25 Up, 25 Down: Tracking the Browns' QB failures

In Cleveland, they have the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which is apropos, because while rock is known for breaking records, the Cleveland Browns are known for breaking quarterbacks, evidenced by the latest casualty as Robert Griffin III was placed on Injured Reserve with a shoulder injury after a rough 29-10 opening day loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.

OK, that analogy didn't make much sense, but then again neither does the fact that since the Browns' 1999 return to Cleveland, 25 quarterbacks had the dubious distinction of being named starter, the most of any franchise during the same 16-year time span in NFL history.

To give you some perspective as to the futility of being a starter for the Browns, in 16 years and 25 quarterbacks, the highest number of starts was 59, and of the 25 starters, only one finished his time with the Browns possessing both a winning record and more touchdowns than interceptions.

Also, during this 16-season stretch the Browns saw only one postseason, and only two seasons over .500.

So how bad was it? Let's do a roll call of the fateful 25 quarterbacks, and see just how low the Browns have really gone.


1. Ty Detmer (1999)

Stats: 47-for-91, 51.6 percent, 548 yards, 4 TDs, 2 INTs
Rating: 75.7
W-L: 0-2

Detmer has the dubious honor of being the first QB of the "new" Browns, being selected in the expansion draft. His reign would last two games until true draft pick Tim Couch would take over. Best remembered for throwing seven interceptions, in one game.

2. Tim Couch (1999-2003)

Stats: 1,025-for-1,714, 59.8 percent, 11,131 yards, 64 TDs, 67 INTs
Rating: 75.1
W-L: 22-37

Of all Browns QBs, Couch has the longest tenure leading the offense with 59 starts. While he could officially be considered a bust, one has to wonder whether or not coaching stability and a consistent offensive line would've led to more passes in the end zone and less time on his back.

3. Spergon Wynn (2000)

Stats: 22-for-54, 40.7 percent, 167 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT
Rating: 41.2
W-L: 0-1

4. Doug Pederson (2000)

Stats: 117-for-210, 1,047 yards, 2 TDs, 8 INTs
Rating: 56.6
W-L: 1-7

Now the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, the team responsible for putting the latest Browns QB on the injured list. Must've given Pederson flashbacks, largely since his tenure was the result of Tim Couch being injured.

5. Kelly Holcomb (2001-2004)

Stats: 323-for-507, 63.7 percent, 3,438 yards, 26 TDs, 21 INTs
Rating: 83.3
W-L: 4-8

Holcomb is the only Browns' starter since the team returned to see a playoff game. Naturally he didn't play well, and by 2004, he was a distant memory.

6. Luke McCown (2004)

Stats: 48-for-98, 49 percent, 608 yards, 4 TDs, 7 INTs
Rating: 52.6
W-L: 0-4

7. Jeff Garcia (2004)

Stats: 144-for-252, 57.1 percent, 1.731 yards, 10 TDs, 9 INTs
Rating: 76.7
W-L: 3-7

8. Trent Dilfer (2005)

Stats: 199-for-333, 59.8 percent, 2,321 yards, 11 TDs, 12 INTs
Rating: 76.9
W-L: 4-7

9. Charlie Frye (2005-2007)

Stats: 345-for-566, 62.5 percent, 3,490 yards, 14 TDs, 23 INTs
Rating: 71.2
W-L: 6-13
Official draft bust. 

10. Ken Dorsey (2006-2008)

Stats: 43-for-92, 46.7 percent, 370 yards, 0 TDs, 7 INTs
Rating: 26.4
W-L: 0-3

11. Derek Anderson (2006-2009)

Stats: 829-for-1,543, 53.7 percent, 9,943 yards, 58 TDS, 55 INTs
Rating: 69.7
W-L: 16-18

Easily the most successful Browns starter in a single season, leading the 2007 Browns to a 10-win season. Could've gone to the playoffs too, except for the little problem of throwing four interceptions in one game. Never saw any level of success afterward.

12. Bruce Gradkowski (2008)

Stats: 7-for-21, 33.3 percent, 26 yards, 0 TDs, 3 INTs
Rating: 2.8
W-L: 0-1

13. Brady Quinn (2007-2009)

Stats: 296-for-550, 53.8 percent, 3,043 yards, 12 TDs, 17 INTs
Rating: 66.8
W-L: 3-9

Quinn was notable for two things: having the most jersey sales for a rookie in a season and being the first Brown in 22 years to have four touchdowns and zero interceptions in a game. It went downhill from there. Official draft bust.

14. Colt McCoy (2010-2011)

Stats: 409-for-702, 58.3 percent, 4,388 yards, 21 TDs, 20 INTs
Rating: 74.8
W-L: 6-15

Another in a long line of official draft busts, McCoy was thrown into the deep end of the pool early and now resides as a backup for Kirk Cousins in Washington.

15. Jake Delhomme (2010)

Stats: 93-for-149, 62.4 percent, 872 yards, 2 TDs, 7 INTs
Rating: 63.4
W-L: 2-2

16. Seneca Wallace (2010-2011)

Stats: 119-for-208, 59.9 percent, 1,201 yards, 6 TDs, 4 INTs
Rating: 76.6
W-L: 1-6

17. Thad Lewis (2011-2012)

Stats: 22-for-32, 68.8 percent, 204 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rating: 81.0
W-L: 0-1

18. Brandon Weeden (2012-2013)

Stats: 438-for-784, 55.9 percent, 5,116 yards, 23 TDs, 26 INTs
Rating: 71.8
W-L: 6-19

Old Man Weeden (28 at the time of being drafted) was known more for his advanced age as a rookie than any level of success on the field. Official draft bust. 

19. Jason Campbell (2013)

Stats: 180-for-317, 56.8 percent, 2,015 yards, 11 TDs, 8 INTs
Rating: 76.0
W-L: 1-7 

20. Brian Hoyer (2013-2014)

Stats: 299-for-534, 56.0 percent, 3,941 yards, 17 TDs, 16 INTs
Rating: 77.6
W-L: 10-6

Hoyer holds the distinction of being the only Brown QB with an overall winning record, unfortunately for him, it was over the course of two seasons, so there wasn't enough of an argument to keep him when the Browns had another draft bust to exploit.

21. Johnny Manziel (2014-2015)

Stats: 147-for-258, 57.0 percent, 1,675 yards, 7 TDs, 7 INTs
Rating: 79.4
W-L: 2-6
'Money' Manziel deserves his own article, and god knows there's been many, so let's just say that the only mark he left in his short time in Cleveland is being an official draft bust.

22. Connor Shaw (2014-2015)

Stats: 14-for-28, 50 percent, 177 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT
Rating: 55.2
W-L: 0-1

23. Josh McCown (2015-2016)

Stats: 186-for-292, 63.7 percent, 2,109 yards, 12 TDs, 4 INTs
Rating: 93.3
W-L: 1-7

The 37-year-old McCown is now the QB who has to pick up the pieces of an already-broken 2016 season, as he takes over for the injured Robert Griffin III.

24. Austin Davis (2015)

Stats: 56-for-94, 59.6 percent, 547 yards, 1 TD, 3 INTs
Rating: 66.2
W-L: 0-2

25. Robert Griffin III (2016)

Stats: 12-for-26, 46.2 percent, 190 yards, 0 TD, 1 INTs
Rating: 55.0
W-L: 0-1

While RG3 isn't an official draft bust for the Browns, his latest injury certainly threatens to solidify him as a bust in general, which makes him pretty much at home as a Cleveland Brown.