Throwback Corner – Joey Browner

Throwback Corner – Joey Browner  

By Vince Wright

My name is Vince Wright, and I’ve hosted the “Sports Done Wright” Podcast for the past couple of years (you can find it HERE). I’m a new contributor to the purplePTSD/VikingsTerritory/purpleTERRITORY Radio network and for my first contribution I wanted to focus on some past Vikings greats because as time ticks on, so do our memories of some awesome Minnesota Vikings players from years gone past. So with that in mind, for my first article I wanted to write about one of our most feared defensive players in Vikings history and honestly ever, Mr. Joey Browner (who played from 1983 to 1991).

Browner came from a family full of football players, as all of his brothers also played professional football in the NFL and eventually some of his nephews also made it to the league. Amazingly, the Browner family produced SIX NFL players in total, and one of his older brothers, Willard, was also drafted to the Major League Baseball league by the Chicago White Sox (as a pitcher). So, it was little surprise that he ended up following the family trade.Joey was originally from Ohio, which is surprising because he’s thought of as such a local legend down in Georgia. His family did move to Georgia after his sophomore year in high school, where he attended South West High School. He made a splash almost immediately in Georgia, though, as he was awarded All-State honors as a defensive lineman in his first year in Atlanta.

But football wasn’t his only sport, as he also played basketball in high school as well. He actually played alongside the brother of NBA and Atlanta legend Dominique Wilkins, Gerald. Browner was also a track and field star, making it all the way to the state tournament (although this was while he was in Ohio).He built on the success he had as a junior his senior year, where he was credited for 120 unassisted tackles on top of three interceptions. Those stats were more than enough to earn him Parade All-American Honors as the (defensive) lineman of the year (in class 3A). That play also brought Joey to the attention of college scouts, as did his last name. Most of Joey’s older brothers ended up going to Notre Dame, so it was a surprise when he bucked tradition and ended up at USC instead.That ended up being the correct choice, as he played alongside future NFL Hall of Famer and all around bad ass Ronnie Lott (as well as other USC/NFL (at least some of them) in Marcus Allen, Charles White, Anthony Munoz as well as Jeff Fischer who ended up coaching in the NFL for 22 seasons. He continued to pile up honors in college, making the first team All-Pac-10 as well as All-American honors.

During his time at USC he had 243 total tackles, nine interceptions, 40 pass break-ups, seven fumble recoveries and three touchdowns. So, it came as little surprise that he caught the pro scout’s attention and was selected by our Vikings with the 19th overall pick back in 1983. Until Harrison Smith, Browner was the only safety taken in the first-round by the Vikings (as well as the first defensive back ever taken in the first-round by the Vikes).

Browner was known for something I vividly remember about him and that was his physicality. He was also known as the man with the strongest hands in the league (which makes me wonder what would happen if he shook hands with Adrian Peterson). Like his former teammate Ronnie Lott, Browner was so dominant that opposing offensive coordinators had to alter their game plans when facing the Vikings to compensate for the game-changer that Browner was.  Like Lott, also, he was known for his devastating hits. He obviously played after the “Purple People Eater” days but his physicality and skill helped the Vikings defense of the 80’s (and early 90’s) maintain that aura of toughness during a time where the team wasn’t that great, at least until the 1987 season when the 8-7 Vikings upset the “unstoppable” San Francisco 49ers which lead to Bill Walsh losing his complete control of the team.

Many Vikings fans think he should be in the Hall of Fame, well let’s look at the numbers and you can decide.

Joey Browner, career stats:

-Over 1100 tackles for the Vikings

-37 Interceptions, 465 Interception yards, caused 18 fumbles and recovered 16 of those

-Had 20 tackles in a game vs. Cincinnati in 1985, and also had 111 special team tackles.

-Four-time member of the All Madden Team

-6 Time Pro Bowl Player (85-90)

-AP First Team (87,88,90)

-1980’s All Decade Team

-21st member of the Vikings Ring of Honor

-One of the 50 Greatest Vikings

-Browner has been nominated nine times for the NFL Hall of Fame.

So, there’s the question, why isn’t Joey Browner a Hall of Famer? Does he deserve to be?

His position doesn’t get a lot of love from the hall. Vikings legend and all time NFL interception leader Paul Krause had to wait forever, and while I think he should be in, as well as many of his peers, the fact that he never won a ring does hurt with most voters.  And, unfortunately, at this point it’s not looking good for Joey. 

Joey Browner was one of many defensive stars over Vikings history, and a game-changer.  Joey is still active with the Vikings family and will be remembered as one of the top defensive Vikings players ever.  And personally, I would love to see him in today’s NFL.

References:

NFL.com, Vikings.com, Wikipedia, Pro-Football-Reference.com

Vince Wright aka “The Sports Governor of Minnesota” is the host of The Sports Done Wright Podcast and is a Co- Host of the Northstar Sports Podcast.



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