The Cleveland Browns are well-represented in the Pro Football Hall of Fame down I-77 in Canton. There are 22 Hall of Famers who spent at least one season with the franchise, including founder/coach Paul Brown.
There are several other Browns alums who at least merit a conversation about Hall-of-Fame worthiness. At least one of these players will eventually earn enshrinement, but all are worth discussing. Here are the seven Cleveland Browns not currently in the Hall of Fame that have the best cases for getting in at some point.
Clay Matthews
It’s almost shameful that Matthews wasn’t part of the centennial class in 2020. He’s widely cited as one of the best players not already in the Hall, and has held that status for several years.
During his 16 seasons in Cleveland (1978-1993), Matthews was a model of consistent excellence. The Browns list Matthews as the team’s career sack leader with 76.5, although some of those were notched before sacks became an official NFL statistic in 1982.
Matthews made four Pro Bowls and one All-Pro team, but he was a player whose impact transcended the traditional statistics. He does have the stats too, however; Matthews led the NFL in total tackles four times and he’s the only player to log at least one 100-tackle season in three separate decades.
Dick Schafrath
Schafrath played all 13 of his NFL seasons (1959-1971) as the Browns’ stalwart left tackle. Notable for being ahead of his time in weight training, Schafrath was a powerful force throughout the 1960s. “The Mule” made four All-Pro teams and was named to six straight Pro Bowls.
The Ohio native earned a spot on Pro Football Reference’s all-decade team for the 1960s. His fearsome blocking helped pave the way for Jim Brown and Leroy Kelly in their Hall-of-Fame careers at running back. His off-field life — from wrestling bears to serving four terms in the Ohio Senate to being the first man to canoe solo across Lake Erie — is enough to augment his legend to Hall-worthy.
Joe Thomas
Joe Thomas will be enshrined in Canton eventually, there is no doubt. Thomas retired after the 2017 season and is not eligible for three more years. The standout left tackle will get in quickly, too. He’s the most decorated, most honored offensive tackle over the first two decades of the 21st century, including his incredible consecutive snap streak.
Hanford Dixon
Dixon, along with running mate Frank Minnifield, helped create the Dawg Pound during his successful 9-year tenure in the Cleveland secondary. At his peak, the plucky 5-foot-11, 186-pound cornerback was one of the NFL’s top cover men.
He made three Pro Bowls and was twice a first-team All-Pro selection, in 1986 and 1987. Dixon earned a spot on the All-Decade 2nd-team for the 1980s. Like Frank Ryan, his shorter career apogee doesn’t stack up well with the Hall of Famers who did it for a longer period. But at his peak, few have barked louder than Dixon did.
Josh Cribbs
Cribbs made his name on special teams, where he was one of the best to ever lace up the cleats. The former Kent State quarterback scored 11 career touchdowns on returns (eight kickoffs, three punts), including four during his All-Pro campaign in 2009. The eight kick return TDs are the most in NFL history.
Cribbs ranks No. 3 in NFL history in career return yards, and he was also one of the best special teams coverage players in the league. He made three Pro Bowls and holds three of the top six seasons in total kick return yards.
Frank Ryan
Ryan took over as Cleveland’s quarterback in 1962 after an underwhelming start to his career with the Rams. In five seasons as the Browns’ primary starting QB, he led the team to a 48-17-1 record. That 5-year peak (1963-1967) saw Ryan throw more TD passes than anyone except Hall of Famer Len Dawson
Ryan made three Pro Bowls and finished in the league’s top 10 in passing yards and top five in touchdowns four times each. He lacks the career longevity of most Hall-worthy QBs, but his peak stacks up as well, and in many cases better than several who are enshrined in Canton.
Michael Dean Perry
A personal favorite, Perry was the linchpin of the great Browns defenses of the late 1980s/early 1990s. The gregarious big man earned five Pro Bowl nods in his seven seasons with the Browns (1988-1994). Perry was one of the best interior pass rushers of his era, bagging 51.5 sacks with Cleveland. That’s more than Hall of Famers Cortez Kennedy and John Randle had in the same timeframe at the same position, the prime of both of their careers.
Perry was named All-Pro first team in both the 1988 and ’89 seasons. He was honored as a second-team All-1990s performer by Pro Football Reference even though he barely played after 1996. Perry checks the “fame” part of the ballot, too; he was popular enough to have his own signature sandwich (the MDP) at McDonald’s.
