Gotta Have Browns Sandals on Amazon

The Browns and Chicago Bears, who meet on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Soldier Field in the preseason opener, haven’t played each other in the regular season that much over the last three-quarters of a century.

But when they have squared off, a lot of the times something special — something memorable — has happened.

That includes the first game they pkayed, on Nov. 25, 1951, when the Browns, in their second year in the NFL after coming over from
the All-America Football Conferrnce, doubled up on the Bears in a 42-21 win. Running back Dub Jones scored all six of the Browns’ touchdowns — four on runs and two on pass receptions — to tie an NFL record that was set by the Chicago Bears’ Ernie Nevers of the Chicago Cardinals against the Bears in 1929. Two others have tied the mark since then in the Bears’ Gayle Sayers as a rookie in 1965 and Alvin Kamara in 2020 with the New Orleans Saints, with whom he still plays.

That 1951 game also set Browns team records for penalties (21) and penalty yards (209). In addition, the Bears were called for 16 penalties, the third-most ever by a Browns opponent, for 166 yards (most). A short poem was written about the game: “Over and over you would hear the man say, ‘It’s being called back, there’s a flag on the play.’ “

It was 38 years later, on Oct. 23, 1989, that the Browns blew out the Bears 27-7 on Monday Night Football. Afterward, Bears head coach Mike Ditka praised those in the raucous crowd of 78,722 at Cleveland Stadium for the noise they made and the way they inspired the Browns while at the same time making it hard for the Bears to call offensive signals. He said he wished that the Bears crowds at Soldier Field would act like that, which did not go over well at all back in Chicago.

The Browns led the Bears 21-7 with 30 seconds left in the fourth quarter on Nov. 4, 2001 at Soldier Field and somehow found a way to lose 27-21 in overtime.

Finally, following his team’s 30-6 loss to the Bears on Nov. 1, 2009 that reduced the Browns’ record to 1-7 and continued a string of offensive ineptitude, owner Randy Lerner became irate and said he wanted “a competent football man” to run the club. It led to the hiring of Mike Holcomb as team president.

Then in the preseason, the 1999 expansion Browns defeated the Bears 35-24 in their home finale. Afterward, linebacker Chris Spielman, a product of Massillon High School and Ohio State, said he lost feeling in his neck and back late in the game. He had had some injuries of that type in his long NFL career and it resulted in lot him retiring several days later. Also, Browns players were outspoken in their criticism of the turf, saying it was not safe.

Finally, also in the preseason, on Aug. 12, 2000, Ty Detmer was lost for the year after suffering a torn Achilles tendon in a 19-6 loss to the Bears at Chicago. It left the Browns without their veteran backup quarterback to Tim Couch. When Couch dislocated his thumb in
a practice halfway through the season and was lost for the year as well, the Browns had no competent replacement and it doomed the team. The Browns won only one game the rest of the year and finished 3-13, causing head coach Chris Palmer to get fired.

What will happen on Saturday? Stay tuned.

Steve King