They call it “cornerback,’ but in reality, it should be “islandback” since the man playing the position is, for much of the game, out on an island, all by himself. He sinks or swims on his own merits.
As such, then, when a cornerback loses a step or two because of age and/or injuries, he loses a lot. He does considerably more sinking than swimming.
There are only two choices then. A team can get rid of the player in some way, shape or form, either by trade or outright release, or, if the player is big and physical enough, the club can move him to safety.
The Browns were facing that decision concerning cornerback Joe Haden, and, after being unable to work a deal, they ended up releasing himon Wednesday morning.
His speed had lessened but not his earnings. Yes, the Browns had the money to keep him if they wanted, since they’ve got all kinds of room under the salary cap. But would it have been a wise move for the team to retain a player who was only going to get worse, while at the same time denying a chance for a younger player who has a chance to improve because he’s on the way up, to get more time on the field?
The Browns didn’t think so, nor should they have. And Haden, at just 5-foot-11 and 195 pounds, is not big enough to go to safety. If he were going to play, then it had to be at corner. But he was no longer going to be a corner in Cleveland.
So it was time to move on.
It’s tough, however, to move on from someone like Haden, who, in being a good player with an even better smile and a willingness to do whatever he could to promote anything and everything in the community, was the face of the franchise in many ways in the early part of his career.
Haden isn’t the only great cornerback in Browns history who eventually got beaten in coverage by Father Time.
Tommy James was a superb corner for the early Browns teams from 1948-53. But for the final two seasons of his eight-year career, he was moved to safety and helped the club win back-to-back NFL championships in 1954 and ’55.
James didn’t like it – a corner, who has to be athletic by definition of the position, doesn’t like being told he isn’t athletic enough anymore — but head coach Paul Brown made the switch anyway despite the fact he had also coached James at both Massillon High School and Ohio State.
A first-round pick by the Browns in the 1971 NFL Draft, Clarence Scott was one of the best corners of his era. But after eight seasons, he was moved to safety in 1979 by head coach Sam Rutigliano and played his final five years at safety, being an integral part of the Kardiac Kids’ exciting run in 1980.
Hanford Dixon teamed with Frank Minnifield in the 1980s to form one of the best cornerback duos in NFL history. When head coach Bud Carson talked in the 1989 training camp about moving Dixon to safety, it caused a furor. Carson backed off, but in the ensuing offseason, the Browns left Dixon unprotected in free agency and he signed with the San Francisco 49ers. An injury ended his career after just one preseason game.
