On June 9, 2025, a knife went through the hearts of all Browns fans as Nick Chubb officially signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Houston Texans. This was a move that hurt, no matter how fans like myself braced for it. Witnessing the most beloved player since Joe Thomas wear anything other than brown and orange is something Browns fans wish we could unsee. There have been plenty of athletes who left Cleveland, but some look completely out of place in another team’s colors.
Here are 10 Cleveland players who looked crazy playing for another team.
10. Grady Sizemore
This one was especially personal for me. When I started watching baseball during the mid-2000s, the best baseball player in Cleveland was Grady Sizemore. Even on a team with the likes of Victor Martinez, Cliff Lee, and Travis Hafner, he stood out. While the 3x All-Star and 2x Golden Glove winner enjoyed a lot of success in Cleveland, injuries started to mount up. Sizemore only played 104 games from 2010-2013 due to multiple knee surgeries, sports hernia surgeries, and an elbow injury. He later signed with the Boston Red Sox in the 2014 offseason.
9. Josh Cribbs
There haven’t been a lot of bright spots for the Browns since coming back in ’99, but Josh Cribbs was definitely one of them. The QB turned WR from Kent State never had the best receiving stats (only seven career receiving TDs), but his expertise lay in another area. Cribbs has been regarded as one of the best kick returners in NFL history. He ranks 3rd all-time in kick return yards and 2nd in kick return touchdowns, both ahead of HOFer Devin Hester. Cribbs signed a 1-year deal with the then-Oakland Raiders, ending his HOF-worthy tenure in the Dawg Pound.
8.Zydrunas Ilgauskas
I definitely didn’t like this move, but I understood it at the time. 2010 was a rough year for the Cavs, to say the least. The team just had a 60+ win season end in the 2nd round of the playoffs (sound familiar, doesn’t it?), as well as Lebron James leaving to sign with the Heat. Soon after Lebron’s infamous “decision”, Zydrunas Ilgauskas joined him in Miami. The Cavs’ all-time leader in blocks’ desire to win a championship led Big Z down to South Beach. However, he would retire empty-handed as Miami lost to Dallas in six games. Ilgauskas would retire shortly after.
7. Joe Haden
The next player on the list isn’t on here mainly because he left, but more so, where he ended up. Joe Haden was drafted 7th overall in the 2010 Draft, and quickly turned into a shutdown corner. Being tasked with guarding WRs like A.J. Brown, Antonio Brown, and Anquan Boldin, Haden did his job well enough to be a Pro Bowl selection twice in seven years. In 2017, the former Florida Gator was released due to his refusing to accept a $4 million pay cut. Hours later, Haden signed a three-year deal with arch rivals the Pittsburgh Steelers. He signed a one-day contract to retire as a Brown in 2022, so it’s hard to have any negative feelings, but still, Browns fans have the same question. Out of all 31 other teams in the league, why’d it have to be Pittsburgh?
6. CC Sabathia
In the 1998 MLB Draft, Cleveland took a gamble on a hard-throwing left-handed pitcher. Twenty-seven years later, it’s safe to say that gamble paid off. CC Sabathia was dominant for the Tribe from day one. Finishing 2nd for AL Rookie of the Year to Ichiro, being a 3x All-Star, and winning the 2007 Cy Young Award are all testaments to his elite play at that time. Unfortunately, the rest of the team didn’t get the memo. Cleveland was barely a .500 team during Sabathia’s time here, and with his contract negotiations failing, CC was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers. Earlier this year, he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, but it’s still disappointing that a lack of team success kept Cleveland from keeping an elite player.
5. Jim Thome
In a similar fashion to Sabathia’s exit, Jim Thome’s time in Cleveland ended mainly because of the team’s underperformance. The Indians were a juggernaut during the mid-to-late nineties, winning their division five straight years and making two World Series appearances and Thome was a large part of that. During his amazing 13-year career here, Thome hit .287 and had 937 RBI, along with 337 HRs, a franchise record that stands to this day. Unfortunately, with the team entering a rebuilding process in the early 2000s, Thome chose to sign with the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2002 offseason. Just missing out on having Thome mentor a young Travis Hafner and Grady Sizemore is really a gut punch to the fanbase.
4. Baker Mayfield
When he was drafted number one overall in 2018, Baker Mayfield was the Browns’ designated savior. Long story short, it didn’t work out well for him, the team, or the fans. At first, he seemed like a future Cleveland legend, setting multiple Browns rookie passing records. Injuries reared for the former Oklahoma Sooner as well as maturity issues. In the 2022 offseason, Mayfield was traded to the Carolina Panthers, largely due to the acquisition of Deshaun Watson. Baker came into the league looking like the franchise quarterback that the Browns have been desperately needing. He wound up being just another name on an embarrassingly long list of QBs.
3. Kyrie Irving
The former Duke Blue Devil was a star for the Cavs the moment he stepped into the then Quicken Loans Arena. His offensive repertoire seemed to be unmatched. In six years, he averaged 21.6 PPG and 5.5 APG, while winning Rookie of the Year and being a 4x All-Star. Irving’s greatest career achievement came in 2016. He and Lebron James led the Cavaliers to do what most people thought was impossible: bring the city of Cleveland a championship. The good times with Kyrie here wouldn’t last long, as he requested a trade from the team the following year. Irving was traded to the Boston Celtics in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Žižić, and a draft pick. No matter how he left things, it’s safe to say that all Cavalier fans should be grateful for Kyrie Irving.
2. Bernie Kosar
All the emotions we fans are feeling now over the loss of Nick Chubb, I’m willing to bet the same were felt over Bernie Kosar’s departure. The Boardman, Ohio, native wanted badly to play for his hometown team. He bypassed NFL draft rules to get picked up by the Browns in the 1985 supplemental draft. Behind his arm, Kosar led the Browns to heights they hadn’t seen since Otto Graham and Jim Brown. Kosar had Cleveland in three AFC Championship games, with two of them coming down to the final minutes (we’re not going to talk about how we lost those games). In the middle of the 1993 season, then-coach Bill Belichick cut Kosar. The reasons for his release, according to Belichick, were “his physical skills had diminished”. Bernie later won a Super Bowl with Dallas in 1994. With him being top 5 in franchise history in passing yards, passing touchdowns, and passer rating, its no wonder that Bernie Kosar is still beloved in Northeastern Ohio.
1. Lebron James
July, 8, 2010, is a day that will live on in Cavalier infamy. Much like how Bernie Kosar left, we saw another Northeastern Ohioian leave to eventually win a championship elsewhere. Lebron James was the heart of the Cavs, and when he left, all ours broke. His desire to win his first championship was the main factor in his leaving. It’s understandable that he felt that way, and his concerns were valid. The team failed to give him a suitable running mate in seven years. Given the choice between playing with a 34-year-old Anthony Parker and a prime Dwyane Wade, Lebron made a wise choice. The Cavs suffered mightily in the years to come, having only a .311 win percentage from 2010-2014. Lebron did end up coming back, leading the team to four straight finals, winning one in 2016.
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