Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant documents that answer the question.
Query: When did the the Cleveland Browns win their last superbowl?
The Cleveland Browns were a charter member club of the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) when the league was founded in 1946. From 1946 to 1949, the Browns won each of the league’s four championships. The National Football League (NFL) does not recognize the Browns’ AAFC championships, the Pro Football Hall of Fame does recognize the team’s championships, which is reflected in this list. When the AAFC folded in 1949, the Browns were absorbed into the NFL in 1950. The Browns went on to win three NFL championships, nearly dominating the NFL in the 1950s, and won one more NFL championship in 1964. The team has yet to appear in a Super Bowl, however. Overall, the team has won eight championships: four in the AAFC, and four in the NFL.
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.
This game would be the last away win for the Cleveland Browns until Week 12 of the 2018 season when they defeated the Bengals in Cincinnati (the Browns would lose 25 straight away games, one short of the NFL record). It would also be the last time the Browns would defeat an AFC North rival until Week 5 of the 2018 season, when they would defeat the Ravens.
The 1954 NFL season was the 35th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended when the Cleveland Browns defeated the Detroit Lions in the NFL Championship Game.In the Western Division, the 49ers pulled ahead in "Week Five" (October 24) with a 37–31 win over the Lions, but they lost four of their remaining seven games and finished 7–4–1. The Lions, on the other hand, lost only one game in their last seven, and finished 9–2–1. In the Eastern race, the Eagles got off to a 4–0 start, until dropping games to Pittsburgh (17–7) and Green Bay (37–14) to fall into a 3-way tie with the Giants and Steelers. The Browns, who got off to a 1–2 start, went on an 8-game winning streak, gradually catching up with a Halloween win over New York (24–14). A 6–0 win over Philadelphia on November 21 gave them the conference lead, and a 16–7 rematch win in New York the next week extended the margin. The Browns' streak was ended on December 19 with a 14–10 loss to the Lions. When the teams met in Cleveland again the next week (this time for the championship), the Browns won 56–10.
The Kardiac Kids magic returned in the third game of the next season against the Chiefs, when the Browns scored a touchdown in the fourth quarter to win 20–13. More down-to-the-wire games followed, including one against Green Bay on October 19 in which the team won on a touchdown to receiver Dave Logan on the last play of the game. After a close win over the Steelers and a victory over the Bears in which Sipe broke Otto Graham's club record for career passing yards, the Browns met the Colts and eked out a 28–27 win. The team ended with an 11–5 record.
Beginning in the 2014 season, the Browns use a live bullmastiff named "Swagger" as their new mascot. On October 5, 2014, the Browns staged the largest rally in team history, when after trailing the Tennessee Titans 28-3 with 1:09 left in the second quarter, Cleveland scored 26 unanswered points to win the game 29-28. This was also the largest rally by a road team in NFL history. After a 7-4 start, the Browns would lose their final five games to finish the 2014 season at 7-9, last in the AFC North.
After the Detroit Lions whipped the Browns 59–14 in the 1957 NFL Championship Game to atone for the 56–10 pounding they had absorbed from Cleveland in the title contest three years earlier, the 1958 New York Giants took their turn. The Giants shut out the Browns 10–0 in a special playoff game at Yankee Stadium to determine the Eastern Conference champion. The last time the two teams met in such a special playoff contest was 1950, when Cleveland edged New York 8–3 to win the title in the American Conference, the forerunner of the Eastern Conference, and advance to the league championship game.
With the win, not only did the Browns improve to 6–4, but it also marked the first time since 2001 that Cleveland swept Baltimore.
In 1980, the "Kardiac Kids" reached their zenith with last-second win after last-second win–13 of the 16 games were decided in the final two minutes—they finished 11–5 and captured the AFC Central crown. Every time the Browns needed to make a play, they did so. Every time they needed something good to happen, it did.
The first Superbowl of Wrestling was held in Cleveland, Ohio at Municipal Stadium on August 12, 1972. Three rings were set up, side by side, and often more than one match would be going on at a time. Attendance figures have been estimated as high as 20,000 and as low as 5,000. No reliable sources seem to agree on a number.
The history of the Cleveland Browns American football team began in 1944 when taxi-cab magnate Arthur B. "Mickey" McBride secured a Cleveland franchise in the newly formed All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Paul Brown was the team's namesake and first coach. The Browns began play in 1946 in the AAFC. The Browns won each of the league's four championship games before the league dissolved in 1949. The team then moved to the more established National Football League (NFL), where it continued to dominate. Between 1950 and 1955, Cleveland reached the NFL championship game every year, winning three times.
The reactivated Browns have had only two winning seasons since returning to the NFL in 1999: a 9–7 finish in 2002 which also saw the team clinch a wild card spot in the playoffs, and a 10–6 finish in 2007 while barely missing the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Ravens have been more successful, reaching the playoffs eight times since 2000 and winning Super Bowl XXXV and Super Bowl XLVII, often to the dismay of Browns fans. Longtime placekicker Matt Stover was the last remaining Ravens player that played for the Modell-owned Browns – he departed the Ravens following the 2008 season when the team chose not to re-sign him, finishing his career with the Indianapolis Colts. General manager and former Browns tight end Ozzie Newsome (who was in a front-office role under Modell in Cleveland) remains with the Ravens.
The Browns stayed at home for their Week 5 game against the Atlanta Falcons, and tried to build on their first win of the season. The Falcons scored first, on a 24-yard field goal by kicker Matt Bryant early in the second quarter. The Browns soon answered with a 19-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Seneca Wallace to running back Peyton Hillis. Bryant hit another field goal in the quarter to cut the Cleveland lead to one point. Wallace was injured near halftime, and did not return. In the second half, quarterback Jake Delhomme came out for the Browns, but the offense failed to generate any momentum other than a Phil Dawson field goal. The Falcons took the lead when wide receiver Roddy White caught a 45-yard pass from quarterback Matt Ryan. Cleveland tried to mount a comeback, but an interception return by defensive end Kroy Biermann sealed the win for Atlanta, 20–10.
The history of the Cleveland Browns American football team began in 1944 when taxi-cab magnate Arthur B. "Mickey" McBride secured a Cleveland, Ohio franchise in the newly formed All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Paul Brown, who coach Bill Walsh once called the "father of modern football", was the team's namesake and first coach. From the beginning of play in 1946 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, the Browns were a great success. Cleveland won each of the AAFC's four championship games before the league dissolved in 1949. The team then moved to the more established National Football League (NFL), where it continued to dominate. Between 1950 and 1955, Cleveland reached the NFL championship game every year, winning three times.
After a number of coaching changes and roster moves in the offseason, including signing punter Horace Gillom and fullback Tony Adamle, the Browns began with a 30–14 win over the Buffalo Bills, the first of a string of five victories. The team lost its only game of the season to the Los Angeles Dons in October. Five more wins followed before a come-from-behind tie in November with the New York Yankees, the team Cleveland defeated in the 1946 AAFC championship. The Browns won their last two games, including a 42–0 shutout against the Baltimore Colts in the finale, to set up a championship game rematch with the Yankees in December. Cleveland beat the Yankees 14–3 in New York on an icy field to win its second championship in a row.
The Browns were only 2–3 and had been outscored 48–7 in their last two games, and 74–17 in their three losses, before a six-game winning streak ensued. Included in the streak was a last-second, 26–24 comeback win at home over the Steelers, who were trying to win the AFC Central title and make the playoffs for the second time in franchise history and first time since 1947. The Browns finished second to the Steelers (11–3) by a game after winning eight of their last nine contests, the only loss being a 30–0 decision in the rematch in Pittsburgh. The Browns also turned back the Denver Broncos on the road 27–20.
The Bengals started their regular season against the Cleveland Browns, in front of 67,321 spectators at Cleveland Browns Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. On the Bengals' opening drive, the team drove 53-yards and got a field goal. The Bengals' next two drives were a touchdown and another field goal, respectively. Cleveland scored two touchdowns in the second quarter to be up 14–13 going into halftime. On the Bengals' final offensive play before halftime, Dalton was sacked and injured; he did not play the rest of the game. The Bengals were the first to get the ball in the third quarter, but it did not score the entire quarter. On the other hand, the Browns kicked a field goal in the third to go up by four points. In the final quarter, the Bengals scored two touchdowns, including the longest play of the game: a 44-yard reception to Green. With the win, the Bengals began the season 1–0 and secured their first regular season opening day win since 2007. Also, Dalton became the fifth quarterback to win his road debut as a rookie.
The AAFC proposed match-ups with NFL teams numerous times during its four-year existence, but no inter-league game ever materialized. That made Cleveland's entry into the NFL in the 1950 season the first test of whether its early supremacy could continue into a more established league. The proof came quickly: Cleveland's NFL regular-season opener was against the two-time defending champion Philadelphia Eagles on September 16 in Philadelphia. The Browns lit up the Eagles' vaunted defense for 487 total yards—including 246 passing yards from Graham and his receivers—in a 35–10 win before a crowd of 71,237. This decisive win quashed any doubts about the Browns' prowess. Behind an offense that featured Graham, Groza, Motley, Lavelli and running back Dub Jones, Cleveland finished the 1950 season with a 10–2 record, tied for first place in the Eastern Conference. After winning a playoff game against the New York Giants, the Browns advanced to the NFL championship match against the Los Angeles Rams in Cleveland. The Browns won 30–28 on a last-minute Groza field goal. Fans stormed the field after the victory, carting off the goalposts, ripping off one player's jersey and setting a bonfire in the bleachers. "It was the greatest game I ever saw", Brown later said.
The strategy paid off, and in the wind-whipped Cleveland Municipal Stadium two days after Christmas, the Browns beat the Colts 27–0. Neither team scored in the first half, prompting "New York Times" columnist Red Smith to quip, "Never have so many paid so dearly – $10, $8, and $6 – and suffered so sorely to see so little." In the second half, the Browns' defense held on and the offense kicked into gear. Baltimore's cornerbacks were double-teaming Warfield, which Ryan exploited by throwing three touchdowns to his second wideout, Gary Collins. The Browns scored 10 points in the third quarter and a further 17 in the fourth, clinching the first title since Otto Graham's departure after the 1955 season. Collins was named the game's MVP. This would be the last time that any professional sports team from Cleveland would win a league title until 2016, when the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers won the 2016 NBA Finals.
To date, this remains the last time that the Browns have won the NFL title.
With the win, the Browns snapped their 7-game losing streak and improved to 3-10. This is the Browns' last win until Week 16, 2016 against the San Diego Chargers.
Cleveland native Arsenio Hall's television program, The Arsenio Hall Show, is known for the audience's shouting "Woof, woof, woof!" while pumping their fists—a chant that was used by fans of the Cleveland Browns football team. He would refer to a section of the live audience as his "Dawg Pound".[61] On The Drew Carey Show, Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar appears (uncredited) in the episode "Drewstock" (aired January 29, 1997). In the episode "Drew Goes To The Browns Game", (aired September 29, 1999), Drew attends the Browns' first regular season game since re-joining the NFL. (In real life, Drew Carey actually did appear on-field at the first regular season game when the team returned in 1999.) Cleveland Brown is the name of a character originally featured on the Fox TV show Family Guy, and the central character of the spin-off series The Cleveland Show. On the TV show How I Met Your Mother, in the seventh-season premiere, the main characters go to a Cleveland Browns-themed wedding. The Browns have been featured on some level in episodes of Hot In Cleveland and even in promotional videos using at least one of the main characters. In the episode "How Did You Guys Meet, Anyway?" (January 4, 2012), the characters reminisce about how they met in the 1980s while waiting in the restroom line at a Cleveland Browns game.[62] In the episode "God and Football" (January 18, 2012), Melanie (Valerie Bertinelli) develops a relationship with the Browns place kicker (played by Dan Cortese). In the episode "The Gateway Friend" (May 2, 2012) Browns wide receiver/return specialist Josh Cribbs appears as himself portraying a karaoke contestant. After Super Bowl XLVI, Betty White appears in a video as Elka wearing a Browns jacket congratulating the New York Giants and hoping that the Browns win it one season.[63] After the first round of the 2014 NFL draft, the four main characters appear in a video welcoming Justin Gilbert and Johnny Manziel to the Browns.[64] The 1966 film The Fortune Cookie with Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau features the Browns and the city of Cleveland throughout the movie and was made with the cooperation of the Browns.[65] The 2008 film The Express explains how Ernie Davis is traded to the Browns by the Washington Redskins.[66] Early in the film, Jim Brown is taking photos in his Browns uniform after being drafted by them. Later in the film, it shows Davis struggling with leukemia after being drafted and the Browns hold a special pre-game ceremony for him. In the 2010 film Hot Tub Time Machine, the Browns win the 1986 AFC Championship Game (the game famous for former Denver Broncos quarterback John Elway's 98-yard drive). It is explained that the reason why the Browns win this game is due to the butterfly effect. In the 2014 film Draft Day, fictional Browns general manager Sonny Weaver, Jr. (Kevin Costner) attempts to land the number one pick in the NFL draft.
Despite the Browns' success in their AAFC years, many owners and sportswriters thought the team was not as good as its NFL counterparts as it prepared to play in the league in the 1950 season. Redskins owner George Preston Marshall was especially dismissive of the Browns, saying the NFL's "weakest team could toy with the Browns." Greasy Neale, the head coach of the NFL champion Philadelphia Eagles, also did not take the Browns seriously and decided not to scout the team when the Eagles were scheduled to open the 1950 season against Cleveland. The Browns went on to beat the Eagles in Philadelphia and win the NFL championship in 1950.
Though the two teams are in different divisions and did not start playing each other until after 1972, match-ups between the Bills and the Cleveland Browns occasionally get heated up due to the proximity and similarity between the cities of Buffalo and Cleveland. Like the Bills-Jets rivalry, the Bills and Browns often share bad luck and have had their share of ugly games, including a 6-3 Browns win in which the winning quarterback only completed 2 of 17 passes. However, there have been other occasions when both teams have been competitive such as in the 1980s and most recently in 2007 and 2014. The rivalry also gained heat when former Bills safety Donte Whitner was with the Browns. The Browns currently lead the series 12-9, including a playoff win in 1990, though the Bills have outscored the Browns in the series.
When the AFL and NFL merged before the 1970 season, Cleveland became part of the new American Football Conference (AFC). While the Browns made it back to the playoffs in 1971 and 1972, they fell into mediocrity through the mid-1970s. A revival of sorts took place in 1979 and 1980, when quarterback Brian Sipe engineered a series of last-minute wins and the Browns came to be called the "Kardiac Kids". Under Sipe, however, the Browns did not make it past the first round of the playoffs. Quarterback Bernie Kosar, who the Browns drafted in 1985, led the team to three AFC Championship games in the late 1980s but lost each time. In 1995, Modell announced he was relocating the Browns to Baltimore, sowing a mix of outrage and bitterness among Cleveland's dedicated fan base. Negotiations and legal battles led to an agreement where Modell was allowed to move the team, but Cleveland kept the Browns' name, colors and history. After three years of suspension while the old municipal stadium was demolished and Cleveland Browns Stadium took its place, the Browns started play again in 1999 under new owner Al Lerner. Since resuming operations, the Browns have made the playoffs only once, as a wild-card team in 2002.
Before the game, there was a lot of resentment from Cleveland Browns fans, as the Ravens were playing in the Super Bowl only five years removed from the 1995 Cleveland Browns relocation controversy, in which following legal action, the Browns' existing player and staff contracts became the new Ravens franchise; and the Browns' name, history, and archives would stay in Cleveland, and a new Browns team would begin play in 1999 after a three-year period of "deactivation". As the Browns finished with a 3–13 record in 2000, many Browns fans were upset that the Ravens were in the Super Bowl, although Matt Stover, Rob Burnett, and Larry Webster were the only players from the Cleveland days remaining with the Ravens when they won the Super Bowl. Officially, the win made the Ravens the quickest expansion team in NFL history to win a Super Bowl, although much like the 1950 Browns winning the NFL Championship in their first season in the NFL after coming over from the All-America Football Conference, the Ravens were not an expansion team in the traditional sense of the term that started out as a completely brand new organization, coaching staff and players from scratch.