Ranking every Cleveland Browns first round draft pick since 1999
By Chad Porto
19. RB William Green, 2002 -16th
William Green was the final piece for the Cleveland Browns offense in 2002. They had Tim Couch at quarterback. Kevin Johnson, Quincy Morgan, and Dennis Northcutt at receiver. They had Ross Verba and Shaun O’Hara on the offensive line. All they needed was a running back to replace James Jackson.
And an offensive line, and some receivers, and maybe a new offensive coordinator, and a defense, and…Ok, maybe the 2002 Browns way overachieved. They ground out some tough wins, ate some tough losses but still made the playoffs for the first time since the 1990s. They were the first squad the new Browns saw get to the playoffs.
They made it possible for the Browns to be in the playoffs for years to come. I said they made it possible, I didn’t say they made it happen.
All of that was supposed to be because of Green. He was the workhorse runner from Boston College and he was the final piece to make Butch Davis’ offense work. Green did play well in spurts as a rookie, but mounting injuries and off-the-field issues, caused him to underperform outside of a magical few games late into the 2002 season.
He has his life on track now and looks bad fondly at his time in Cleveland but Green should’ve been the next great franchise back.