1980 Cleveland Browns season

NFL season
team = Cleveland Browns
year = 1980
coach = Sam Rutigliano
stadium = Cleveland Stadium
record = 11–5–0
division_place = 1st AFC Central
playoffs = Lost AFC Divisional PlayoffsThe 1980 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 31^st season with the National Football League.

For more details on the season, see Kardiac Kids and Red Right 88.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Regular Season

Memorable moments

Week 7 (Home) - Browns 26, Green Bay Packers 21
*Facing a third and 20 from the Packers 46 yard line with 16 seconds left, Brian Sipe completed a pass to Dave Logan for the winning touchdown.

Week 8 (Home) - Browns 27, Pittsburgh Steelers 26
*A fantastic effort to overcome the arch-rival Pittsburgh. Sipe and company fought back from deficits of 10-0, 20-7, and 26-14 to defeat the Steelers in Cleveland. The winning catch was hauled in by Ozzie Newsome with 5:35 to play.

Week 9 (Home) - Browns 27, Chicago Bears 21
*Although it was Mike Pruitt's 56-yard touchdown run that ultimately won the game for Cleveland, Sipe threw for 298 yards and reached a milestone in Browns history, becoming the Browns' all-time passing leader.

Week 11 (Away)- Browns 13, Pittsburgh Steelers 16
*Seeking their first ever win at Pittsburgh's Three Rivers Stadium, the Browns were once again denied, this time on a Terry Bradshaw to Lynn Swann touchdown with eleven seconds left. It marked the Browns 11th consecutive defeat at Pittsburgh.

Week 15 (Away) - Browns 23, Minnesota Vikings 28
*The Browns relinquished what had been a 23-9 lead with only 7:15 remaining. The game is probably most remembered for Browns Safety Thom Darden's deflection of Tommy Kramer's "Hail Mary pass", which was caught by Ahmad Rashad as time expired. Kramer's 456 passing yards were the most ever given up by the Browns.

Week 16 (Away) - Browns 27, Cincinnati Bengals 24
*Needing a win to secure the Central Division title, the Browns hold off the Bengals 27-24. Don Cockroft's game winning field goal came with 1:25 left to play.

eason Standings

eason Schedule

* Week 1 Sep 7 L 34-17 at New England Patriots

* Week 2 Sep 14 L 16-7 vs Houston Oilers

* Week 3 Sep 21 W 20-13 vs Kansas City Chiefs

* Week 4 Sep 28 W 34-27 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

* Week 5 Oct 5 L 19-16 vs Denver Broncos

* Week 6 Oct 12 W 27-3 at Seattle Seahawks

* Week 7 Oct 19 W 26-21 vs Green Bay Packers

* Week 8 Oct 26 W 27-26 vs Pittsburgh Steelers

* Week 9 Nov 3 W 27-21 vs Chicago Bears

* Week 10 Nov 9 W 28-27 at Baltimore Colts

* Week 11 Nov 16 L 16-13 at Pittsburgh Steelers

* Week 12 Nov 23 W 31-7 vs Cincinnati Bengals

* Week 13 Nov 30 W 17-14 at Houston Oilers

* Week 14 Dec 7 W 17-14 vs New York Jets

* Week 15 Dec 14 L 28-23 at Minnesota Vikings

* Week 16 Dec 21 W 27-24 at Cincinnati Bengals

Roster

Postseason

AFC Divisional Playoff

* Oakland Raiders 14, Cleveland Browns 12Linescore Amfootball
Road=Raiders
R1=0
R2=7
R3=0
R4=7
RT=14
Home=Browns
H1=0
H2=6
H3=6
H4=0
HT=12

"at Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio"

*TV: NBC

In a play that has become to be known as Red Right 88, Browns quarterback Brian Sipe's pass was intercepted in the end zone by Raiders safety Mike Davis with 41 seconds left in the game to preserve Oakland's 14-12 victory. Instead of opting for a game winning field goal, Cleveland decided to attempt a passing play because Browns kicker Don Cockroft had previously missed two field goal attempts, had another aborted following a bad snap, and had one extra point blocked.

Awards and records

* Brian Sipe, NFL MVP
* Brian Sipe, PFWA MVP
* Brian Sipe, UPI AFL-AFC Offensive Player of the Year
* Brian Sipe, AFC Leader, Touchdown Passes (30), Tied with another player

Milestones

References

* [http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/cle/1980.htm Browns on Football Reference]
* [http://www.jt-sw.com/football/pro/results.nsf/Teams/1980-cle Browns on jt-sw.com]