The second of my complete, pick-by-pick breakdown of each of the Browns NFL Draft classes since 1999:
So, it's 2000 and the "new" Browns are coming off of a miserable 2-14 first season. Not that anyone should have expected much different, considering they were an expansion team and how bad they fared in the previous NFL Draft. But, with that first rocky season behind them, it's time to start a new, fresh one and hopefully some talent has been improved, some lessons have been learned and what a better way to start then doing what couldn't be done the first time around: pick good players in the draft.
Here's a look at each of the 13 players the Browns picked in the 2000 NFL Draft:
Here's a look at each of the 13 players the Browns picked in the 2000 NFL Draft:
Principles who were choosing these players: Chris Palmer (head coach), Carmen Policy (president, CEO) and Dwight Clark (general manager).
Round 1 (1st overall): Courtney Brown | Defensive end | Penn State
Background: An extremely talented athlete and highly-decorated player in college, one of the best of all-time actually. In his senior year in 1999, was a first-team All-American, first-team All-Big Ten (for the second time) and Big Ten defensive player of the year. He finished his college career with an NCAA-record 33 sacks and 70 tackles for loss. At 6-foot-4 and 270 pounds he was a physical specimen and was incredibly fast for a man of his size, running a 4.5 40-yard dash at the combine. That is faster than a lot of NFL running backs. Amazing. In college, had a remarkable ability to get to the quarterback, evident by his numbers. Pretty much the consensus No. 1 pick.
They could have had...: Not an easy topic here. Very convoluted. One could argue they should have taken linebacker LaVarArrington, Brown's teammate at Penn State. Arrington was just as explosive as Brown and some said he was the next Lawrence Taylor. The Browns needed both a linebacker and a defensive end, so that part is a win-win. At the time, I wanted them to choose Arrington, although I didn't know much (I proved to be right, though). They also could have had left tackle Chris Samuels, who was one of the top 5 players at his position for ten years. Other notable guys they passed on: Jamal Lewis, Shaun Alexander, Thomas Jones, Plaxico Burress, Brian Urlacher, Shaun Ellis, John Abraham. Also, how about trading down to get more draft picks?
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: Peter Warrick, receiver out of Florida State. If memory serves me correctly, the Browns apparently did consider taking Warrick, who was being billed as the next great receiver, and rightfully so based on his college resume and production. The Browns did need a big-play receiver. But thankfully, they passed as Warrick never came close to living up to his hype and Cincinnati got stuck with him for five below-average seasons.
End result: Courtney Brown ended up being a bigger bust then Tim Couch, and is in any conversation about biggest draft busts of all time. Let's start with the numbers: Five seasons with the Browns, 47 games played (47 starts), 17 sacks, six forced fumbles, six fumble recoveries. No, folks, that's not one season. That is his entire five-year stint with the Browns (actually four seasons, he played just two games in 2004). How underwhelming and terrible. His best season as a Brown came in 2003, when he totaled six sacks and four forced fumbles in 13 games. After the Browns cut him in 2004, he went to Denver and played 14 games in the 2005 season, totaling just two sacks. Then he called it quits.
So, those are the numbers. Now let's talk injuries, which honestly, where responsible for probably 85 percent of Brown's downfall and abrupt career. He played just one 16-game season, his rookie year (when he did have a three-sack game against the Steelers, easily his career game). Before the 2001 season, Brown suffered an ankle injury and missed the first six games. He returned after a bye week and had a monster late-season flurry. But in one of the final games of the season, Brown suffered a devastating knee injury and was never the same. He had many surgeries and was actually one of the first pro athletes to have the risky and complicated microfracture surgery. Actually he had two of these major surgeries and three total on that left knee. He suffered many more injuries in his career, including a torn bicep, a broken foot and his career actually ended after a torn ACL with the Broncos.
Blaming injuries on Brown's downfall is fair. But he also never showed a passion for the game and people say he "thought too much" on the field, especially after his injuries. Whatever. He'll go down as nothing more than a "what-if".
So, those are the numbers. Now let's talk injuries, which honestly, where responsible for probably 85 percent of Brown's downfall and abrupt career. He played just one 16-game season, his rookie year (when he did have a three-sack game against the Steelers, easily his career game). Before the 2001 season, Brown suffered an ankle injury and missed the first six games. He returned after a bye week and had a monster late-season flurry. But in one of the final games of the season, Brown suffered a devastating knee injury and was never the same. He had many surgeries and was actually one of the first pro athletes to have the risky and complicated microfracture surgery. Actually he had two of these major surgeries and three total on that left knee. He suffered many more injuries in his career, including a torn bicep, a broken foot and his career actually ended after a torn ACL with the Broncos.
Blaming injuries on Brown's downfall is fair. But he also never showed a passion for the game and people say he "thought too much" on the field, especially after his injuries. Whatever. He'll go down as nothing more than a "what-if".
Grading the pick: B. Despite maybe toying with the idea of selecting LaVar Arrington or even Peter Warrick, Courtney Brown was as close to an automatic No. 1 pick as you can get. As I said, the Browns needed defensive line help, as the basically ignored the position in the previous draft. Brown's potential was limitless, and there was no way to know just how cursed he would be as far as injures. Chris Samuels would have been nice. But hindsight is 20/20 and the Browns, and virtually all of the media and experts at the time, thought this was a winner.
Round 2 (32nd overall): Dennis Northcutt | Receiver/returner | Arizona
Background: Northcutt was a stud at Arizona from 1996-99, catching 223 passes for 3,252 yards. Only two other Pac-10 players have more career receptions and receiving yards. Northcutt also caught one or more passes in 43 straight games, a conference record. In his senior year, he caught 88 balls for 1,422 yards and posted a 19-yard average on punt returns (second in the NCAA). One of the top receivers on the board that year and one of the fastest players available. The Browns took a receiver in the second round of the previous draft as well, Kevin Johnson. They were attempting to provide Tim Couch with more weapons, but still did not give him any stout blockers.
They could have had...:Defensive ends Darren Howard, John Engleberger or Cornelius Griffin; offensive tackles Marvel Smith, Chad Clifton and Todd Wade. As far as other receivers, Jerry Porter was the only notable one taken in this round, after Northcutt. Let's give this one to Marvel Smith, who was picked by ... who else, the Steelers. He started eight years at the left and right tackle spots and went to a Pro Bowl. Once again, the Browns ignore the "unsexy" picks and the Steelers scoop them up, build their team from the inside out and win Super Bowls.
They could have had...:Defensive ends Darren Howard, John Engleberger or Cornelius Griffin; offensive tackles Marvel Smith, Chad Clifton and Todd Wade. As far as other receivers, Jerry Porter was the only notable one taken in this round, after Northcutt. Let's give this one to Marvel Smith, who was picked by ... who else, the Steelers. He started eight years at the left and right tackle spots and went to a Pro Bowl. Once again, the Browns ignore the "unsexy" picks and the Steelers scoop them up, build their team from the inside out and win Super Bowls.
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: Round Two of this draft was very strong in terms of talented players from top to bottom. Let's go with Porter, who caught more career touchdowns than Northcutt, but less yards and proved to be a major headcase.
End result: Northcutt played seven seasons with the Browns, totaling 276 receptions for 3,438 yards and caught 11 touchdown passes. He returned three punts for touchdowns. He had a decent rookie year, catching 40 balls. He missed most of the 2001 season with an injury. As for 2002, it was the good and the bad, both to extremes. That season, he led the Browns with eight total TDs (five receiving, two punt returns and one kick return). But he earned the nickname "Dropcutt" after dropping that key pass late in the playoff loss to the Steelers, the only postseason appearance the Browns have made since 1999. He came back and had the the team in catches each of the next two seasons (62 in 2003 and 55 in 2004). The Browns did not resign Northcutt after his contract ended in 2006, and he signed with the Jaguars for the 2007 season. He played there for two years and had fairly good seasons before being traded to Detroit prior to the start of this past season.
Grading the pick: B-. The Browns should have taken an offensive lineman here. But this was the guy to select if they wanted a receiver. He was arguably the Browns best deep-play threat during his tenure and was a favorite target of all the QBs from 1999 to 2006. A weapon on special teams, he basically maximized his potential with the Browns, considering who was throwing him the ball and the total lack of a running game. To get seven fairly good and productive seasons out of a second-round pick, for the Browns, is something of an accomplishment. They needed better team speed and Northcutt provided that. But ignoring the trenches hurt the Browns again here, long-term speaking.
Grading the pick: B-. The Browns should have taken an offensive lineman here. But this was the guy to select if they wanted a receiver. He was arguably the Browns best deep-play threat during his tenure and was a favorite target of all the QBs from 1999 to 2006. A weapon on special teams, he basically maximized his potential with the Browns, considering who was throwing him the ball and the total lack of a running game. To get seven fairly good and productive seasons out of a second-round pick, for the Browns, is something of an accomplishment. They needed better team speed and Northcutt provided that. But ignoring the trenches hurt the Browns again here, long-term speaking.
Round 3 (63rd overall): Travis Prentice | Running back | Miami (Ohio)
Background: "Touchdown" Travis Prentice was nothing short of a historically-great running back at Miami. When he left Miami after four years as a starter, he was the all-time NCAA record holder in rushing touchdowns (73), total career TDS (78), point scored (468), games with at least one TD (35), games with two or more TDs (25), consecutive career carries without a fumble (862) and on and on and on. There are several more. He ended his Miami career with a whopping 5,596 rushing yards on 1,138 carries. A great college running back that probably didn't get the recognition he deserved, at the time, because of where he played.
They could have had...: The Browns needed a running back, so selecting one was probably the right idea. If they wanted to go a different direction,like defense, Mark Simoneau, linebacker from Kansas State, went four picks later and was a solid NFL player.
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: Receiver JaJuan Dawson from Tulane ...wait a second ...the Browns took him later in this round. Damn.
End result: Good thing 'Touchdown' Travis had so much success in college, because he never had any in the NFL. As in none, he was a total bust in every way. He played just one season with the Browns, starting 11 games (playing in 16) and totaling 512 yards on 173 carries for a robust 3.0 yards per carry. He did score seven rushing touchdowns and caught one TD pass. He was cut after the 2000 season and played the 2001 season with the Vikings as a backup. They cut him following the season and he never played in the NFL again. Whew. What a career. Hard to believe a guy could set that many records in college, even playing in the Mid-American Conference, and be out of the NFL after two years, just one as a starter. But it happened. Maybe it was inferior competition in the MAC. Maybe he couldn't adjust to the speed of the pro game, which happens often. Maybe it was the Browns' porous offensive line. Probably all of the above contributed to Prentice's lack of success. In this 2000 season, the Browns other running back was Eric Rhett, who got 71 carries (as opposed to Prentice's 173).
Grading the pick: C. This was a tough one to grade. A B-minus would also be appropriate. The Browns needed a running back as Eric Rhett was not going to cut it as a feature back. But would it really have mattered with that offensive line? (LT- Roman Oben, LG - Jim Bundren/Steve Zahursky, C- Dave Wohlobaugh, RG - Everett Lindsay, RT- James Brown/Zahursky). What a Who's-Who of great offensive linemen there. How pathetic, it's no surprise Prentice could only muster three yards a carry. I don't blame the Browns for taking a running back here, but any back was doomed to failure playing on this offense. They could have made this pick a little more appealing had they taken an offensive lineman with their second pick in the third round. But they took another receiver. Which brings me to ...
Background: Dawson was a speed guy and played on some high-octane offensives teams at Tulane with quarterback Patrick Ramsey, a future first-round draft pick. His senior year, he caught 96 balls for 1,061 yards and eight TDs.
They could have had...: How about any offensive lineman, defensive lineman or any defensive back? Seriously. Forced to pick one player picked in the third round after Dawson, I'll choose Damion McIntosh, a 6-4, 325-pound offensive tackle from Kansas State, a starter for eight years in the NFL with the Chargers and Dolphins. Also, as usual for this time period, the Browns not only chose the wrong position, but the wrong player at the position of choice. With the very next pick after Dawson, the Seahawks selected Darrell Jackson, who had seven very good years in Seattle. Jackson was about six times the receiver Dawson was. More bad player evaluation by this Browns front office.
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: Believe it or not, there were worse receivers selected around the time Dawson was.
End result: Dawson spent two seasons in Cleveland, playing in 16 games and starting two games. He totaled 31 catches for 378 yards and two TDs. He was cut after the 2001 season and spent 2002 with Houston, where he was a reserve. After that season, he was out of football, which means that the Browns ' two third-round selections were both completely out of the NFL by 2002. Remarkable, and just another indicator that these guys (Carmen Policy, Dwight Clark) had no business running an NFL team.
Grading the pick: F. Here is where the bad grades start coming. Instead of taking a lineman (offense or defense) the Browns go with yet another receiver and he turned out to be a bad one. He may have been a product of that pass-happy offense at Tulane. The front office was obviously trying to give Tim Couch some weapons to work with. Too bad they had no idea how to do it.
Round 4 (95th overall): Lewis Sanders | Cornerback | Maryland
Background: At 6-foot-1 and 210 pounds, Sanders was a good-sized cornerback and went into the draft as a junior. He was an All-ACC pick in 1999, totaled 10 career INTS and returned two kicks for touchdowns. Apparently, according to the research I've done, some scouts and personnel people could not decide if he was a big corner or a small safety, hence his slip into the fourth round.
They could have had...: How about offensive guard Cooper Carlisle, who went later in the fourth round to Denver? As far as other defensive backs go, cornerback David Barrett out of Arkansas was a better college player than Sanders and had a better pro career (yes, that may be a stretch).
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: Any receiver. Please, no more.
End result: Sanders played four seasons in Cleveland, playing in 52 games and starting nine. He totaled 79 tackles, four INTs and three fumble recoveries. Not bad for a roster-filler. After he and the Browns parted ways following the 2004 season, he played two seasons in Houston, one in Atlanta and one in New England and was out of football in 2009. Not a bad pro career. Not a great one, either.
Grading the pick: C. The Browns starting secondary in 2000 was Corey Fuller and Daylon McCutcheon at cornerback and Marquis Smith and Percy Ellsworth at the safeties. Not a Pro-Bowl caliber secondary, to say the least. They did some talent infused into this group, so this was not a horrible pick by any means.
Round 4 (110th overall): Aaron Shea | Tight end | Michigan
Background: Shea was a blocking fullback/tight end at Michigan, where he did have some success.
They could have had...: Let's go with offensive guard Cooper Carlisle again.
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: Nobody really notable, but again, thank God no receiver was taken with this pick.
End result: Shea played six seasons in Cleveland, playing in 65 games and starting 30. He totaled 97 career catches for 851 yards and seven TDs. His best season was his rookie campaign, when he split time with incumbent tight end Mark Campbell and posted 30 catches for 302 yards and two TDs. The 2001, '02 and '03 seasons were basically washes because of injures. Before the start of the 2004 season, the Browns drafted Kellen Winslow II to be their every-down tight end, making Shea expendable. He did sell his No. 80 to Winslow for $30,000. That is pretty cool, what a deal for him. He was out of football after the 2005 season and, apparently, has spent the last few years selling suites at Browns Stadium.
Grading the pick: D. Not much to say about this one. Tight end wasn't a high position of need for the Browns, and Shea and Mark Campbell were almost identical as players (good blocking tight ends, decent pass-catching tight ends). I hate to sound like a broken record, but this pick needed to be a lineman. No question about it. Shea wasn't a bad NFL player, which is why this grade isn't an "F".
Round 5 (130th overall): Anthony Malbrough | Cornerback | Texas Tech
Background: I have no recollection of this guy, and I could not find much about him on the internet. I did find out, according to a similar piece like this done on the respectable Browns' fan blog www.dawgsbynature.com, that Malbrough wasn't even considered an NFL Draft talent by most teams.
They could have had...: I've got two here for you. No. 1: Linebacker Clark Haggans out of Colorado State, who went seven picks later to ... you guessed it: the Steelers. Hagans started six years for the Steelers at LB, won a Super Bowl ring, then went to Arizona, where he got back to the Super Bowl. No. 2: Defensive tackle Brian Young out of UTEP, who was taken by the Saints at the 139th pick and totaled 22.5 career sacks.
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: Michael Wiley, running back, Ohio State. He was taken 144th overall by the Cowboys. One fast, undersized, future bust at running back (see Travis Prentice) was enough in one draft for me.
End result: One season in Cleveland, nine games played and one start. No stats worthy of me typing up. Out of football in 2001. A wasted pick and nothing else.
Grading the pick: F. Click on the link I have at the end of this analysis and check out some of the players taken by teams in the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh rounds of the draft. Not all are practice-squad players, journeyman and two years-and-out of the NFL players. Look at the draft history of teams like the Steelers, Patriots, Colts, Packers, Vikings, Ravens and Eagles and see who they picked in late rounds. Yes, each one of those teams has several "Anthony Malbroughs". But each one of those teams also has several "Clark Haggans." The Browns' player evaluation was so incredibly poor, what more evidence do you need aside from Anthony Malbrough?
Round 5 (146th overall): Lamar Chapman | Cornerback | Kansas State
Background: Made the All-Big 12 team in 1998. That's all I could find (or bothered to find, one of the two).
They could have had...: I've got two juicy names here for you. No. 1: Defensive tackle Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila out of San Diego State. A 6-foot-4, 250 pound mammoth, "KGB" was scooped up the Packers 149th overall and started nine seasons in Green Bay, totaling 74.5 sacks and went to a Pro Bowl. In fariness, 29 other teams passed on him, not just the Browns. But the Browns needed defensive lineman and he would have satisfied that need. The other name is running back Sammy Morris out of Texas Tech, who was taken by Buffalo at No. 156 overall and is still in the NFL, playing a key role on the Patriots for the last three seasons. A solid NFL role player. If the Browns could have seen this guy's talent, maybe they would have taken an offensive lineman instead of Travis Prentice earlier in the draft, and taken Morris in this round. Woulda, coulda, shoulda I guess.
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: Tee Martin, QB from Tennesssee, who was selected by the Steelers at No. 163 overall. Yes, he won a national title at UT. But he was not an NFL quarterback. And the Browns already had a QB in mind for this draft (read on to see who it was. Prepare to be underwhelmed).
End result: Anthony Malbrough, Part II. Actually Chapman made Malbrough look like Rod Woodson. Chapman played two seasons, playing in eight games and actually did intercept one pass. He was out of football by 2002. Another wasted draft pick and nothing else.
Grading the pick: F. So in the fifth round of the 2000 NFL Draft, the Browns apparently decided they needed to bolster their secondary and drafted Malbrough and Chapman. Both were out of the league in two years and one INT between the two of them. I'd say the Browns failed in their task. How about you?
Round 6 (183rd overall): Spergon Wynn | Quarterback | SW Texas St.
Background: Wynn played quarterback for two seasons at the Southland Conference school, Southwest Texas State. He totaled 3,497 yards passing and 24 TDs in two seasons. But ... he completed less than 50 percent of his passes and threw 13 INTs his senior year to go along with 14 TD passes.
They could have had...:This is rich. Really rich. If the Browns wanted to select quarterback, why not take the QB from Michigan who was taken by the Patriots 16 picks later? A guy by the name of Tom Brady. In case that wasn't bad enough; future Pro Bowl and All-Pro linebacker Adalius Thomas was selected by the Ravens at pick No. 186 overall. I could list about 100 other players that would have been a better selection than Spergon Wynn. Literally 100 players.
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: Not applicable here, as this was possibly the worst draft pick the Browns have made since 1999..
End result: In one season with the Browns, Wynn appeared in seven games and made one start in place of an injured Tim Couch. He compiled 167 yards, one TD and completed 22 of 54 passes. But he didn't throw an INT! He was cut after the 2000 season and went on to be backup in the NFL, the CFL and other bottom-feeder leagues. As if the record wasn't broken already: Another wasted pick.
Grading the pick: F-. This is about as low is it gets, no joke. With so many positions of need, with so many holes to fill on both sides of the ball, the Browns use a draft pick, even a sixth-rounder, on a quarterback??? A quarterback who couldn't even complete half of his passes in college? If this was a joke by Policy and Smith, it was a bad one. It's not like the team needed a young QB to develop, Tim Couch was the starter. If they wanted a backup, why not sign a veteran? Doug Pederson was already on the roster as a backup. What a joke, this front office was either just guessing at this point, or trying to be too cute and take a player that they thought was some kind of "diamond in the rough." More like "crap in the toilet." As I said, this is about as low is it gets. The fact they wanted a QB, yet overlooked Tom Brady, is just icing on the proverbial crap cake.
Round 6 (206th overall): Brad Bedell | Offensive tackle | Colorado
Background: Bedell played offensive tackle and guard at Colorado. Decent size (6-4, 306).
They could have had...: Finally an offensive lineman!! The Browns went the entire 1999 draft and the first six rounds of the 2000 draft before talking one, but they finally took one ... Brad Bedell!. Too bad he was garbage and they passed up Mark Tauscher out of Wisconsin, who was selected by the Packers 18 picks after the Browns selected Bedell. Tauscher started for the Packers for nine years.
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: Bedell was the last pick in the sixth round. Be thankful the Browns passed on another QB, like Jarious Jackson out of Notre Dame, who went to Denver in the seventh road.
End result: Bedell spent two seasons as a backup in Cleveland, playing in 27 games with four starts. He was cut after the 2001 season and bounced around various teams' practice squads until 2006.
Grading the pick: D-. That is is the closest D- I can get to an F, only because an offensive lineman was finally taken. Too bad Bedell was a flier and the Browns again fail to recognize talent. But, hey, a light finally went of somewhere and someone realized, "Hey, we may want to get some offensive lineman." Too little, too late, Cleveland.
Round 7 (207th overall): Manuia Savea | Offensive guard | Arizona
Background: Ummm..played at Arizona. Have no idea. He was 6-2, 308. That's all I got, folks.
They could have had...: What'd ya know, another offensive lineman!!! They finally got it. Again, too bad the Browns took the guy who had no talent. Tauscher was still on the board.
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: How about another QB? Be glad they didn't take Joe Hamilton, QB from Georgia Tech, who was selected by Buccaneers near the end of the draft. Hamilton was a Heisman finalist in 1999, but was not an NFL-caliber QB. But, better than Spergon Wynn? You bet.
End result: Savea didn't make the team. He was cut before the season. He must have been awful, considering the pathetic offensive line this Browns team had.
Grading the pick: F. G-a-r-b-a-ge.
Round 7 (225th overall): Rashidi Barnes | Defensive back | Colorado
Background: None that I can find.
They could have had...: This was near the end of this draft. How about Patrick Pass, fullback from Georgia. He went to be a valuable piece on the Patriots' offense from 2000 to 2007. Now that, folks, is the reason why the Patriots had a dynasty and the Browns had nothing. They used their seventh-round picks and turned them into contributors. What a beautiful example.
Thankfully they passed on this guy in that round: Nobody notable.
End result: Barnes played in 14 games as a special-teamer, was cut after the 2000 season and that was his career.
Grading the pick: F. G-a-r-b-a-ge.
Best pick: Do I have to pick one? If so, I'd go with Dennis Northcutt, he at least was a valuable weapon on offense and actually contributed on the field. Lewis Sanders would be second.
Worst pick: Too many choice. But I'll go with Spergon Wynn.
Biggest blunder: This entire draft class was a blunder, from Northcutt down (excluding Sanders). Pathetic and wretched.
Final grade: F. I don't blame the Browns for selecting Courtney Brown. All of the indicators said that he would be a great NFL player. Nobody could have predicted how star-crossed he'd become, as it relates to injuries. So, the Browns get a pass on that. As for the rest ... awful.
Whether it was picking the wrong position, or picking the right position, this front office could not get it right. Thankfully,for Browns fans, this would be the last draft Carmen Policy, Dwight Clark and Chris Palmer would foul up, as Butch Davis came to town in 2001 and did some good fouling up on his own.
Of these 13 players drafted by the Browns, eight were out of the league by 2002. Eight of 13. That is an incredible stat that sums up everything I have written in this lengthy analysis.
In case you want more info, here's the link to the Pro Football Reference.com page on the 2000 Browns draft: 2000 Browns draft page
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