<![CDATA[Browns First round draft Busts]]>The topic came up elsewhere, but I am giving it a separate treatment. Here are some of the worst of the worst of Browns first round draft busts. You are welcome to add to it:

1995 Craig Powell LB played only 3 games with Browns, moved to Baltimore, only played 9 there.

1988 Clifford Charlton. LB Started 1 game for the Browns. Did play in 30 others as backup.

1987 Mike Junkin. LB Made only 7 starts for Browns. Played in only 15 NFL games.

1979 Willis Adams. WR Made only 10 starts (but did play in 75 games.....a 2d stringer)

1968 Marvin Upshaw DE Made only 10 starts for the Browns (but did have a long career with KC)

1962 Leroy Jackson. RB played -0- games for Browns, only 15 for Washington. I believe he may have been a part of the Ernie Davis trade

1955 Kurt Burris OC Did not play one game in the NFL.

1954 Bobby Garrett #1 overall QB. Cut by the Browns in training camp. played in 9 NFL games with Green Bay, but no starts.

In essence you could say that it would be a much shorter list to list successful Browns 1st rounders than their busts.

]]>https://brownsboard.com/topic/39788/browns-first-round-draft-bustsRSS for NodeFri, 02 Oct 2026 01:56:30 GMTWed, 09 Mar 2016 16:28:33 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 20:37:22 GMT]]>

@mudfly said:

another interesting stat is only about 10% of first round picks ever even make a pro-bowl....so, while most teams hope for stars, they rarely get em.....and most pro-bowlers are not first round picks.....

Examples from our last 11 pro bowlers, only 4 were 1st rd picks....Barnidge 5th rd, Cameron 4th rd, Gipson 5th rd, Cribbs udfa, Ward 2nd rd, Dawson UDFA, Gordon 2nd rd....

Gipson was a UDFA, not a 5th round pick.

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584968https://brownsboard.com/post/584968Wed, 09 Mar 2016 20:37:22 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 18:07:19 GMT]]>

@the-gipper said:

I haven't done it for any other team, or league wide. I would have predicted it to be somewhere in the 40 percentile range.

another interesting stat is only about 10% of first round picks ever even make a pro-bowl....so, while most teams hope for stars, they rarely get em.....and most pro-bowlers are not first round picks.....

Examples from our last 11 pro bowlers, only 4 were 1st rd picks....Barnidge 5th rd, Cameron 4th rd, Gipson 5th rd, Cribbs udfa, Ward 2nd rd, Dawson UDFA, Gordon 2nd rd....

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584857https://brownsboard.com/post/584857Wed, 09 Mar 2016 18:07:19 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:43:40 GMT]]>

@mudfly said:

I know we've had some really bad luck there....no dispute.....but I once read a great article that calculated the league average in the low 30's.....so we're not the only ones and probably just not as tuned into other teams picks....

I haven't done it for any other team, or league wide. I would have predicted it to be somewhere in the 40 percentile range.

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584837https://brownsboard.com/post/584837Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:43:40 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:42:17 GMT]]>

@d-bone said:

"Browns First round draft Busts"

Is there enough internet bandwidth for this question?

Yes, but it is now all used up!

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584834https://brownsboard.com/post/584834Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:42:17 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:41:47 GMT]]>

@hoorta said:

I have no arguments with any of your selections.

Gip beat me to it Cal. If we extended it to the "premium" picks- the first three rounds, It gets worse. Greg Little, Brian Slow-biski, Mohamed Massivedrop.

Let's hope the new guys can bat better than .274. A lot of those "good" picks predate 1999. After that, it's been two. the Joes- Thomas and Haden. = 12.5%. The reason for suckage is obvious.

Well, I will include Mack, even though we will now lose him, so only Mack, Thomas, Haden can be put in the Good category, this century.

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584833https://brownsboard.com/post/584833Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:41:47 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:40:52 GMT]]>

@the-gipper said:

Out of 62 first round selections, I count only 17 that can be considered "Good" for the Browns anyway (a few good went elsewhere, like Atkins) That is only a 27.4 % success rate. Terrible in my opinion.

I know we've had some really bad luck there....no dispute.....but I once read a great article that calculated the league average in the low 30's.....so we're not the only ones and probably just not as tuned into other teams picks....

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584830https://brownsboard.com/post/584830Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:40:52 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:39:42 GMT]]>

@calfoxwc said:

Oh, it's true, Gip, but I don't see any dimwittedness in Hue.

It's a new Hue era. He won't botch a first round pick in his HC career.

and Farmer is gone.....I'm great with starting over smart, for the first time

since '99. New Day Dawning ! We have met the enemy, and it isn't our

own FO or coaching anymore !

Things are lookin up, as long as we don't dwell on the miserable past.

I hope you are right Pogo.

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584827https://brownsboard.com/post/584827Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:39:42 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:33:25 GMT]]> "Browns First round draft Busts"

Is there enough internet bandwidth for this question?

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584812https://brownsboard.com/post/584812Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:33:25 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:33:19 GMT]]>

@the-gipper said:

Let me repeat: Browns history of having a good first round draft pick: 27.4%.

I have no arguments with any of your selections.

@calfoxwc said:

Let me repeat - it's in the past. Let it go. 😡

Gip beat me to it Cal. If we extended it to the "premium" picks- the first three rounds, It gets worse. Greg Little, Brian Slow-biski, Mohamed Massivedrop.

Let's hope the new guys can bat better than .274. A lot of those "good" picks predate 1999. After that, it's been two. the Joes- Thomas and Haden. = 12.5%. The reason for suckage is obvious.

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584810https://brownsboard.com/post/584810Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:33:19 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:29:02 GMT]]>Oh, it's true, Gip, but I don't see any dimwittedness in Hue.

It's a new Hue era. He won't botch a first round pick in his HC career.

and Farmer is gone.....I'm great with starting over smart, for the first time

since '99. New Day Dawning ! We have met the enemy, and it isn't our

own FO or coaching anymore !

Things are lookin up, as long as we don't dwell on the miserable past.

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584806https://brownsboard.com/post/584806Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:29:02 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:21:05 GMT]]>

@calfoxwc said:

Let me repeat - it's in the past. Let it go. 😡

Repeat?

You know what they say....those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

The Brown have repeatedly made bad choices in the past with their draft....often by reaching for players because of "need".

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584801https://brownsboard.com/post/584801Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:21:05 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:11:05 GMT]]>Let me repeat - it's in the past. Let it go. 😡

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584797https://brownsboard.com/post/584797Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:11:05 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:07:16 GMT]]>Let me repeat: Browns history of having a good first round draft pick: 27.4%.

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584794https://brownsboard.com/post/584794Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:07:16 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:06:40 GMT]]>The Ugly...Busts:

Courtney Brown

Rich Kreitling

Tommy Vardell

Mack Mitchell

Robert Jackson (LB...not OG)

Brandon Weeden

William Green

Pete Adams

Barkevious Mingo....so far anyway

Steve Holden

Willis Adams

Johnny Manziel

Tom Hutchinson

Leroy Jackson

Bert Rechichar

Justin Gilbert...so far anyway

Clifford Charlton

Mike Junkin

Brady Quinn

Craig Powell

Bobby Garrett

John Bauer

Kurt Burris

Harry Agannis

There are far more members in the Ugly crown than in the other two: Good or mediocre.

Out of 62 first round selections, I count only 17 that can be considered "Good" for the Browns anyway (a few good went elsewhere, like Atkins) That is only a 27.4 % success rate. Terrible in my opinion.

Two players I did not include: Shelton/Erving....too soon to tell....but why, with the above track record, do I not like the chances for these two?

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584793https://brownsboard.com/post/584793Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:06:40 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Browns First round draft Busts on Wed, 09 Mar 2016 16:59:45 GMT]]>Or, perhaps let me do it this way: This is the Good, the Mediocre and the Ugly of Browns first round picks over the years:

The Good:

Jim Brown

Paul Warfield

Clay Matthews

Joe Thomas

Gary Collins

Chip Banks

Hanford Dixon

Eric Metcalf

Mike Pruitt

Ozzie Newsome

Clarence Scott

Jim Houston

Thom Darden

Eric Turner

Alex Mack

Joe Haden

Ken Konz (pro bowl DB from the 50s)

The Mediocre:

Doug Atkins...Hall of Famer, but for Bears, not Browns

Ron Johnson.....traded to NYG

Derrick Alexander....career mostly with other teams

Gerard Warren....bust for Browns....mediocre for most of career with other teams

Kameron Wimbley.....ditto

Jeff Faine....traded to N.O.

Bob Matheson....most of career in Miami

Braylon Edwards.

Mike Phipps

Marvin Upshaw...most of career with KC

Kellen Winslow II

Steve Everitt

Bob McKay

Tim Couch

Antonio Langham

Charles White ....most of career with Rams

Jim Shofner

Preston Carpenter

Phil Taylor

Don Rogers...career cut short

Ken Carpenter

next post...the Bad/Ugly

]]>https://brownsboard.com/post/584787https://brownsboard.com/post/584787Wed, 09 Mar 2016 16:59:45 GMT