Dub Jones

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Jones was born into an athletic family in Louisiana and played a variety of sports, including football, at his high school in Ruston. The team won the state championship in 1941, his senior year. He attended Louisiana State University on a scholarship for a year before being transferred to Tulane University in New Orleans as part of a World War II–era U.S. Navy training program. He played college football for the Tulane Green Wave for two seasons before joining the Miami Seahawks of the new AAFC in 1946. The Seahawks traded Jones in 1947 to the AAFC's Brooklyn Dodgers, who subsequently sent him to the Browns before the 1948 season. That year, the Browns won all of their games and the AAFC championship. The team repeated as champions in 1949, but the AAFC dissolved at the end of the year and the Browns joined the NFL. A tall flanker back and a running and receiving threat, he was a key part of Browns teams that won NFL championships in 1950, 1954 and 1955. He was once named to the Pro Bowl, the NFL's all-star game, in 1951, when he set his touchdown record. Jones retired after the 1955 season, but returned to the Browns as an assistant coach in 1963. The Browns won the NFL championship the following year. He left football for good in 1968 and went back to Ruston, where he worked with one of his sons in a general contracting business. He is a member of the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and the Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame.

In Their Own Story

In 1948, Paul Brown traded Bob Chappuis to acquire Jones, who initially struggled on defense. Switched to halfback, he helped the Browns win all their games and the AAFC championship that year. The following season, Jones developed into a star flanker, amassing 312 rushing yards and 241 receiving yards as Cleveland won another title. When the AAFC dissolved in 1950, the Browns joined the NFL, and Jones immediately helped them win the championship against the Rams with 11 total touchdowns. The defining moment of his career occurred on November 25, 1951. In a game against the Chicago Bears, Jones scored six times, tying the single-game record. Despite leading the league in scoring that year and finishing second overall, the Browns lost the championship to the Rams. After production declined in 1953, he retired but was convinced by Brown to return in 1954. He played through a hamstring injury in 1955 before retiring for good, having won two more championships.

Reader's Guide

Jones was selected by the Chicago Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL) with the second pick in the 1946 NFL draft, but did not sign with the team. When the Miami Seahawks of the new All-America Football Conference (AAFC) offered him a $12,000 contract, he accepted it and joined the team. The Seahawks won just three games in 1946, the AAFC's first season of play, and Jones was traded along with two other players to the Brooklyn Dodgers, another AAFC team, in December. Jones played sparingly for the Dodgers in the last three games of the 1946 season. He was hurt early in the 1947 season, hit by Bill Willis of the Cleveland Browns. Injuries to his knee, hip and clavicle forced him to sit out for several weeks. He broke his hand when he returned and had to play exclusively on defense for the rest of the season. Paul Brown, the head coach of the Browns, was impressed with Jones's defensive play for Brooklyn, and traded away the rights to University of Michigan star Bob Chappuis to acquire him in June 1948. Jones began his career with the Browns as a defensive back, but was switched to halfback early in the 1948 season. He played on offense alongside Graham and Marion Motley as the Browns won all of their games in 1948 and beat the Buffalo Bills for their third straight AAFC championship. Over the next two seasons, Jones developed into a star flanker. He had 312 rushing yards and 241 receiving yards in 1949, when the Browns won another AAFC championship. Jones came into his own in the 1950 season, when the Browns joined the NFL. Cleveland won the NFL championship against the Rams that year. Jones had 31 receptions and 11 rushing and receiving touchdowns in 1950. He continued to excel in 1951, scoring 12 touchdowns and amassing a career-high 1,062 yards from scrimmage. He tied an NFL record in a November 25 game by scoring six touchdowns in a 42–21 win over the Chicago Bears. The Browns finished the season with an 11–1 win–loss record and advanced to the championship game, but lost to the Rams. Jones was named to the Pro Bowl and was selected as a first-team All-Pro. He made the Pro Bowl again in 1952, when he had 952 total yards and six touchdowns. In 1953, Jones's production declined: he had just 401 total yards and no touchdowns, and he decided to retire after the Browns reached and lost another championship game. He went back to Ruston, but Brown ask

Did You Know?

• Jones shares the NFL record for touchdowns scored in a single game, with six, set in a 42–21 win over the Chicago Bears on November 25, 1951.
• He was a key part of Browns teams that won NFL championships in 1950, 1954 and 1955.
• Jones returned to the Browns as an assistant coach in 1963, and the team won the NFL championship the following year.