THE HALL OF THE VERY GOOD IS VERY FULL
By STEVE KING
So, in addition to linebacker Clay Matthews, what other former Browns standouts are stuck just short of Pro Football Hall of Fame induction, in what could be considered the Hall of the Very Good?
These players:
*Linebacker Chip Banks – A four-time Pro Bowler in the 1980s, he had the physical ability to be the best linebacker the Browns have ever had, and a HOF enshrinee, but he didn’t play long enough.
*Defensive tackle Don Colo –He was one of the game’s best defensive tackles of the 1950s, as evidenced by his three Oro Bowl trips.
*Cornerbacks Hanford Dixon and Frank Minnifield – They were the NFL’s best cornerback tandem in the 1980s, combining for seven Pro Bowl trips, but they never had a chance to show the world what they had by playing in the Super Bowl.
*Defensive tackle Bob Gain – He was even better than Colo, with five Pro Bowl trips in the late 1950s and early ’60s.
*Guard Abe Gibron – A four-time Pro Bowler in the 1950s, he was a mainstay of great lines on championship teams.
*Defensive end Bill Glass – He made it to four Pro Bowls and teamed with Paul Wiggin to give the Browns one of the best sets of defensive ends in the NFL in the 1960s.
*Linebacker/defensive end Jim Houston – A four-time Pro Bowler, the Massillon High School and Ohio State product was one of the best linebackers in pro football in the 1960s.
*Defensive tackle Walter Johnson – Ultra-strong and lightning-quick, he made the Pro Bowl three times on championship-level teams,
*Wingback Dub Jones – He played in the shadow of all the great Browns offensive players of the 1950s, but he is still is one of only three players in NFL history to score six touchdowns in a game (the other two men are Hall of Famers).
*Linebacker Walt Michaels – Like Jones, he was overshadowed by iconic teammates, but he was as good as any linebacker in the game in the 1950s.
*Defensive tackle Michael Dean Perry – He made it to five – yes, five – Pro Bowls, more than any player at his position in team history.
*Running back/returner Greg Pruitt – Quick and elusive, he was, in the 1970s, as good as it gets as a runner, pass-catcher and returner, making it to four Pro Bowls.
*Running back Mike Pruitt – He is third in career rushing yards and touchdowns, with the two players ahead of him being in the HOF. Enough said.
*Quarterback Frank Ryan – For the five-year period from 1963-67, he was the most productive quarterback in the NFL, and threw three TD passes in the 1964 title-game victory.
*Defensive tackle Jerry Sherk – One of the best defensive tackles in the 1970s, the four-time Pro Bowler would be in the HOF if his career hadn’t been cut short by a knee injury in what would have been his most productive season.
*Guard Jim Ray Smith – He made it to five Pro Bowls and was one of the best offensive linemen at any position from the late 1950s into the early ’60s.
*Wide receiver Mac Speedie – For the seven years they played together on the first Browns teams, his statistics were better than those of Hall of Fame Dante Lavelli, but he killed his Hall chances when he bolted for the big money being offered by the CFL.
I left out two other players, whose stories will be told in my next post.
