preached a hard-nosed, physical brand of football, learned as an offensive lineman on Green Bay's dynastic 1960s teams under Lombardi. His success as a player, however, did not immediately translate into success as a coach. The regular season began with the worst losing streak in Cleveland's history. Gregg's first win did not come until November 23 against Paul Brown's Cincinnati Bengals, and Cleveland finished with a 3–11 record. The team improved the following year, ending with a 9–5 record but missing the playoffs. The highlight of that season was an 18–16 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on October 10. Kicker Don Cockroft booted four field goals, while defensive end Joe "Turkey" Jones' pile-driving sack of quarterback Terry Bradshaw added fuel to the heated rivalry between the teams. While Gregg won the NFL's Coach of the Year award for turning the Browns around as Sipe became the starting quarterback, by the beginning of the 1977 season the same kind of friction that dogged Paul Brown's relationship with Modell was surfacing between the owner and the hotheaded Gregg. Cleveland got off to a strong start that year, but Sipe hurt his shoulder and elbow in a November 13 game against the Steelers, and backup Dave Mays took the reins. With Mays as the quarterback – Modell traded Phipps to the Chicago Bears for a couple of draft picks – Cleveland slipped to 6–7 going into the final game of the season and Modell asked Gregg to resign. Modell said he would look outside the Browns organization for a new coach, a break from past hirings that drew from the team's own ranks. Peter Hadhazy, who Modell had hired as the Browns' first general manager, recommended a 45-year-old New Orleans Saints receivers coach named Sam Rutigliano. After an interview before Christmas in which Modell and Rutigliano spent hours talking and watching game film in Modell's basement, the owner named him head coach on December 27, 1977. An affable, charismatic man with an even temper, Rutigliano was a stark contrast to Gregg. Sipe immediately flourished under Rutigliano, racking up 21 touchdowns and 2,906 passing yards during the 1978 season, when the NFL moved to a 16-game schedule. His prime targets were Reggie Rucker, a veteran receiver the Browns signed in 1975, and Ozzie Newsome, a rookie tight end out of Alabama who the Browns drafted with a pick acquired in the Phipps trade. Cleveland