Paul Brown

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Paul Brown was such a towering figure in pro football history that he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame before he had even retired. A head coach for more than 20 years, Brown won plenty of games. But he is remembered and lionized for the many innovations he introduced to the game, most of which have become standard practice in the NFL today. George Halas may have founded what became the NFL, but Paul Brown founded the modern game of pro football.

Paul Brown re-engineered the business of scouting college players and evaluating talent. He pioneered the use of film as a teaching and scouting tool. He was the first coach to keep his players together the night before both home and road games and the first to call plays from the sideline. Brown was the first to use the forward pass as a primary offensive weapon, and when other coaches started emulating his offense, he was the first to design a defense to counterattack his own plays.

A native Ohioan who coached at every level of competition in the state, serving has head coach at renowned Massillon High School, perennial power Ohio State University, the Cleveland Browns, and later the Cincinnati Bengals, Brown left his mark on more than just the Buckeye state. In a career that spanned more than four decades, Paul Brown had only one losing season with the Browns, winning four championships in the AAFC and three more in the NFL before retiring in 1962.

By any measure Paul Brown was one of pro football\'s greatest coaches. And he remains the only coach for which a professional franchise is named—a lasting testament to his place in the history of the NFL. Paul Brown: The Man Who Invented Football will leave readers with a new appreciation for a football genius.