# 1961 Cleveland Browns season

The 1961 Cleveland Browns season marked the team's 12th season in the National Football League (NFL) and was the 16th in franchise history.

## Offseason

On March 22, Dave R. Jones sold the Browns to a group headed by Arthur B. Modell.

## Exhibition schedule

| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | August 11 | at Detroit Lions | L 7–35 | 0–1 | Tiger Stadium | 25,602 |
| 2 | August 20 | at San Francisco 49ers | W 27–24 | 1–1 | Kezar Stadium | 38,759 |
| 3 | August 25 | at Los Angeles Rams | W 34–17 | 2–1 | Los Angeles Coliseum | 40,086 |
| 4 | September 2 | vs. Pittsburgh Steelers | W 38–6 | 3–1 | Rubber Bowl | 27,758 |
| 5 | September 9 | Detroit Lions | L 17–35 | 3–2 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 41,374 |

## Regular season schedule

| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
| 1 | September 17 | at Philadelphia Eagles | L 20–27 | 0–1 | Franklin Field | 60,671 | Recap |
| 2 | September 24 | St. Louis Cardinals | W 20–17 | 1–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 50,443 | Recap |
| 3 | October 1 | Dallas Cowboys | W 25–7 | 2–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 43,638 | Recap |
| 4 | October 8 | Washington Redskins | W 31–7 | 3–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 46,186 | Recap |
| 5 | October 15 | Green Bay Packers | L 17–49 | 3–2 | Cleveland Stadium | 75,042 | Recap |
| 6 | October 22 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | W 30–28 | 4–2 | Forbes Field | 29,266 | Recap |
| 7 | October 29 | at St. Louis Cardinals | W 21–10 | 5–2 | Sportsman's Park | 26,696 | Recap |
| 8 | November 5 | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 13–17 | 5–3 | Cleveland Stadium | 62,723 | Recap |
| 9 | November 12 | at Washington Redskins | W 17–6 | 6–3 | D.C. Stadium | 28,975 | Recap |
| 10 | November 19 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 45–24 | 7–3 | Cleveland Stadium | 68,399 | Recap |
| 11 | November 26 | New York Giants | L 21–37 | 7–4 | Cleveland Stadium | 80,455 | Recap |
| 12 | December 3 | at Dallas Cowboys | W 38–17 | 8–4 | Cotton Bowl | 23,500 | Recap |
| 13 | December 10 | at Chicago Bears | L 14–17 | 8–5 | Wrigley Field | 38,717 | Recap |
| 14 | December 17 | at New York Giants | T 7–7 | 8–5–1 | Yankee Stadium | 61,084 | Recap |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |||||||||

## Standings

NFL Eastern Conference :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| New York Giants | 10 | 3 | 1 | .769 | 9–2–1 | 368 | 220 | T1 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 8–4 | 361 | 297 | W1 |
| Cleveland Browns | 8 | 5 | 1 | .615 | 8–3–1 | 319 | 270 | T1 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 7–5 | 279 | 267 | W3 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 5–7 | 295 | 287 | L1 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 4 | 9 | 1 | .308 | 2–9–1 | 236 | 380 | L4 |
| Washington Redskins | 1 | 12 | 1 | .077 | 1–10–1 | 174 | 392 | W1 |
       Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
NFL Western Conference :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Green Bay Packers | 11 | 3 | 0 | .786 | 9–3 | 391 | 223 | W1 |
| Detroit Lions | 8 | 5 | 1 | .615 | 7–4–1 | 270 | 258 | L1 |
| Chicago Bears | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 7–5 | 326 | 302 | W2 |
| Baltimore Colts | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 6–6 | 302 | 307 | W1 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 7 | 6 | 1 | .538 | 6–5–1 | 346 | 272 | L1 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 4 | 10 | 0 | .286 | 3–9 | 263 | 333 | L1 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 3 | 11 | 0 | .214 | 3–9 | 285 | 407 | L2 |
       Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

## Awards and records

* Jim Brown, NFL rushing leader, 1,408 yards
* Milt Plum, NFL leader, passing yards, (2416)

### Milestones

* Jim Brown, Fourth Consecutive 1,000 yard season
* Jim Brown, Fifth Consecutive Rushing Title