Help me find this player.. Old guy, didn't last long (1 Viewer)

I wa shaving a discussion this past weekend with a Browns fan and we were discussing past QB's, and I could have sworn this guy played for the Browns. The more I look, the more I think I may be wrong, but I do know this guy existed, I just might have the wrong team. It's a shame because I used to be sooo knowledgeable on old school NFL.....

Please tell me who I am thinking of..... (Some of these hints are just my recollection, and may not be 100% accurate)

Lane/Layne. I keep thinking Bobby Layne but he played for the Bears.

Played a year or two and did really good. Many people thought he was supposed to be one of the best passers ever.

Tore his shoulder up and played through it.

Came back next year and got hurt again, and I think he was done from then on out.

somebody here has this guy as his avatar.

Running out to grab lunch, will check back in in about 20 minutes....TIA guys.

Without looking anywhere on the web, was it Bill Nelson? If it wasn't Cleveland, was it Greg Cook for the Bengals?

Hoss_Cartwright said:

Without looking anywhere on the web, was it Bill Nelson? If it wasn't Cleveland, was it Greg Cook for the Bengals?

Click to expand...

Those are the two names that come to mind first.We'll need some more hints if it wasn't one of them. (Year he played, draft status, college conference, years he played, e.g.)

Some details don't match up, but could it be:

Don Majkowski?

brian sipe?

Chase Stuart said:

Hoss_Cartwright said:

Without looking anywhere on the web, was it Bill Nelson? If it wasn't Cleveland, was it Greg Cook for the Bengals?

Click to expand...

Those are the two names that come to mind first.We'll need some more hints if it wasn't one of them. (Year he played, draft status, college conference, years he played, e.g.)

Click to expand...

God, I have no idea why this guy is escaping me right now. Not intending this to be a smart ### remark, but if I knew those things I would just look them up myself.This is killing me now.I do know that it had be pre 80's, and I think it was in the 50s or 60s.

Again, just poor memory, but I want to say that Bill Walsh thought he was the best QB he had ever seen prior to Montana.

That's Greg Cook.

from his wiki:



He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the first round of the 1969 NFL Draft

The Bengals released John Stofa, the Bengals' starting signalcaller for much of the team's inaugural season, and named Cook as the Bengals' starting quarterback. His season started spectacularly, leading the Bengals to a 3-0 record. However, in game three versus Kansas City, Cook felt a pop in his right (throwing) shoulder after being tackled and missed the next three games. Due, arguably, to the limited medical technology at the time, the fact that his rotator cuff had been torn went undiagnosed.

Despite this, Greg Cook went on to pass for 1,854 yards and led the Bengals to wins over the Chiefs and the Oakland Raiders, the two best teams in the AFL. His 9.411 yards per pass attempt and 17.5 yard per completion are rookie records that still stand. Cook was UPI's choice for AFL Rookie of the year.

Recalls Cook: "I took cortisone shots and played in pain, but the shoulder hadn't started to deteriorate yet, so I could still function. I still had the strength. I felt obligated to finish the season. I'd gotten off to a good start. I didn't want to relinquish that." [1]

The rotator cuff began deteriorating after the season; during surgery, it was revealed that Cook also had a partially detached biceps muscle. After three operations proved futile, he retired. A 1973 comeback attempt failed and Cook retired permanently. Many football experts - including then Bengal's assistant coach Bill Walsh - say that had it not been for that injury, Cook may very well have gone on to be the greatest quarterback of all time. The NFL Network Top Ten series named Cook the #1 One Shot Wonder in NFL History.

Hoss_Cartwright said:

Without looking anywhere on the web, was it Bill Nelson? If it wasn't Cleveland, was it Greg Cook for the Bengals?

Click to expand...

Winna!

Thanks guys..... Couldn't remember him for the life of me.

Too bad about Cook too.

I still remember the bumper stickers in Cincinnati the following fall:

"We're not Cooked yet"

Sadly, with Virgil Carter taking over, they were...

Cook, along with Marino, Ryan and Roethlisberger, had one of the best four rookie QB seasons of all time (ignoring guys who were not morally rookies their rookie season).

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/blog/?p=799

Deadman31 said:

brian sipe?

Click to expand...

Eaaaasy on THE cardiac kid there deadman.