On this date in Cleveland Browns history

On this date in Cleveland Browns historyCINCINNATI, OH - DECEMBER 9: Mike Phipps #15 of the Cleveland Browns drops back to pass against the Cincinnati Bengals during an NFL football game at Riverfront Stadium December 9, 1973 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Phipps played for the Browns from 1970-76. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)

Posted By: County Sports Network May 3, 2020

On this date in Cleveland Browns history, May 3, 1977

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By STEVE KING

It was a very busy day — and, as it turned, also an extremely important one, both good and bad – on this date in Cleveland Browns history (43 years ago).

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It was on May 3, 1977, the first day of the NFL Draft, that the Browns:

*Traded quarterback Mike Phipps to the Chicago Bears for a fourth-round draft choice in 1977 and a first-round selection in ’78.

*Used their first-round pick, at No. 17 overall, to take Texas A&M middle/inside linebacker Robert L. Jackson.

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*Used their second-round choice, at No. 46 overall, to take Ohio State punter Tom Skladany.

*Used their own fourth-round pick to take Tennessee State cornerback Oliver Davis.

*Also, on this date in Cleveland Browns history they used the fourth-round choice they got in the Bears trade to take South Carolina State defensive tackle Mickey Sims.

The trade of Phipps was an emotional release for both parties involved. It had to be made. It was just time.

The Browns, desperate to get a quarterback to succeed Bill Nelsen, whose knees were shot, traded Pro Football Hall of Fame wide freceiver Paul Warfield from Warren Harding High School and Ohio State to Miami for the Dolphins’ No. 3 overall pick in the 1970 draft, which they used to take Phipps, a Purdue product.

Head coach Don Shula and the Dolphins needed a big-play, down-the-field wide receiver for their young quarterback, Bob Griese, and they got exactly that with Warfield. The Dolphins went to three straight Super Bowls from 1971-73, winning the last two, including in 1972 when they went a perfect 17-0. They beat the Browns 20-14 in the 1972 AFC divisional playoffs, the winning touchdown late in the game being set up by a 35-yard pass to Warfield from veteran Earl Morrall, who played for an injured Griese. Phipps ran for a touchdown and threw for a 27-yard score to wideout Fair Hooker with eight minutes left to give the Browns a 14-13 lead, but he completed just 9-of-23 passes overall for 131 yards and that TD and was intercepted five times for a miniscule quarterback rating of 33.3.

As it turned out, Warfield was reacquired by the Browns in 1976 and played that season with Phipps.

It was a disastrous trade for the Browns because, of course, Phipps never panned out. He did some good things early in his Cleveland tenure, but as the team deteriorated in ensuing years, so did his play.

Phipps did, though, play well down the stretch in 1975 as the Browns, who started 0-9, got hot and won three of their last five. That gave hope that 1976 would be more of the same and that he had finally arrived.

And Phipps did indeed look like that player in the first half of the season opener against the New York Jets, completing 11-of-15 passes for 100 yards and three second-quarter touchdowns, including a 23-yarder to Warfield, who was making his second Cleveland debut, to provide a 21-10 halftime lead. Phipps also rushed three times for 26 yards, including a 24-yarder just before half on which he separated his throwing shoulder while being tackled.

That was, in essence, the end of his Cleveland career, although he did return to play a little that season. But the page had already been turned to a third-year quarterback named Brian Sipe, who threw for two second-half TDs in the 38-17 Browns win.

On this date in Cleveland Browns history
CLEVELAND, OH – 1979: Quarterback Brian Sipe #17 of the Cleveland Browns looks to pass during a National Football League game at Cleveland Municipal Stadium in 1979 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images)

So, what did the Browns do with that 1978 first-round draft pick they got from Chicago in the Phipps trade?

They used it to take HOF tight end Ozzie Newsome, who was selected 11 picks after they chose linebacker Clay Matthews at No. 12 overall in one of the best drafts in Browns history.

Embed from Getty Images

So, while it didn’t work out with Phipps, the Browns were still able to parlay a Hall of Famer out of his necessary departure.

Now for that 1977 draft. It didn’t work out nearly as well for the Browns.

Jackson was a bust. He missed the entire 1977 season with a knee injury and didn’t become a starter until that 1980 Kardiac Kids year. But he wasn’t football savvy enough to grasp the nuances of Cleveland’s 3-4 defense and it limited the team on being able to fully utilize the alignment. He was traded following the 1981 season.

Skladany got into a major negotiating impasse and never did sign with the Browns, finally being traded to the Detroit Lions.

So, the Browns, with two of the first 46 picks, got virtually nothing from them.

Davis played four years with the Browns, including in 1978 when he got six interceptions to give him nine in his first two years. But he never built upon that promise and finished his career by playing two seasons with the rival Cincinnati Bengals.

Sims had a great start, playing exceptionally well in place of an injured Jerry Sherk in the 1977 opener to help provide a 13-3 upset win at Cincinnati. But he, too, never built upon that promise and spent just three years in Cleveland. He was out of football after that.

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