It will be a meeting of teams at nearly opposite ends of the spectrum when the Browns entertain the New York on Sunday at FirstEnergy Stadium.
The Browns, who have suffered 14 consecutive losses — and 24 of their last 25 — dating back to 2015, are at the very bottom of the entire NFL with a record of 0-11. The Giants, winners of five in a row, are one of the teams that appear to have a real chance to make it to the Super Bowl out of the NFC. They have the third-best mark in that conference at 7-3 and are in second place in the East.
But there was a time long ago when things were much different – when everything was on the line every time the Browns and Giants played.
In every year but one in the 16-season span from 1950, when the Browns entered the NFL from the All-America Football Conference, through 1965, either the Browns or Giants won the Eastern, or American (1950-52), Conference title and thus advanced to NFL Championship Game. Because I know you’re wondering, only in 1960, when the Philadelphia Eagles shocked everyone by capturing the league crown, was the Cleveland-New York stranglehold interrupted.
The Browns ruled the conference nine times, from 1950-55 and then again in 1957, ’64 and ’65. They won NFL crowns in 1950, ’54, ’55 and ’64.
The Giants earned the conference title on six occasions, in 1956, ’58, ’59 and 1961-63. They were league champions in the first year, 1956.
In fact, twice, in 1950 (10-2) and ’58 (9-3), the teams finished the regular season tied for first place and had to have a playoff to decide the conference crown and the representative to the NFL Championship Game. After losing both regular-season meetings to the Giants in 1950, the Browns won the playoff 8-3. And in 1958, New York made it three in a row over Cleveland that season with a 10-0 victory.
In addition, twice, in 1952 and ’63, the teams finished just a game apart. One time, in 1951, only 1½ games separated them.
And in 1960, the Browns finished just 1½ games in arrears of the Eagles.
So, back in the day, it really was a big deal – year after year after year — when the Browns and Giants got together. And as such, it was one of the greatest rivalries in NFL history.
It all went away in 1970 when the Browns went to the reformed AFL, the AFC, as part of that league’s merger with the NFL, and it’s not coming back, as evidenced by the fact that, going into this season, the clubs had met just nine times over the last 4½ decades.
But now when the Browns and Giants play one another every four years or so, the rivalry is rekindled – at least a little bit, anyway — in the hearts and minds of fans in both cities with gray hair and a sense of history.
