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Best Cleveland Browns team, post-1965
Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2026 10:30 am
by 74_75_78_79_
Pretty much who you feel was their best squad since their last League Championship Game appearance?
I count five teams since who were one game away from the Super Bowl. Almost a sure-thing you’ll all pick one of those. But let’s do mention, at least, the one who was very close to knocking out that 14-0 team we know so well, the forever popular Cardiac team piloted by Sipe in his tour de force moment, and 2020 FWIW their strongest 21st Century squad by far!
Re: Best Cleveland Browns team, post-1965
Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2026 11:03 am
by Halas Hall
I will go with the 1968 and 1969 squads that beat Dallas 2x in the playoffs. I think the Browns’ first losing season was 1973.
Re: Best Cleveland Browns team, post-1965
Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2026 12:02 pm
by Brian wolf
1980 or 1986 team, though its tough betting against the Paul Warfield teams of 1968 snd 1969. The 80 and 86 teams had better defenses. The 1966 team had an explosive offense but missed the championship game.
Re: Best Cleveland Browns team, post-1965
Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2026 7:02 pm
by saturdaysarebetter
A Brian Sipe-led team vs. a Bernie Kosar-led team. Bernie's teams got closer to the SB. The '86 team had a little more gleam in my opinion.
Re: Best Cleveland Browns team, post-1965
Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2026 9:21 pm
by 74_75_78_79_
The top tier of Browns teams since ’65 would have to be 68/’69. Next tier would be ’86/’87. The former of the pairs lost by lopsided scores in each of their LCGs as opposed to the latter in both their CCGs, but Baltimore & Minnesota far greater obstacles, obviously, than either Denver team.
For #1 overall I’d have to give it to ’68 over ’69. At least they beat the Colts during the regular season (IN Baltimore, only team to beat them that year until Namath). ’69 got crushed by Minny, 51-3, in their regular season meeting. Another reason, ’68 simply one year closer to ’64/’65 and before with ’69 one year closer, simply, to their decline.
The remaining team that was one game away from the Super Bowl? Not just the obvious weak link of the other four, but very agreeable, I think, that also-aforementioned ’72/’80/2020 were each better. AFC was simply quite weak in ’89 hence they not just making it to the ‘final four’ but making 2nd-seed with that 9-6-1 record!
’72 vs ’80 vs 2020’, I opine, would make for a pretty nice debate! Interesting thing about ’72…NO PRO BOWLERS yet still make the playoffs (and, again, almost advance past Miami)!