When subject of the Browns’ memorable 27-0 shellacking of the Baltimore Colts in the 1964 NFL Championship Game comes up, everybody thinks of quarterback Frank Ryan and wide receiver Gary Collins.
And well they should, for Ryan fired three second-half touchdown passes to Collins covering 18, 42 and 51 yards to provide almost all of the offensive punch. Collins was named the game’s MVP.
Indeed, Ryan and Collins are forever heroes in Cleveland.
What – er, who – never gets mentioned, though, but should, is that Browns right linebacker Galen Fiss might well have been the game’s defensive MVP. In the very least, he clearly made the defensive play of the game, without which the contest may have turned out very differently and the performances of Ryan and Collins might have never had the chance to materialize.
The game was scoreless at halftime, and that was because of Fiss.
The Colts, working from their 23-yard-line in the second quarter, called a screen pass from quarterback John Unitas to running back Lenny Moore. Not only was it the perfect call, but it was executed perfectly, just like it was drawn up on the chalkboard.
The Baltimore offensive linemen made shadow blocks on their men and then sprinted over to begin to set up a wall on the left side, in front of the Colts bench on the north sideline of Cleveland Stadium. Meanwhile, Unitas looked to the right, toward the Cleveland bench, as if he were going to pass that way.
Ten Browns defenders bit on the fake, either charging toward Unitas or moving to the side of the field to which he was looking.
One did not.
And that was Fiss, sniffing out the play like you would expect a wily nine-year veteran to do.
Fiss stayed to Moore’s side of the field, then when Unitas suddenly turned to his left, spotted the back and softly and accurately lofted the ball to him, the linebacker maneuvered through the blockers and spilled Moore for a big loss.
The whole side of the field was wide open. Moore would have waltzed 77 yards for a touchdown. There was no one to stop him. In fact, he might still be running had it not been for Fiss.
A score at that point, especially a dynamic one covering over three-quarters the length of the field, might have jump-started the tremendous Baltimore offense, and it may also have cracked the Browns’ armor and rushed their spirit.
It could have turned the whole game around – against the Browns.
As it was, though, the play – the fact they threw their best punch and the Browns just swatted it away — seemed to take the starch out of the Colts while at the same time giving Cleveland a big dose of confidence and momentum.
After that, the Colts never came close to scoring, and the Browns finally got untracked offensively against the great Baltimore defense in the second half.
Years later, Fiss was at an NFL function. A friend mentioned to him that Moore was also there and asked if he wanted to say hello.
“Sure,” said Fiss, who had never met Moore.
Fiss approached Moore and stuck out his hand, but before he could say a word to introduce himself, the Pro Football Hall of Famer, immediately recognizing the ex-Brown, exclaimed with a wild-eyed look, “Galen Fiss, how in the world did you ever tackle me?!”
Moore had never forgotten that play and had been waiting all that time to ask that question.
