although punter Steve Cox took an intentional safety in the final seconds to make it a one-point win. However, this home game occurred on my ninth birthday. It is still the last time the Browns have been able to win on Joe Cleveland's birthday, and the fact that they beat my least-favorite team still makes me happy.

Can the Browns crack this top 10 tonight with another out-of-nowhere win? Can a win tonight help set off an era of good football, much like the Steelers' wins in the early 1970s kicked off their most epic era ever? We'll see. Kickoff is in an hour.

Here we go, Brownies, here we go!

Until next time, remember that Cleveland Rocks ... and PITTSBURGH SUCKS!!!