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Paul Brown, A Football Life coming to NFL Network

To this day, Paul Brown is regarded as one of the biggest contributors to the greatest sport on Earth

By Jason Marcum

One of the great coaches in the history of the NFL will be getting his own documentary on the NFL Network this year.

NFL Network's popular series, A Football Life, profiles the most important and influential figures in the history of the National Football League. It documents their lives through the words of former players, coaches, friends, teammates, family members and others associated with them. You won't find a better show at revealing the lives of former NFL greats.

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Former Cincinnati Bengals coach Paul Brown will get his own episode this year, Lindsay Spieler of NFL Films confirmed. "This season Paul Brown will have a long overdue episode dedicated to his legacy," Spieler said to ESPN's Cleveland affiliate.

Brown was a key figure in the NFL's rise in the 1950s and 60s. In that time, he won seven league championships as coach of the Cleveland Browns – four in the AAFC and three in the NFL

After being unceremoniously fired by Cleveland, Brown went on to establish the Bengals franchise in 1968. Under Brown (1968-1975), the Bengals became the quickest expansion team to make the playoffs (in their third year - 1970) - a record that held until 1996 (Jacksonville Jaguars - 2nd season). In his 23 seasons with the franchise as Coach/President/GM/Owner, the Bengals were 171-168-1 (.504), had 7 playoff appearances (5-7; .417) and 2 Super Bowl appearances (0-2).

Brown also helped establish a number of football innovations. He was the first coach to use game film to scout opponents and hire a full-time staff of assistants.. He invented the modern face mask, the practice squad/scout team, and the draw play. He also played a role in breaking pro football's color barrier by bringing some of the first African-Americans to play on his teams.

To this day, Brown is regarded as one of the biggest contributors to the greatest sport on Earth. It's time he got a modern-day documentary to show how he impacted the sport we all love.

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