View source for Brian Sipe

{{Short description|American football player (born 1949)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| image       = Sipe1979bySherk.jpeg
| caption     = Sipe c. 1979
| position    = [[Quarterback]]
| height_ft   = 6
| height_in   = 0
| weight_lbs  = 185
| number      = 17
| birth_date  = {{Birth date and age|1949|8|8}}
| birth_place = [[San Diego|San Diego, California]], U.S.
| draftyear   = 1972
| draftround  = 13
| draftpick   = 330
| high_school = [[Grossmont High School|Grossmont]] {{nowrap|([[El Cajon, California]])}}
| college     = {{ubl|[[Grossmont College|Grossmont]] (1967)|[[San Diego State Aztecs football|San Diego State]] (1968–1971)}}
| teams       =
* [[Cleveland Browns]] ([[1974 NFL season|1974]]–[[1983 NFL season|1983]])
* [[New Jersey Generals]] ({{USFL Year|1984}})
* [[Jacksonville Bulls]] ({{USFL Year|1985}})
| highlights  =
* [[NFL Most Valuable Player]] (1980)
* First-team [[All-Pro]] ([[1980 All-Pro Team|1980]])
* Second-team All-Pro ([[1979 All-Pro Team|1979]])
* [[Pro Bowl]] ([[1981 Pro Bowl|1980]])
* [[List of National Football League annual passing touchdowns leaders|NFL passing touchdowns leader]] (1979)
* [[List of National Football League annual passer rating leaders|NFL passer rating leader]] (1980)
* [[Cleveland Browns#Cleveland Browns legends|Cleveland Browns Legends]]
* First-team All-[[Big West Conference|PCAA]] (1971)
| statlabel1  = Passing attempts
| statvalue1  = 3,439
| statlabel2  = Passing completions
| statvalue2  = 1,944
| statlabel3  = Completion percentage
| statvalue3  = 56.5%
| statlabel4  = [[Touchdown|TD]]–[[Interception|INT]]
| statvalue4  = 154–149
| statlabel5  = Passing yards
| statvalue5  = 23,713
| statlabel6  = [[Passer rating]]
| statvalue6  = 74.8
| pfr         = SipeBr00
}}

'''Brian Winfield Sipe''' (born August 8, 1949) is an American former professional [[American football|football]] player who was a [[quarterback]] for the [[Cleveland Browns]] of the [[National Football League]] (NFL) from 1974 to 1983. He then played in the [[United States Football League]] (USFL) for two seasons.

Sipe was born and raised in California. He competed in the [[1961 Little League World Series]] for [[El Cajon, California]], and attended [[Grossmont High School]]. Although mostly sidelined for the first several years of his NFL career, Sipe was eventually recognized as one of the better quarterbacks in Browns history, winning the league's [[NFL MVP Award|Most Valuable Player Award]] in 1980. He was a [[college football]] star under head coach [[Don Coryell]] at [[San Diego State University]], where he studied [[architecture]] and became the team's quarterbacks coach in 2009, remaining in that role for five years, through 2014.<ref name="SDS">{{cite web|url=http://www.foxsports.com/ohio/story/cleveland-browns-san-diego-state-aztecs-qb-coach-brian-sipe-010715 |last=Kiesel |first=Connor |title=Former Browns QB Sipe reportedly removed as San Diego State QB coach |work=[[Fox Sports]] |date=January 7, 2015 |access-date=January 20, 2016}}</ref>

==Playing career==

===National Football League===
Drafted in the thirteenth round of the [[1972 NFL draft]] by [[1971 Cleveland Browns season|the Cleveland Browns]], Sipe spent the first two years of his career as a member of the teamʼs reserve squad, seeing no action on the field.

In [[1974 NFL season|1974]], Sipe started four games after helping the Browns come back from a 12-point deficit against [[1974 Denver Broncos season|the Denver Broncos]] on October 27.  However, after winning just one of these four contests (a 21–14 victory against [[1974 New England Patriots season|the New England Patriots]] on November 11), he was replaced by [[Mike Phipps]].

The team's disastrous [[1975 NFL season|1975 season]] saw Sipe enter the starting lineup after three consecutive losses in which the Browns were outscored 124–26.  Sipe's three starts saw the Browns become more competitive, but still resulted in a trio of defeats, sending him back to the sidelines. The following year, he finally moved into a consistent starting role following an opening game injury to Phipps on September 12, [[1976 NFL season|1976]].  As the team's signal caller that season, he led them to a 9–5 record, a six-game improvement over the previous season. 1976 was the team's second year under head coach [[Forrest Gregg]].

During the first half of [[1977 Cleveland Browns season|the 1977 season]], Sipe led the team to five wins in their first seven games.  However, on November 13 of that year, Sipe suffered a season-ending shoulder injury at [[Three Rivers Stadium]] against [[1977 Pittsburgh Steelers season|the Pittsburgh Steelers]] in the second quarter of the team's 35–31 defeat. With Phipps gone to [[1977 Chicago Bears season|the Chicago Bears]], the Browns turned to back-up quarterback [[Dave Mays]], who went 1–3 as a starter. The 1977 season also saw a head coaching change as Gregg was fired and defensive coordinator [[Dick Modzelewski]] took over for the final game.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/cle/1977.htm|title=1977 Cleveland Browns Statistics & Players|website=[[Pro-Football-Reference.com]] }}</ref> Sipe came back the following year to throw for more than 2,900 yards and 21 touchdown passes, but the team's overall inconsistency resulted in an 8–8 finish.

Serving as the catalyst for many thrilling moments during the [[1979 Cleveland Browns season|1979]] and [[1980 Cleveland Browns season|1980 seasons]], Sipe helped the team earn the nickname "[[Kardiac Kids]]."  The designation was in recognition of their tendency to produce heart-stopping comeback victories in the final minutes of many games. Over the course of these two seasons, Sipe led the Browns to eight comebacks and eleven game-winning drives in the fourth quarter or overtime.<ref>[https://www.pro-football-reference.com/play-index/comeback.cgi?player=SipeBr00 "Brian Sipe's Career 4th quarter comebacks and game-winning drives"] Pro-Football-Reference.com</ref>

Sipe led Cleveland to a 4–0 start in 1979, including a season opening overtime win over [[1979 New York Jets season|the New York Jets]].

====1980 Most Valuable Player award season====
In [[1980 Cleveland Browns season|1980]], Sipe passed for 4,132 yards and 30 touchdowns, helping to lead the Browns to their first postseason berth since [[1972 Cleveland Browns season|1972]].  Individually, his efforts earned him the [[NFL MVP|NFL Most Valuable Player]] award and a selection to the [[1981 Pro Bowl]]. To this day, it is still the Browns single season passing yards record, as well as the only time a Browns quarterback threw for 4,000 yards in a season.

At the end of the divisional playoff game the Browns played against the Raiders, the Browns trailed by a score of 14–12. After the Browns forced the Raiders to turn the ball over on downs on the Browns' 15-yard line, Sipe led the Browns back down the field, reaching the Raiders 13-yard line in 9 plays. With just 49 seconds remaining, the Browns could have kicked a game-winning field goal, but due to the brutally cold and windy weather in Cleveland that day, which made a field goal attempt significantly more risky than usual, Browns' [[head coach]] [[Sam Rutigliano]] instead opted to pass the ball. Sipe attempted a pass to tight end [[Ozzie Newsome]], but it was intercepted in the end zone by Raiders safety [[Mike Davis (defensive back, born 1956)|Mike Davis]]. That play brought the Browns' season to a heartbreaking close, while the Raiders went on to win [[Super Bowl XV]] over the [[Philadelphia Eagles]]. The play call - "[[Red Right 88]]" – was immortalized in Cleveland sports infamy.

====1981 and 1982 seasons====
[[File:Sipe2.jpg|thumb|Sipe signing autographs in Canton, Ohio in 1979.]]
Despite throwing for 3,876 yards [[1981 Cleveland Browns season|the following season]], Sipeʼs Browns struggled to a 5–11 mark. In [[1982 Cleveland Browns season|1982]], Sipe and the Browns won just two of the team's first six games in the strike-marred NFL season, and Sipe was benched in favor of third-year signal caller [[Paul McDonald (American football)|Paul McDonald]].

===United States Football League===
Sipe regained his starting role [[1983 Cleveland Browns season|the following year]], but angered Browns management by negotiating with [[New Jersey Generals]] of the [[United States Football League]] during the season. Sipe finished the 1983 season with 3,566 passing yards and 26 touchdown passes. Sipe had led Cleveland to a 9–7 record and the team just missed qualifying for the American Football Conference playoffs. He then signed with the Generals and played for them in 1984, before concluding his career with the [[Jacksonville Bulls]] in 1985. Sipe's contract with the New Jersey was a three-year deal for $600,000 annually.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1983/12/27/Brian-Sipe-a-13th-round-draft-pick-who-survived-12/6378441349200/|title=Brian Sipe, a 13th-round draft pick who survived 12}}</ref>

==Post-playing career==
Sipe lives in [[San Diego]] and coached the football team at [[Santa Fe Christian Schools|Santa Fe Christian School]] in [[Solana Beach, California]], where he helped the Eagles to four CIF titles and a combined record of 75–21–1. Sipe was hired on January 18, 2009, as the quarterbacks coach for his alma mater, San Diego State.  Sipe served in that role through the end of the 2014 season.<ref name="SDS" />

==Career statistics==
=== NFL career ===
{| class="wikitable"
! colspan="2"| Legend
|-
| style="background:#ffff00; width:3em;"|
| AP [[NFL MVP]]
|-
| style="background:#cfecec; width:3em;"|
| Led the league
|-
| '''Bold'''
| Career high
|}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Team
! colspan="3"| Games
! colspan="8"| Passing
|-
! GP !! GS !! Record !! Cmp !! Att !! Pct !! Yds !! Avg !! TD !! Int !! Rtg
|-
! [[1974 NFL season|1974]] !! [[1974 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]
| 10 || 5 || 2–3 || 59 || 108 || 54.6 || 603 || 5.6 || 1 || 7 || 47.0
|-
! [[1975 NFL season|1975]] !! [[1975 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]
| 7 || 2 || 0–2 || 45 || 88 || 51.1 || 427 || 4.9 || 1 || 3 || 54.4
|-
! [[1976 NFL season|1976]] !! [[1976 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]
| 14 || 12 || 7–5 || 178 || 312 || 57.1 || 2,113 || 6.8 || 17 || 14 || 77.3
|-
! [[1977 NFL season|1977]] !! [[1977 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]
| 9 || 9 || 5–4 || 112 || 195 || 57.4 || 1,233 || 6.3 || 9 || 14 || 61.8
|-
! [[1978 NFL season|1978]] !! [[1978 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]
| '''16''' || '''16''' || 8–8 || 222 || 399 || 55.6 || 2,906 || 7.3 || 21 || 15 || 80.7
|-
! [[1979 NFL season|1979]] !! [[1979 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]
| '''16''' || '''16''' || 9–7 || 286 || 535 || 53.5 || 3,793 || 7.1 || style="background:#cfecec;"| 28 || style="background:#cfecec;"| '''26''' || 73.4
|-
! style="background:#ffff00; width:3em;"|[[1980 NFL season|1980]] !! [[1980 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]
| '''16''' || '''16''' || '''11–5''' || '''337''' || 554 || '''60.8''' || '''4,132''' || '''7.5''' || '''30''' || 14 || style="background:#cfecec;"| '''91.4'''
|-
! [[1981 NFL season|1981]] !! [[1981 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]
| '''16''' || '''16''' || 5–11 || 313 || '''567''' || 55.2 || 3,876 || 6.8 || 17 || style="background:#cfecec;"| 25 || 68.2
|-
! [[1982 NFL season|1982]] !! [[1982 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]
| 6 || 6 || 2–4 || 101 || 185 || 54.6 || 1,064 || 5.8 || 4 || 8 || 60.7
|-
! [[1983 NFL season|1983]] !! [[1983 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]
| 15 || 14 || 8–6 || 291 || 496 || 58.7 || 3,566 || 7.2 || 26 || 23 || 79.1
|-
! colspan="2"| Career !! 125 !! 112 !! 57–55 !! 1,944 !! 3,439 !! 56.5 !! 23,713 !! 6.9 !! 154 !! 149 !! 74.8
|}

=== USFL career ===
{| class=wikitable style="text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Team
! rowspan="2"| GP
! colspan="7"| Passing
|-
! Cmp !! Att !! Pct !! Yds !! TD !! Int !! Rtg
|-
! [[1984 USFL season|1984]] !! [[New Jersey Generals]]
| 16 || 192 || 324 || 59.3 || 2,540 || 17 || 15 || 82.3
|-
! [[1985 USFL season|1985]] !! [[Jacksonville Bulls]]
| — || 55 || 89 || 61.8 || 685 || 4 || 2 || 91.5
|-
! colspan="2"| Career !! — !! 247 !! 413 !! 56.5 !! 3,225 !! 21 !! 17 !! 84.3
|}

==See also==
* [[List of NCAA major college football yearly passing leaders]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{San Diego State Aztecs quarterback navbox}}
{{Browns1972DraftPicks}}
{{Cleveland Browns starting quarterback navbox}}
{{AP NFL MVPs}}
{{NFL passing touchdown leaders}}
{{NFL quarterbacks with a perfect passer rating}}
{{Cleveland Browns Legends}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sipe, Brian}}
[[Category:1949 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American football quarterbacks]]
[[Category:Cleveland Browns players]]
[[Category:Grossmont Griffins football players]]
[[Category:Jacksonville Bulls players]]
[[Category:New Jersey Generals players]]
[[Category:San Diego State Aztecs football coaches]]
[[Category:San Diego State Aztecs football players]]
[[Category:High school football coaches in California]]
[[Category:American Conference Pro Bowl players]]
[[Category:Players of American football from San Diego]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from El Cajon, California]]
[[Category:Players of American football from San Diego County, California]]
[[Category:NFL Most Valuable Player winners]]
[[Category:Grossmont High School alumni]]