1980: A BROWNS SEASON LIKE NO OTHER
We’ve written a lot about 1980 recently, and now it is time to close out that topic — at least for a little while, although we’ll likely revisit it on this, the 45th anniversary of it.
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And as we do, we just have to say that it was a season like no other in Browns history. It was outstanding, absolutely incredible. Words can’t really describe it. You really did have to see it to believe it. If you reviubtef those games and that season to someone else, they would have just laughed in your face. They would have thought it to be too corny, too contrived, too much of a Hollywood flavor. You had to be making it up, right?
Well, no.
And exciting? Was it exciting? Oh, my goodness, it provided excitement that was off the charts.
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- “Kardiac Kids: The Story of the 1980 Cleveland Browns” by Jonathan Knight on Amazon
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Indeed, the Kardiac Kids played up to their nickname in that 13 of the 16 regular-season games — 14 of 17 if you count the playoff matchup with the Oakland Raiders — were not decided until the final two minutes.
It was a season that went right down to the very end in every way, shape and form.
The Browns needed to win in Cincinnati in the regular-season finale to capture their first AFC Central championship in nine years. There was no other route for them to make the playoffs since they had already been eliminated from gaining a berth as a wild card.
The Browns went ahead 27-24 on a 22-yard field goal by Don Cockroft with 1:25 left, but the game was still far from over. The Bengals took the ensuing kickoff and, with veteran quarterback Ken Anderson coming in for the first time all day, they drove right down the field, getting to the Cleveland 36. With the clock winding down, he passed to wide receiver Steve Kreider for 22 yards to the 14. As Browns safety Thom Darden, who made the tackle, laid on top of Kreider to make it difficult for him to get up, Anderson and the rest of the members of the Cincinnati offense, which was out of timeouts, sprinted down the field to try to line up and spike the ball to stop the clock and likely attempt a game-tying field goal, but the time ran out.
Yes, it was that close.
And with that, Browns fans — about 10,000 in number at Riverfront Stadium and many, many more in Northeast Ohio huddled around their TV — could finally breathe again.
Steve King
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