The Cleveland Browns made an inauspicious return to the NFL when they were reinstated in 1999. After losing the team when it moved to Baltimore for the 1996 season, Cleveland was given an expansion franchise that began play three years later.
As part of that process, the Browns were awarded the No. 1 overall pick in the 1999 NFL Draft. It was seen as a good way to get the team off on the right foot, with a talented selection of players to choose from. Cleveland decided to use that pick on a quarterback, and it unknowingly determined the course of the franchise that continues to this day.
Bleacher Report has named the Browns’ pick of Tim Couch as one of the biggest draft busts in sports history, ranking it at No. 19 on its list of 99 all-time failures.
“In fairness to Tim Couch, the poor guy never had a chance. Yes, Couch was drafted ahead of Donovan McNabb when the Cleveland Browns re-entered the NFL in 1999. The 1999 Browns were one of the worst single-season teams of the Super Bowl era. Couch was thrown to the wolves behind a nonexistent offensive line, got sacked 56 times and his confidence was shot. Couch started 59 games in five seasons and that was that,” B/R Staff wrote.
Couch was considered one of the top prospects in the 1999 draft. He was coming off a stellar season at the University of Kentucky, when he was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy.
He became part of a historic draft, as a quarterback was selected with the first three overall picks. At No. 2, the Philadelphia Eagles selected McNabb of Syracuse, and at No. 3, the Cincinnati Bengals selected Akili Smith of Oregon.
In the days before the NFL rookie contract scale, Couch was given a seven-year contract worth $48 million. As was to be expected, the Browns, with an expansion team roster, were not very good at all, but the franchise chose to play the rookie anyway.
Couch took a beating on that 2-12 team, and in 2000, his season was ended after seven games when he broke his thumb in practice. He showed some promise in the next two seasons, but based on the wear and tear of multiple injuries, he was out of the league in 2003, not even completing his initial contract.
Meanwhile, McNabb went on to play 13 seasons, helping the Eagles make the playoffs eight times, including five trips to the NFC Championship Game and one Super Bowl loss. On the other hand, Smith is No. 11 on this list, having played in just 22 games before he was out of the league in 2002.
To this day, the Browns are still searching for a legitimate franchise quarterback, with Couch the first of 42 starters they’ve used since returning to the NFL.
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