Most Browns fans, especially those born afterward, look back at the early 1960s as a triumphant time for the franchise. Cleveland was a perennial power, a team that didn’t have a losing record from 1957-1974. But there was some very real tragedy and heartbreak in the middle of that glorious run of yearly title contention.
In 1963, three active Cleveland Browns players all died tragically.
Tom Bloom hadn’t yet suited up for the team, but the Browns’ 6th-round pick from Purdue was expected to play a role for the team. The Browns were planning on moving the Boilermakers’ MVP full-time to safety, where he also thrived in college. Bloom died in January of 1963 (the draft was held in December at that time) in a car accident.
The most well-known is Ernie Davis. The No. 1 overall pick in the 1962 NFL Draft was aiming to follow in Jim Brown’s footsteps: from standout rusher at Syracuse to All-Pro for the Browns. Alas, Davis was diagnosed with leukemia shortly after the Browns acquired him and he never played a down for the team. Davis passed away in Cleveland on May 18th.
Davis was a tremendously popular figure, a Heisman Trophy winner with a transcendent smile. President John F. Kennedy sent a eulogy to his funeral in Davis’ hometown of Elmira, New York, an event which over 10,000 attended. His No. 45, which he never actually wore in a game for the Browns, was retired by the franchise.
Don Fleming was the last of the tragedies. The safety was coming off a breakout 1962 season, his third in the NFL, when he was killed in an industrial accident while working in the offseason. Fleming and another man were electrocuted when a crane they were working on in Orlando accidentally brushed into a power line. They were killed instantly.
Fleming was killed on the same day, June 4th, that the Browns announced he had signed a new contract with the team. His No. 46 jersey is retired by the Browns and the practice field at Hiram College, where the Browns held training camp for several years, was named in his honor.
