The Cleveland Browns were at a crossroads early in the third quarter of the opening game of the 1976 season.
The team was coming off consecutive losing seasons — the first time in franchise history the Browns had lost more games than they won — and starting quarterback Mike Phipps had been knocked out of the game with a separated shoulder.
Head coach Forrest Gregg, who was coming off a 3-11 season in his first year as a head coach, needed to do something to jumpstart the team.
A 13th-round selection (No.