Dawgs By Nature
25 questions with a former Cleveland quarterback
The Cleveland Browns own eight pro football championships, but the last one was back in 1964. Even though the franchise had some really good rosters in the late 1960s and all of the 1980s, they have come close with appearances in several AFC Championship Games. However, getting back to the NFL’s title game has eluded them.
Ever since the franchise re-entered the NFL back in 1999, years of futility have ensued. During this stretch, the Browns have only gone to the playoffs three times and have been 1-4 in playoff games. The roster has been run by 10 head coaches and two interim head coaches. They have drafted 11 quarterbacks and have had 40 different signal-callers start a game under center.
RELATED: SHOULD THE BROWNS TURN BACK THE CLOCK ON OFFENSE?
The issues at quarterback for the Browns are well-known as every talk show host has used Cleveland as the butt of jokes in this regard.
But before the Browns relocated to Baltimore in 1996, the quarterback position wasn’t the disheveled mess that it has been plagued with post-expansion. Numerous talented players suited up for Cleveland at quarterback who were valued athletes and remained roster members for years and years.
Rarely was the starting QB position the issue with any year’s roster. Or their backups, for that matter.
Todd Philcox played for the Browns from 1991 to 1993. Standing 6’-4” and weighing 218 pounds, he had the prototypical physique that coaches loved. In 1991, the Browns hired defensive coordinator Bill Belichick away from the New York Football Giants to be their next head coach after the Giants won Super Bowl 25. The following year, Belichick was not satisfied with his backup quarterback situation in Cleveland behind Bernie Kosar and pursued Philcox in Plan “B,” then signed him away from the Cincinnati Bengals.
Philcox played in the NFL from 1989 - 1998 with seven different clubs. For his career, he had 85 completions on 173 attempts for 1,138 yards with seven touchdowns, 11 interceptions, was sacked 18 times, and had a 57.4 QB rating.
His stats with Cleveland: 11 games played, five starts, 69 completions on 143 attempts for 965 yards, seven TDs, nine picks, sacked eight times, and a 60.5 QB rating. While with the Browns, he broke his thumb in 1992, which gave him gripping issues for the remainder of his career.
His best game was in Week 3 of the 1992 season against the Los Angeles Raiders.
In the game before, starter Bernie Kosar broke his ankle, and Belichick chose Philcox as his starter going forward. Philcox responded with 10 completions on 20 attempts for 200 yards, tossing three touchdowns without any interceptions, and wasn’t sacked a single time. Plus, it was Cleveland’s first victory of the season as the Browns won 28-16 in front of 48,102 patrons in Los Angeles.
He broke that thumb in the second quarter, yet finished the game.
Philcox grew up in Norwalk, Connecticut, and attended...
