The Cleveland Browns hosted the St. Louis Cardinals on September 20, 1964, the second week of the NFL season, in what was an early showdown between two teams widely viewed as contenders in the Eastern Conference. Both had won their opening-week games.
The Browns, coached by Blanton Collier, finished second
in 1963 with a 10-4 record. The key to the offense, as it had been since he
joined the club in 1957, was FB Jim Brown (pictured above), but QB Frank Ryan and flanker Gary
Collins were up-and-coming talents, and they were being joined by rookie split
end Paul Warfield, who brought needed speed to the receiving corps. The defense
was capable, if showing some age, and was especially shaky in the backfield.
St. Louis was coming off of a 9-5 record in ’63 under
Head Coach Wally Lemm. QB Charley Johnson was a productive passer with
excellent receivers to throw to in split end Sonny Randle and flanker Bobby Joe
Conrad. There was good depth at running back, and star HB John David Crow was
back after missing virtually all of ’63 due to injury, although HB Bill
Triplett was sidelined due to illness.
There were 76,954 fans in attendance at Cleveland’s Municipal
Stadium on a warm and sunny day. The Cardinals got a break on the first play
from scrimmage when LB Larry Stallings intercepted a Frank Ryan pass and
returned it 18 yards to the Cleveland 22. On the next play, Charley Johnson
tossed a short pass to John David Crow that went the distance for a touchdown.
Jim Bakken added the extra point for the quick 7-0 lead.
Flanker Walter Roberts returned the ensuing kickoff 60
yards to the St. Louis 44 and, with Jim Brown carrying most of the load the
Browns reached the 25 before 40-year-old Lou Groza (pictured at left) kicked a 32-yard field goal.
Now it was Cleveland’s opportunity to benefit from a turnover on the next
series as Bobby Joe Conrad fumbled after catching a short pass from Johnson and
DE Bill Glass recovered for the home team at the St. Louis 20. HB Ernie Green
ran for five yards and Brown carried twice for another 14, but after advancing
to the one, a penalty moved the Browns back and they had to settle for a
12-yard Groza field goal that made it a one-point contest.
The Cards put together a good drive in the waning minutes
of the opening period. Johnson completed a pass to HB Joe Childress for 21
yards and Crow and Childress both ran effectively. Bakken kicked a 30-yard
field goal and the visitors extended their lead to 10-6 heading into the second
quarter.
The Browns went three-and-out on their next possession
but got the ball back on an interception by CB Ross Fichtner. Starting from the
St. Louis 33, the home team reached the 16 but was flagged for a personal foul
on a third down play that not only backed them up 15 yards but cost them the
services of Green, a capable blocker as well as running mate for Brown, who was
ejected. Groza kicked his third field goal of the contest, from 37 yards, and
the Cards’ lead was once again narrowed to a single point at 10-9.
On the next series, the Cardinals advanced past midfield
as Crow and Childress again ran well and Johnson tossed a pass to Conrad. The drive stalled at the Cleveland 44, but
Bakken came through with a 51-yard field goal, which was a club record at the
time and made the score 13-9. The Browns moved quickly to take the lead on the
next possession, going 69 yards in just three plays. Ryan threw to Paul
Warfield for 12 yards and Gary Collins for 17 more, and then followed up with a
long pass to Warfield for a 40-yard touchdown. Groza converted and Cleveland
was now ahead at 16-13, which remained the score at halftime.
St. Louis started off the third quarter with a 71-yard
drive in seven plays. Crow carried four straight times for 18 yards and
Childress added another nine before Johnson connected with Sonny Randle (pictured at right) for a
38-yard TD. Bakken added the point after and the Cards were back on top by
20-16.
The Cardinals got the ball back on the ensuing kickoff
when Roberts fumbled and OT Herschel Turner recovered at the Cleveland 43. The
short series was followed by another Bakken field goal, this time from 44 yards
for an extended margin of 23-16.
The Browns went three-and-out and punted but now it was
the Cardinals turning the ball over once more as Johnson faded back to pass and
fumbled when hit by Glass. DT Dick Modzelewski recovered at the St. Louis 28.
Ryan passed to Collins for 21 yards and then hit the flanker again for a
seven-yard touchdown. Groza converted and the score was tied at 23-23.
The teams exchanged punts but the Cardinals were on the
move at the end of the period and, on the first play of the fourth quarter,
Johnson completed a pass to Randle for a 50-yard TD. Bakken added the PAT to
make it a 30-23 game.
The Browns responded with a long drive of 72 yards that
took 13 plays. Ryan was successful on three passes and ran out of the pocket
for 17 yards to the St. Louis 12. However, he was also sacked for a 14-yard
loss and, while a toss to Brown got eight yards back, Cleveland had to settle
for another Groza field goal, from 25 yards, cutting the visitors’ lead to
30-26.
The Cards went three-and-out and punted on their next
series and the Browns responded with a 12-play, 61-yard possession. Facing a
fourth-and-19 situation at the St. Louis 45 after Ryan was sacked, and with
only 1:28 remaining on the clock, Ryan completed a pass to Collins for 43
yards. Two plays later, Brown swept into the end zone from a yard out and, with
Groza’s extra point, Cleveland was back on top by three points at 33-30 and
appeared to have the game in hand.
St. Louis took over following the kickoff at its own 25
with 28 seconds to play. Johnson passed over the middle to Childress for a gain
of 24 yards and then to Randle at the sideline for 14. Another completion, this
time to Crow, put the Cards at the Cleveland 21 with the clock now down to
seven seconds. Bakken came on to kick a 28-yard field goal and the game ended
in a 33-33 tie.
The Cardinals had the edge in total yards (344 to 281)
while Cleveland had more first downs (18 to 17). While St. Louis had more net
passing yards (241 to 189), the rushing totals were almost even (115 to 114, in
favor of the Browns). Each club recorded two sacks and turned the ball over
three times. Jim Bakken (pictured below) and Lou Groza
both were a perfect four-for-four on their field goal attempts. The Cards were
penalized eight times, to two flags thrown on the Browns.
Charley Johnson completed 14 of 27 passes for 241 yards
and three touchdowns while giving up one interception. John David Crow rushed
for 58 yards on 11 carries and caught three passes for 29 yards and a TD while
Joe Childress contributed 52 yards on 14 rushing attempts and also pulled in
three passes, for 50 yards. Sonny Randle led the Cards with four pass
receptions for 121 yards and two TDs.
For the Browns, Frank Ryan, who was battered by the pass
rush throughout the contest, was successful on 12 of 26 throws for 189 yards
and two TDs and was intercepted twice. Gary Collins caught 6 passes for 105
yards and a touchdown and Paul Warfield added three receptions for 63 yards and
a score. Jim Brown ran for 79 yards on 21 carries that included a touchdown.
Both teams remained in a battle for the top spot in the
Eastern Conference throughout the season. The Cardinals got off to a 3-0-1
start before losing three of four while Cleveland lost just one game during
that stretch to open up a two-game advantage. While the Cards finished strong,
including a win over the Browns in the rematch at St. Louis, they finished in
second place at 9-3-2 while Cleveland took the crown at 10-3-1 and went on to
upset the Colts for the NFL Championship.
Jim Brown, for the seventh time in eight seasons, led the
league in rushing with 1446 yards. Frank Ryan threw the most touchdown passes
(25) while Gary Collins had 35 catches for 544 yards (15.5 avg.) and eight TDs
and Paul Warfield had an outstanding first year with 52 receptions for 920
yards (17.7 avg.) and nine scores.
Charley Johnson (pictured above) led the NFL in pass attempts (420),
completions (223), yards (3045), and, less fortunately, in interceptions (24).
Sonny Randle appeared in only seven games due to a shoulder injury and compiled
25 pass receptions for 517 yards (20.7 avg.) and five touchdowns.
Lou Groza and Jim Bakken, who matched each other field
goal for field goal in the Week 2 game, ended up tied for second in scoring
with 115 points. Bakken led the NFL with 25 field goals (in 38 attempts), while
Groza placed second with 22 (out of 33 tries). Groza had the edge in extra
points by 49 to 40.
