The 1967
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...
season was the team's 18th season with the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
.
The Browns were back in the playoffs after a one-year absence. They finished 9–5, the same as in 1966, but this time, it was good enough for them to get in as they won the Century Division championship in the first year of play after the NFL split the Eastern and Western conferences into two divisions each. The division race was not close, as the Browns finished two games ahead of the runner-up New York Giants (7–7), their old arch rival in the 1950s and early 1960s.
Running Back Leroy Kelly went over 1,000 yards rushing for the second straight time, getting 1,205 to go along with 11 touchdowns, while Ernie Green, now out of the shadow of Jim Brown, went over 700 yards for the second year in a row, getting 710. Quarterback Frank Ryan, the architect of the 27–0 1964 NFL title game victory over the Baltimore Colts, was in his last full season as a starter. He had 20 TD passes and 16 interceptions. But Ryan, with his body, especially his shoulder, beat up, gave way to
Bill Nelsen early the next year.
The 52–14 playoff loss to Dallas in the Eastern Conference title contest caused Browns head coach Blanton Collier to re-shape his team at other positions as well, as new players were brought in to replace some of the fading stars who had carried the club for years. For instance, this was the last season for Hall of Fame place-kicker
Lou Groza
Louis Roy Groza (January 25, 1924 – November 29, 2000), nicknamed "the Toe", was an American professional football player who was a placekicker and offensive tackle while playing his entire career for the Cleveland Browns in the All-America F ...
, who retired for the second time – this time for good – after making 11 of 23 field-goal tries. Groza, the last member of the original Browns from the team's inception in 1946, would retire after 21 seasons. Groza was replaced the next season by
Don Cockroft
Donald Lee Cockroft (born February 6, 1945) is a former American football punter and placekicker who played 13 seasons in the National Football League with the Cleveland Browns. He has the third most career points for a Brown behind fellow kicker ...
.
Offseason
NFL Draft
The following were selected in the
1967 NFL Draft.
Exhibition schedule
There was a doubleheader on September 2, 1967 Falcons vs Vikings and Packers vs Browns.
Regular season
Schedule
Game summaries
Week 13
The Browns clinch their first Century Division title with a 20-16 victory at
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
. One touchdown comes on an 18-yard interception return by linebacker
Jim Houston and the game ends when St. Louis tight end
Jackie Smith
Jackie Larue Smith (born February 23, 1940) is a former American football tight end in the National Football League for the St. Louis Cardinals and Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at Northwestern Louisiana State College (Northwestern ...
catches a 41-yard pass and is dragged down at the
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
18 yard line.
Week 14
Playoffs
Standings
Personnel
Roster
Staff/Coaches
References
External links
1967 Cleveland Brownsat Pro Football Reference
1967 Cleveland Browns Statisticsat jt-sw.com
1967 Cleveland Browns Scheduleat jt-sw.com
at DatabaseFootball.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:1967 Cleveland Browns Season
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
Cleveland Browns seasons
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...