1964 Cleveland Browns season

The 1964 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 19th season, and 15th season with the National Football League. The Browns won the NFL Championship, despite having not made the playoffs in six seasons.^[1]

1964 Cleveland Browns season
Owner	Art Modell
General manager	Harold Sauerbrei
Head coach	Blanton Collier
Home field	Cleveland Stadium
Local radio	WERE
Results
Record	10–3–1
Division place	1st NFL Eastern
Playoff finish	Won NFL Championship (vs. Colts) 27–0
Pro Bowlers	FB Jim Brown DE Bill Glass OLB Jim Houston DT Dick Modzelewski QB Frank Ryan T Dick Schafrath SE Paul Warfield
← 1963 Browns seasons 1965 →

Regular season

The regular season was a success with the Browns finishing with a regular season record of 10–3–1. They were coached by Blanton Collier who had replaced Paul Brown the previous season. The team had a tremendous amount of heart, which was demonstrated by the fact that they had key commanding wins throughout the season. For instance, they swept their arch rival New York Giants, who the previous year had edged them out as the eastern conference champion. Not only did they win both times that they played against the Giants but both wins were very convincing, the first being a 42–20 home victory and the second being a 52–20 away victory. The second victory over the Giants was a clutch, season ending game that clinched the eastern conference title. Many of the Browns' wins during the regular season were in a very commanding manner, with a 37–21 win over the Detroit Lions being a prime example. The win over the Lions carried extra significance due to the fact that the Lions had been the team that knocked them out of the conference champion hunt the previous season by beating them 38–10 in the second to last regular season game.

The Browns were led by Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown who had a stellar regular season, rushing for 1,446 yards with a 5.2 yards/carry average. Although they had a great rushing game, the Browns had a very balanced offense, choosing not to just hand the ball to Brown on every play. The quarterback of the team was Frank Ryan who had a decent season throwing for 2,404 yards and 25 touchdowns while throwing 19 interceptions. The top receivers of the team were Paul Warfield and Gary Collins, the second of whom would become a legend by catching three touchdowns in the championship game against the heavily favored Baltimore Colts.^[2][3]

Championship Game

Leading into the game, the Browns were huge underdogs. Most experts had them losing by double digits. Baltimore was so heavily favored that after the Browns won the game, Sports Illustrated had to scramble to find a picture of a Browns player to put on its cover. Baltimore had the league's best offense and had a league best record of 12–2. They were stacked with future Hall of Famers such as Johnny Unitas, Lenny Moore, and John Mackey. The Browns though, were unfazed by the apparent talent disparity and Jim Brown was reported stating before the game, "we're going to kick their [butt] today." The game-time temperature that day was 34 degrees and felt much colder in 15- to 25-mph winds whipping under gray December sky. The Municipal Stadium crowd of 79,544 was the second largest in NFL title-game history at the time. The Browns knew that if they wanted to be in the game they had to make a statement early on, and they did just that. Galen Fiss, the Browns team captain, broke up a screen pass from Unitas to Moore, sending Moore airborne for a loss. The Browns tenacity on defense is what got them to the half time score of 0–0. Brown's running back Ernie Green reported after the game about half time, "We cleaned ourselves and sat down, and it seemed like something came over all of us. I think we all kind of looked at each other and concluded, 'Hey, we can beat these guys.'" Not only did the Browns "beat" the Colts in the second half, They destroyed them, scoring 27 unanswered points. Gary Collins became a Cleveland Browns legend by catching three touch down passes, the third one being a 51-yarder with Colts defender Bobby Boyd all over him. The biggest story of the game was how well Cleveland's defense played against Baltimore's heralded offense. Cleveland was able to hold Unitas to just 95 yards while intercepting him twice.^[4]

Lasting value

This was the last major sports championship won by a Cleveland-based team until 2016, when the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team that was formed in 1970, defeated the defending champion Golden State Warriors in a seven-game NBA Finals. Not only is it remembered in Cleveland but ESPN ranks the '64 title game as the second-greatest NFL postseason upset, behind only Joe Namath's guaranteed win over the Colts in Super Bowl III four seasons later.

Offseason

1964 draft class

Main article: 1964 NFL draft

1964 Cleveland Browns Draft

Round	Selection	Player	Position	College
1	11	Paul Warfield	Wide receiver	Ohio State
2	26	Billy Truax	Defensive end	LSU
4	54	Don Shackelford	Tackle	Pacific
5	67	Dick Klein	Tackle	Wichita State
7	95	Sammy Odom	Linebacker	Northwestern (LA) State
8	110	Leroy Kelly	Running back	Morgan State
9	123	John Briscoe	Linebacker	Arizona
10	135	Bobby Robinson	Guard	Mississippi
	138	Dick Van Raaphorst	Kicker	Ohio State
11	151	Eddie Versprille	Fullback	Alabama
12	166	Ed Mitchell	Tackle	Southern
13	179	Bob Meehan	Guard	Syracuse
14	194	Terry Sieg	Running back	Virginia
15	207	John Houtman	Tackle	Michigan
16	222	Sid Williams	End	Southern
17	235	Larry Bartolameolli	Tackle	Western Michigan
18	250	Sherman Lewis	Defensive back	Michigan State
19	263	Jim Higgins	Guard	Xavier
20	278	Dave Archer	Tackle	Syracuse

^[5]

Exhibition schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Score	Record	Stadium	Attendance	Time (ET)	Local TV	Radio
1	August 9	at San Francisco 49ers	L	7–26	0–1	Kezar Stadium	27,404	4:30 PM EDT		WGAR–AM
2	August 15	at Los Angeles Rams	W	56–31	1–1	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum	43,183	11:00 PM EDT	WEWS-TV	WERE–AM
3	August 22	vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (at Akron)	W	42–7	2–1	Rubber Bowl	27,255	8:00 PM EDT		WERE–AM
4	August 28	at Detroit Lions	W	35–14	3–1	Tiger Stadium	36,946	8:00 PM EDT	WEWS-TV	WGAR–AM
5	September 5	Green Bay Packers	W	20–17	4–1	Cleveland Stadium	83,736	9:00 PM EDT		WGAR–AM

Notes:

^a All times are Eastern time.

There was a doubleheader on September 5, 1964, Giants vs Lions and Packers vs Browns.

Regular season schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Score	Record	Stadium	Attendance	Time (ET)	Network	Radio	Recap
1	September 13	at Washington Redskins	W	27–13	1–0	District of Columbia Stadium	47,577	1:30 PM EDT	CBS	WGAR–AM	Recap
2	September 20	St. Louis Cardinals	T	33–33	1–0–1	Cleveland Stadium	76,954	1:30 PM EDT	CBS	WGAR–AM	Recap
3	September 27	at Philadelphia Eagles	W	28–20	2–0–1	Franklin Field	60,671	1:30 PM EDT	CBS	WGAR–AM	Recap
4	October 4	Dallas Cowboys	W	27–6	3–0–1	Cleveland Stadium	72,062	1:30 PM EDT	CBS	WGAR–AM	Recap
5	October 10	Pittsburgh Steelers	L	7–23	3–1–1	Cleveland Stadium	80,530	8:00 PM EDT	Sports Network Incorporated (SNI)	WERE–AM	Recap
6	October 18	at Dallas Cowboys	W	20–16	4–1–1	Cotton Bowl	37,456	2:30 PM EDT	CBS	WERE–AM	Recap
7	October 25	New York Giants	W	42–20	5–1–1	Cleveland Stadium	81,050	1:30 PM EST	CBS	WERE–AM	Recap
8	November 1	Pittsburgh Steelers	W	30–17	6–1–1	Pitt Stadium	49,568	1:30 PM EST	CBS	WERE–AM	Recap
9	November 8	Washington Redskins	W	34–24	7–1–1	Cleveland Stadium	76,385	1:30 PM EST	CBS	WERE–AM	Recap
10	November 15	Detroit Lions	W	37–21	8–1–1	Cleveland Stadium	83,064	1:30 PM EST	CBS	WERE–AM	Recap
11	November 22	vs. Green Bay Packers (at Milwaukee)	L	21–28	8–2–1	Milwaukee County Stadium	48,065	2:00 PM EST	CBS	WERE–AM	Recap
12	November 29	Philadelphia Eagles	W	38–24	9–2–1	Cleveland Stadium	79,289	1:30 PM EST	CBS	WERE–AM	Recap
13	December 6	at St. Louis Cardinals	L	19–28	9–3–1	Busch Stadium	31,585	2:00 PM EST	CBS	WERE–AM	Recap
14	December 12	at New York Giants	W	52–20	10–3–1	Yankee Stadium	63,007	2:00 PM EST	CBS	WERE–AM	Recap

Note:^a All times are Eastern time. (UTC–4; UTC–5 starting October 25)

Game summaries

Week 1: at Washington Redskins

Cleveland Browns 27, Washington Redskins 13

1 2 3 4 Total • Browns 0 13 7 7 27 Redskins 0 10 0 3 13 Date: September 13 Location: District of Columbia Stadium, Washington, DC Game start: 1:30 p.m. EDT Game attendance: 47,577 Game weather: 58 °F (14 °C); wind 11 mph Referee: Harry Brubaker TV announcers (CBS): Ken Coleman (CLE) (second half) and Jim Gibbons (WSH) (first half) (play–by–play), Warren Lahr (CLE) (second half) and Eddie Gallaher (WSH) (first half) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q2 WSH Martin 12 yard field goal WSH 3–0 Q2 WSH Taylor 17 yard rush (Martin kick) WSH 10–0 Q2 CLE Collins 23 yard pass from Ryan (kick failed) WSH 10–6 Q2 CLE Brown 1 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 13–10 Q3 CLE Brown 1 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 20–10 Q4 WSH Martin 14 yard field goal CLE 20–13 Q4 CLE Green 1 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 27–13

^[6]

Week 2: vs. St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals 33, Cleveland Browns 33

1 2 3 4 Total Cardinals 10 3 10 10 33 Browns 6 10 7 10 33 Date: September 20 Location: Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio Game start: 1:30 p.m. EDT Game attendance: 76,954 Game weather: 67 °F (19 °C); wind 7 mph Referee: Tom Bell TV announcers (CBS): Jack Drees (STL) (second half) and Ken Coleman (CLE) (first half) (play–by–play), Bill Fischer (second half) (STL) and Warren Lahr (first half) (CLE) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q1 STL Crow 22 yard pass from Johnson (Bakken kick) STL 7–0 Q1 CLE Groza 32 yard field goal STL 7–3 Q1 CLE Groza 12 yard field goal STL 7–6 Q1 STL Bakken 30 yard field goal STL 10–6 Q2 CLE Groza 37 yard field goal STL 10–9 Q2 STL Bakken 51 yard field goal STL 13–9 Q2 CLE Warfield 40 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) CLE 16–13 Q3 STL Randle 38 yard pass from Johnson (Bakken kick) STL 20–16 Q3 STL Bakken 44 yard field goal STL 23–16 Q3 CLE Collins 7 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) Tie 23–23 Q4 STL Randle 50 yard pass from Johnson (Bakken kick) STL 30–23 Q4 CLE Groza 25 yard field goal STL 30–26 Q4 CLE Brown 1 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 33–30 Q4 STL Bakken 28 yard field goal Tie 33–33

^[7]

Week 3: at Philadelphia Eagles

Cleveland Browns 28, Philadelphia Eagles 20

1 2 3 4 Total • Browns 7 0 14 7 28 Eagles 7 6 0 7 20 Date: September 27 Location: Franklin Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Game start: 1:30 p.m. EDT Game attendance: 60,671 Game weather: 64 °F (18 °C); wind 12 mph Referee: George Rennix TV announcers (CBS): Ken Coleman (CLE) (second half) and Jack Whitaker (PHI) (first half) (play–by–play), Warren Lahr (CLE) (second half) and Art Pollard (PHI) (first half) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q1 CLE Green 37 yard run (Groza kick) CLE 7–0 Q1 PHI Matson 1 yard rush (Baker kick) Tie 7–7 Q2 PHI Baker 12 yard field goal PHI 10–7 Q2 PHI Baker 42 yard field goal PHI 13–7 Q3 CLE Warfield 24 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) CLE 14–13 Q3 CLE Brown 40 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) CLE 21–13 Q4 CLE Collins 12 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) CLE 28–13 Q4 PHI Matson 7 yard rush (Baker kick) CLE 28–20

^[8]

Week 4: vs. Dallas Cowboys

Cleveland Browns 27, Dallas Cowboys 6

1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 0 6 0 0 6 • Browns 7 6 7 7 27 Date: October 4 Location: Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio Game start: 1:30 p.m. EDT Elapsed time: 2:33 Game attendance: 72,062 Game weather: 56 °F (13 °C); wind 14 mph Referee: Norm Schachter TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber (DAL) (second half) and Ken Coleman (CLE) (first half) (play–by–play), Davey O'Brien (DAL) (second half) and Warren Lahr (CLE) (first half) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q1 11:21 CLE Green 7 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) CLE 7–0 Q2 4:47 CLE Groza 19 yard field goal CLE 10–0 Q2 13:06 DAL Norman 5 yard pass from Roach (kick failed) CLE 10–6 Q2 14:55 CLE Groza 21 yard field goal CLE 13–6 Q3 14:46 CLE Warfield 40 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 20–6 Q4 2:35 CLE Collins 38 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 27–6

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Week 5: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Pittsburgh Steelers 23, Cleveland Browns 7

1 2 3 4 Total • Steelers 10 6 7 0 23 Browns 0 7 0 0 7 Date: October 10 Location: Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio Game start: 8:00 p.m. EDT Game attendance: 80,530 Game weather: 40 °F (4 °C); wind 14 mph TV announcers (Sports Network Incorporated (SNI)): Ken Coleman (play–by–play), Warren Lahr (color commentator)

Scoring summary Q1 PIT Clark 21 yard field goal PIT 3–0 Q1 PIT Johnson 33 yard rush (Clark kick) PIT 10–0 Q2 PIT Johnson 45 yard rush (kick failed) PIT 16–0 Q2 CLE Collins 18 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) PIT 16–7 Q3 PIT Johnson 5 yard rush (Clark kick) PIT 23–7

^[10]

Week 6: at Dallas Cowboys

Cleveland Browns 20, Dallas Cowboys 16

1 2 3 4 Total • Browns 7 6 0 7 20 Cowboys 0 6 10 0 16 Date: October 18 Location: Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas Game start: 2:30 p.m. EDT Elapsed time: 2:55 Game attendance: 37,456 Game weather: 68 °F (20 °C); wind 16 mph TV announcers (CBS): Ken Coleman (CLE) (second half) and Frank Glieber (DAL) (first half) (play–by–play), Warren Lahr (CLE) (second half) and Davey O'Brien (DAL) (first half) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q1 2:42 CLE Green 1 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 7–0 Q2 0:04 DAL Raaphorst 34 yard field goal CLE 7–3 Q2 4:11 CLE Groza 34 yard field goal CLE 10–3 Q2 5:10 CLE Groza 30 yard field goal CLE 13–3 Q2 14:45 DAL Raaphorst 20 yard field goal CLE 13–6 Q3 5:42 DAL Raaphorst 37 yard field goal CLE 13–9 Q3 14:37 DAL Perkins 1 yard rush (Raaphorst kick) DAL 16–13 Q4 8:31 CLE Parrish 54 yard interception return (Groza kick) CLE 20–16

^[11]

Week 7: vs. New York Giants

Cleveland Browns 42, New York Giants 20

1 2 3 4 Total Giants 6 0 7 7 20 • Browns 0 7 7 28 42 Date: October 25 Location: Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio Game start: 1:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 72,062 Game weather: 50 °F (10 °C); wind 14 mph Referee: Norm Schachter TV announcers (CBS): Chris Schenkel (NY) (second half) and Ken Coleman (CLE) (first half) (play–by–play), Pat Summerall (NY) (second half) and Warren Lahr (CLE) (first half) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q1 NY James 1 yard rush - (kick failed) NY 6–0 Q2 CLE Kelly 68 yard punt return (Groza kick) CLE 7–6 Q3 CLE Warfield 11 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 14–6 Q3 NY Tittle 7 yard rush (Chandler kick) CLE 14–13 Q4 CLE Wiggin 2 yard fumble return (Groza kick) CLE 21–13 Q4 CLE Collins 9 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 28–13 Q4 CLE Scales 23 yard fumble return (Groza kick) CLE 35–13 Q4 NY Wheelwright 20 yard pass from Wood (Chandler kick) CLE 35–20 Q4 CLE Brewer 11 yard pass from Ninowski (Groza kick) CLE 42–20

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Week 8: at Pittsburgh Steelers

Cleveland Browns 30, Pittsburgh Steelers 17

1 2 3 4 Total • Browns 0 10 10 10 30 Steelers 0 10 0 7 17 Date: November 1 Location: Pitt Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Game start: 1:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 49,568 Game weather: 51 °F (11 °C); wind 6 mph TV announcers (CBS): Ken Coleman (CLE) (second half) and Joe Tucker (PIT) (first half) (play–by–play), Warren Lahr (CLE) (second half) and Johnny Sauer (PIT) (first half) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q2 CLE Groza 36 yard field goal CLE 3–0 Q2 CLE McNeil 25 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 10–0 Q2 PIT Peaks 5 yard rush (Clark kick) CLE 10–7 Q2 PIT Clark 26 yard field goal Tie 10–10 Q3 CLE Green 7 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 17–10 Q3 CLE Groza 22 yard field goal CLE 20–10 Q4 CLE Groza 16 yard field goal CLE 23–10 Q4 PIT Johnson 1 yard rush (Clark kick) CLE 23–17 Q4 CLE Green 13 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 30–17

^[13]

Week 9: vs. Washington Redskins

Cleveland Browns 34, Washington Redskins 24

1 2 3 4 Total Redskins 0 3 7 14 24 • Browns 0 13 14 7 34 Date: November 8 Location: Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio Game start: 1:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 76,385 Game weather: 45 °F (7 °C); wind 6 mph Referee: George Rennix TV announcers (CBS): Jim Gibbons (WSH) (second half) and Ken Coleman (CLE) (first half) (play–by–play), Eddie Gallaher (WSH) (second half) and Warren Lahr (CLE) (first half) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q2 WSH Martin 30 yard field goal WSH 3–0 Q2 CLE Green 21 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 7–3 Q2 CLE Groza 11 yard field goal CLE 10–3 Q2 CLE Groza 38 yard field goal CLE 13–3 Q3 CLE Collins 13 yard pass from Brown (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 20–3 Q3 WSH Mitchell 14 yard pass from Jurgenson (Martin kick) CLE 20–10 Q3 CLE Warfield 62 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 27–10 Q4 WSH Taylor 10 yard pass from Jurgenson (Martin kick) CLE 27–17 Q4 CLE Brown 2 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 34–17 Q4 WSH Mitchell 14 yard pass from Jurgenson (Martin kick) CLE 34–24

^[14]

Week 10: vs. Detroit Lions

Cleveland Browns 37, Detroit Lions 21

1 2 3 4 Total Lions 14 7 0 0 21 • Browns 7 13 7 10 37 Date: November 15 Location: Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio Game start: 1:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 83,064 Game weather: 51 °F (11 °C); wind 9 mph Referee: Tony Skovar TV announcers (CBS): Van Patrick (DET) (second half) and Ken Coleman (CLE) (first half) (play–by–play), Jim Morse (DET) (second half) and Warren Lahr (CLE) (first half) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q1 CLE Brown 6 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 7–0 Q1 DET Lewis 92 yard pass from Plum (Walker kick) Tie 7–7 Q1 DET Gibbons 4 yard pass from Plum (Walker kick) DET 14–7 Q2 CLE Groza 38 yard field goal DET 14–10 Q2 CLE Brown 2 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 17–14 Q2 DET Barr 39 yard pass from Plum (Walker kick) DET 21–17 Q2 CLE Groza 47 yard field goal DET 21–20 Q3 CLE Warfield 8 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 27–21 Q4 CLE Groza 36 yard field goal CLE 30–21 Q4 CLE Beach 65 yard interception return (Groza kick) CLE 37–21

^[15]

Week 11: at Green Bay Packers

Green Bay Packers 28, Cleveland Browns 21

1 2 3 4 Total Browns 14 0 0 7 21 • Packers 7 0 14 7 28 Date: November 22 Location: Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee, Wisconsin Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 48,065 Game weather: 15 °F (−9 °C); wind 15 mph; wind chill 0 °F (−18 °C) TV announcers (CBS): Ken Coleman (CLE) (second half) and Earl Gillespie (GB) (first half) (play–by–play), Warren Lahr (CLE) (second half) and Tony Canadeo (GB) (first half) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q1 CLE Warfield 48 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 7–0 Q1 GB Pitts 19 yard rush (Hornung kick) Tie 7–7 Q1 CLE Brown 1 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 14–7 Q3 GB Taylor 1 yard rush (Horning kick) Tie 14–14 Q3 GB Starr 4 yard rush (Hornung kick) GB 21–14 Q4 GB Taylor 5 yard rush (Horning kick) GB 28–14 Q4 CLE Warfield 19 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) GB 28–21

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Week 12: vs. Philadelphia Eagles

Cleveland Browns 38, Philadelphia Eagles 24

1 2 3 4 Total Eagles 3 0 7 14 24 • Browns 7 14 10 7 38 Date: November 29 Location: Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio Game start: 1:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 79,289 Game weather: 32 °F (0 °C); wind 15 mph; wind chill 22 °F (−6 °C) Referee: Jim Pace TV announcers (CBS): Jack Whitaker (PHI) (second half) and Ken Coleman (CLE) (first half) (play–by–play), Art Pollard (PHI) (second half) and Warren Lahr (CLE) (first half) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q1 CLE Shoals 0 yard fumble return (Groza kick) CLE 7–0 Q1 PHI Baker 14 yard field goal CLE 7–3 Q2 CLE Williams 0 yard fumble return (Groza kick) CLE 14–3 Q2 CLE Houston 42 yard interception return (Groza kick) CLE 21–3 Q3 CLE Groza 37 yard field goal CLE 24–3 Q3 PHI Brown 20 yard rush (Baker kick) CLE 24–10 Q3 CLE Brewer 24 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) CLE 31–10 Q4 PHI Goodwin 19 yard pass from Snead (Baker kick) CLE 31–17 Q4 CLE Brewer 13 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) CLE 38–17 Q4 PHI Retzlaff 32 yard pass from Snead (Baker kick) CLE 38–24

^[17]

Week 13: at St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals 28, Cleveland Browns 19

1 2 3 4 Total Browns 3 3 3 10 19 • Cardinals 0 21 7 0 28 Date: December 6 Location: Busch Stadium I, St. Louis, Missouri Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 31,585 Game weather: 18 °F (−8 °C); wind 7.8 mph; wind chill 8 °F (−13 °C) TV announcers (CBS): Ken Coleman (CLE) (second half) and Jack Drees (STL) (first half) (play–by–play), Warren Lahr (second half) (CLE) and Bill Fischer (first half) (STL) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q1 CLE Groza 22 yard field goal CLE 3–0 Q2 STL Childress 46 yard pass from Johnson (Bakken kick) STL 7–3 Q2 STL Johnson 1 yard rush (Bakken kick) STL 14–3 Q2 STL Conrad 8 yard pass from Johnson (Bakken kick) STL 21–3 Q2 CLE Groza 39 yard field goal STL 21–6 Q3 CLE Groza 17 yard field goal STL 21–9 Q3 STL Johnson 1 yard rush (Bakken kick) STL 28–9 Q4 CLE Groza 36 yard field goal STL 28–12 Q4 CLE Green 30 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) STL 28–19

^[18]

Week 14: at New York Giants

Cleveland Browns 52, New York Giants 20

1 2 3 4 Total • Browns 3 21 21 7 52 Giants 0 7 0 13 20 Date: December 6 Location: Yankee Stadium (I), Bronx, New York Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 63,007 Game weather: 49 °F (9 °C); wind 6.8 mph TV announcers (CBS): Ken Coleman (CLE) (second half) and Chris Schenkel (NY) (first half) (play–by–play), Warren Lahr (CLE) (second half) and Pat Summerall (NY) (first half) (color commentators)

Scoring summary Q1 CLE Groza 39 yard field goal CLE 3–0 Q2 NY James 7 yard pass from Tittle (Chandler kick) NY 7–3 Q2 CLE Ryan 13 yard rush (Groza kick) CLE 10–7 Q2 CLE Collins 11 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 17–7 Q2 CLE Green 1 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) CLE 24–7 Q3 CLE Green 25 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) CLE 31–7 Q3 CLE Warfield 8 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 38–7 Q3 CLE Brown 8 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 45–7 Q4 NY Thomas 10 yard pass from Wood (Chandler kick) CLE 45–14 Q4 CLE Roberts 24 yard pass from Ninowski (Groza kick) CLE 52–14 Q4 NY Thomas 1 yard pass from Wood (kick failed) CLE 52–20

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Game Officials

Week	Opponent	Referee	Umpire	Head Linesman	Back Judge	Field Judge
1	at Washington	(23) Harry Brubaker	(18) Tony Sacco	(8) Grover Klemmer	(29) Stan Jaworowski	(32) Jim Tunney
2	St. Louis	(7) Tom Bell	(20) Frank Sinkovitz	(30) George Murphy	(25) Tom Kelleher	(34) Fritz Graf
3	at Philadelphia	(52) George Rennix	(51) Lou Palazzi	(28) Bill Schleibaum	(24) Bruce Alford	(10) Charles Sweeney
4	Dallas	(56) Norm Schachter	(4) James Beiersdorfer	(26) Ed Marion	(33) Art Holst	(27) Herm Rohrig
5	Pittsburgh
6	at Dallas	() Bill Downes	(4) James Beiersdorfer	() Sam Cooperman	() Armen Terzian	() Joe Gonzales
7	New York	(56) Norm Schachter
8	at Pittsburgh
9	Washington	(52) George Rennix
10	Detroit	(55) Tony Skovar
11	vs. Green Bay (at Milwaukee)
12	Philadelphia	(3) Jim Pace
13	at St. Louis
14	at New York

Playoffs

Round	Date	Opponent	Result	Score	Stadium	Attendance	Time (ET)	Network	Local Radio	National Radio	Recap
NFL Championship Game	December 27	Baltimore Colts	W	27–0	Cleveland Stadium	79,544	1:30 PM EST	CBS	WERE–AM	CBS	Recap

Notes:

^a All times are EASTERN time.

1964 NFL Championship Game: vs. Baltimore Colts

1964 NFL Championship Game: Cleveland Browns 27, Baltimore Colts 0

1 2 3 4 Total Colts 0 0 0 0 0 • Browns 0 0 17 10 27 Date: December 27 Location: Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio Game start: 1:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 79,554 Game weather: 34 °F (1 °C); wind 15.2 mph; wind chill 23 °F (−5 °C) Referee: Norm Schachter TV announcers (CBS): Chuck Thompson (BAL) (second half) and Ken Coleman (CLE) (first half) (play–by–play), Frank Gifford (color commentator)

Scoring summary Q3 CLE Groza 43 yard field goal CLE 3–0 Q3 CLE Collins 18 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 10–0 Q3 CLE Collins 42 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 17–0 Q4 CLE Groza 10 yard field goal CLE 20–0 Q4 CLE Collins 51 yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick) (Groza kick) CLE 27–0

^[20]

Officials

Round	Opponent	Referee	Umpire	Head Linesman	Back Judge	Field Judge	Alternates
1964 NFL Championship Game	Baltimore	(56) Norm Schachter	(57) Joe Connell	(30) George Murphy	(25) Tom Kelleher	(16) Mike Lisetski	(52) George Rennix, (29) Stan Jaworowski

Standings

NFL Eastern Conference
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Cleveland Browns	10	3	1	.769	9–2–1	415	293	W1
St. Louis Cardinals	9	3	2	.750	8–2–2	357	331	W4
Philadelphia Eagles	6	8	0	.429	6–6	312	313	L1
Washington Redskins	6	8	0	.429	5–7	307	305	L2
Dallas Cowboys	5	8	1	.385	4–7–1	250	289	W1
Pittsburgh Steelers	5	9	0	.357	5–7	253	315	L1
New York Giants	2	10	2	.167	2–8–2	241	399	L4

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Personnel

Staff

1964 Cleveland Browns staff

Front office Owner - Art Modell General manager – Harold Sauerbrei Head coaches Head coach – Blanton Collier Offensive coaches Offensive line – Fritz Heisler Offensive backfield and ends – Dub Jones

Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator – Howard Brinker Defensive assistant – Nick Skorich Linebackers – Ed Ulinski Strength and conditioning Trainer - Leo Murphy Equipment manager - Morrie Kono

Roster

1964 Cleveland Browns roster

Quarterbacks (QB) 11 Jim Ninowski 13 Frank Ryan Running backs (RB) 32 Jim Brown FB 36 Charley Scales 44 Leroy Kelly 48 Ernie Green Wide receivers (WR) 27 Walter Roberts 42 Paul Warfield 85 Clifton McNeil 86 Gary Collins P 87 Tom Hutchinson Tight ends (TE) 83 Johnny Brewer

Offensive linemen (OL) 56 John Morrow C 60 John Wooten G 62 Dale Memmelaar G 66 Gene Hickerson G 70 John Brown T 73 Monte Clark T 75 Roger Shoals T 77 Dick Schafrath T Defensive linemen (DL) 69 Jim Kanicki DT 72 Mike Bundra DT 74 Dick Modzelewski DT 78 Frank Parker DT 79 Bob Gain DT 80 Bill Glass DE 84 Paul Wiggin DE

Linebackers (LB) 35 Galen Fiss OLB 38 Stan Sczurek OLB 50 Vince Costello MLB 52 Mike Lucci MLB 64 Ed Bettridge MLB 67 Sid Williams OLB 82 Jim Houston OLB/DE Defensive backs (DB) 20 Ross Fichtner S 22 Lowell Caylor S 23 Larry Benz S 24 Bobby Franklin S 26 Dave Raimey CB 30 Bernie Parrish CB 49 Walter Beach CB Special teams 76 Lou Groza K

Rookies in italics

^[21]

Media

Radio

Flagship station	Play-by-play	Color commentator
WERE–AM 1300 (main) WGAR–AM 1220 (backup)	Gib Shanley	Jim Graner

Pre season TV

Local TV	Play-by-play	Color commentator
WEWS-TV 5	Ken Coleman	Warren Lahr

Awards and records

• Jim Brown, NFL Rushing Leader, (1,446 yards)
• Frank Ryan, NFL Leader, Touchdown Passes, (25)

Milestones

• Jim Brown, Seventh NFL Rushing Title

1965 NFL Pro Bowl (1964 NFL season), January 10, 1965

Pro Bowl

• Jim Brown, FB, NFL Eastern Conference
• Bill Glass, DE, NFL Eastern Conference
• Jim Houston, OLB, NFL Eastern Conference
• Dick Modzelewski, DT, NFL Eastern Conference
• Frank Ryan, QB, NFL Eastern Conference
• Dick Schafrath, T, NFL Eastern Conference
• Paul Warfield, SE, NFL Eastern Conference
• Blanton Collier, NFL Eastern Conference head coach
• Howard Brinker, NFL Eastern Conference defensive coordinator
• Fritz Heisler, NFL Eastern Conference offensive line coach
• Dub Jones, NFL Eastern Conference offensive backfield and ends coach
• Nick Skorich, NFL Eastern Conference defensive assistant coach
• Ed Ulinski, NFL Eastern Conference linebackers coach

References

1. Last playoff appearance, 1958
2. King, Steve. "History: 1964". The Official Website of the Cleveland Browns. Archived from the original on October 25, 2011. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
3. "Team History". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 12, 2012. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
4. Lubinger, Ben. "Cleveland Browns fans still cherish 1964 NFL championship season, more than two generations later". The Cleveland Plain Dealer. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
5. Cleveland Browns 2015 Media Guide. Cleveland Browns. p. 295.
6. Pro-Football-Reference.com
7. Pro-Football-Reference.com
8. Pro-Football-Reference.com
9. Pro-Football-Reference.com
10. Pro-Football-Reference.com
11. Pro-Football-Reference.com
12. Pro-Football-Reference.com
13. Pro-Football-Reference.com
14. Pro-Football-Reference.com
15. Pro-Football-Reference.com
16. Pro-Football-Reference.com
17. Pro-Football-Reference.com
18. Pro-Football-Reference.com
19. Pro-Football-Reference.com
20. Pro-Football-Reference.com
21. "1964 Cleveland Browns Starters, Roster, & Players". Pro Football.

External links

• 1964 Cleveland Browns season at Profootballreference.com
• 1964 Cleveland Browns season statistics at jt-sw.com
• 1964 Cleveland Browns Statistics at jt-sw.com
• 1964 Cleveland Browns at DatabaseFootball.com