BEST DE TANDEM IN BROWNS HISTORY?

By STEVE KING

Sometimes, the answer is clear.
Sometimes, it’s not.
And sometimes, it’s a little of both.
The last one — a little of both — is where things stand on the question of whether J.J. Watt and Myles Garrett would be the best defensive end combination in Browns history.
We don’t know for sure. We can’t. It’s only the last few days of February, and the 2021 regular season won’t start for a little over six months. Plus, Watt, a free agent, hasn’t signed with the Browns — or anyone — to this point, and it’s hard to say when, exactly, he will make his choice. He has already asked, in essence, for patience, because, in fact, it is obviously such a big decision.
But if Watt signs with the Browns and is paired with Garrett, then yes, there is the potential — for the Browns to have the No. 1 defensive end tandem in franchise history. As we mentioned the other day, Watt is is one of the best defensive players in the game, and has been for some time. He seems to be the closest thing to a sure bet there is to make it into the Pro Football Halll of Fame. And although Garrett has a long, long way to go and, still, is just really getting started in his career, he has the skill set to be in the Hall some day as well.
What are the other top defensive end combinations the Browns have had? There are two,or three, as it were.
The earliest occurred from 1950-57 when Len Ford, a Hall of Famer, played with first George Young and then Carlton Massey, both of whom were solid. The Browns had great defenses back then, including along the line, where middle guard Bill Willis, a Hall of Famer, too, played with Ford for four seasons.
From 1962-67, the Browns had Bill Glass and Paul Wiggin at end. Both are in the Cleveland Browns Legends, the team’s hall of fame. Though sack totals weren’t an official statistic at the time, Glass was a sack artist and Wiggin was as talented overall — a complete player — as they come. They were at their best in the 27-0 wipeout of John Unitas, Lenny Moore, Raymond Berry and the Baltimore Colts in the 1964 NFL Championship Game.