Droughns ends the 20-year wait

He went over 1,000 yards rushing, the first time since 1985 in Cleveland.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
CLEVELAND -- A crowd of reporters gathered around Kevin Mack at halftime of Sunday's game, causing the former Browns running back to step back for a moment.
"This is kind of scary," said Mack. "I haven't seen this since I played."
He also hasn't seen a 1,000-yard rusher wearing a Browns uniform.
Until Sunday.
Reuben Droughns entered the game needing 59 yards to become the first Cleveland player to reach the milestone since Mack and Earnest Byner both did it in 1985. Droughns passed the mark on a 6-yard run with 50 seconds remaining in the first half and finished with 30 carries for 88 yards. He's the seventh Browns running back to pass 1,000, which has happened 20 times in club history.
Browns leaders
Jim Brown did it a team-high seven times with a high of 1,863 yards in 1963. Mike Pruitt (four times), Leroy Kelly (three) and Greg Pruitt (three) also accomplished the feat.
"Honestly, I wanted to get it behind me," said Droughns, who got a standing ovation from the crowd. "I knew [it] was going to come sometime this season.
"[But] it's really great that we did it in front of the fans. I know they were real excited about it."
It's not new territory for Droughns, who ran for 1,245 yards last season for the Denver Broncos. But it is for Browns fans, whose 20-year wait was the longest such streak in the NFL.
Every NFL team since 2000, including the expansion Houston Texans, has had a 1,000-yard rusher.
"It was a long time coming," Mack, who never again rushed for 1,000. "It's great for the franchise and it's great for Reuben.
"It's hard to believe it took that long."
Last time it happened
Mack ran for 1,104 yards and Byner had 1,002 that season as rookie quarterback Bernie Kosar led the Browns to an 8-8 record and the AFC Central title. They're the last duo to accomplish the feat -- Denver running backs Mike Anderson and Tatum Bell have a chance this year -- and just the third all-time. The others were Miami's Larry Csonka and Mercury Morris in 1972 and Pittsburgh's Franco Harris and Rocky Bleier in 1976.
Mack was a rookie in 1985 and Byner was in his second year. Byner ran for 27 yards on the team's final two offensive plays to get 1,000. He needed 7 yards on his last play and got 9.
The thing is, he didn't know it.
"He was walking off the field [after the last play] with his head down and I came over and said, 'Hey man, you got it,' " said Mack. "He didn't believe me until he saw the stats."
From 1986 to 2004, 252 different running backs ran for 1,000 yards but no Browns back came within 100 yards. Leroy Hoard came the closest, rushing for 890 yards in 1994. William Green finished with 887 in 2002.
"Reuben's doing a pretty good job," Mack, who retired after the 1993 season, said. "I hope he keeps it up."
scalzo@vindy.com